Notre Dame Headed to 2023 Tony the Tiger Sun Bowl to Face Oregon State
Notre Dame (9-3) will face Oregon State (8-4) in the 2023 Tony the Tiger Sun Bowl in El Paso, Texas on December 29th at 2:00 PM ET.
The bowl destination is quite shocking for the Notre Dame program as even the Sun Bowl failed to have a gold helmet on site for the announcement.
It will be the 12th time in 13 seasons Notre Dame has reached a bowl and the Irish have made one appearance in the Sun Bowl as Notre Dame defeated Miami 33-17 in December of 2010.
Irish receiver Michael Floyd was named the C.M. Hendricks MVP and Harrison Smith tied the Sun Bowl record with three interceptions against Miami. The game also set a Sun Bowl attendance record of 54,021.
Notre Dame will enter the game 0-2 against Oregon State as the Beavers beat the Irish 41-9 in the 2001 Fiesta Bowl and then 38-21 in the Insight Bowl in 2004.
Oregon State has appeared in the Sun Bowl two other times, including in 2008 when the Beavers beat Pitt 3-0.
As it relates to the Beavers, quarterback DJ Uiagalelei, right tackle Taliese Fuaga and receiver Anthony Gould (44 catches, 718 yards) are expected not to play in the bowl. Oregon State star running back Damien Martinez also won’t play as he’s suspended from the bowl as he was arrested for DUII on November 30th. Martinez led the PAC-12 with 1,185 rushing yards in 2023.
It will be the first game under new head coach Tyler Bray as he was promoted from defensive coordinator when Jonathan Smith left for the head coaching job at Michigan State.
TEAM COMPARISON
| STAT | OREGON STATE | NOTRE DAME |
| Total Yards | 426.9 | 429.3 |
| Passing | 246.8 | 247.8 |
| Rushing | 180.8 | 181.5 |
| Yards Allowed | 340.3 | 282.9 |
| Passing Allowed | 236.1 | 154.2 |
| Rushing Allowed | 104.1 | 128.8 |
The Sun Bowl was first played on New Year’s Day in 1935.
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