2018 Holiday Bowl
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| 2018 San Diego County Credit Union Holiday Bowl | |||||||||||||||||||||||
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| 41st Holiday Bowl | |||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Date | December 31, 2018 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Season | 2018 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Stadium | SDCCU Stadium | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Location | San Diego, California | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| MVP | Clayton Thorson (QB, Northwestern)[1] & JR Pace (S, Northwestern)[2] | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Favorite | Utah by 7[3] | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| National anthem | Haley Reinhart | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Referee | Brandon Cruse (Big XII) | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Attendance | 47,007[4] | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Payout | US$6,326,000 [5] | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| United States TV coverage | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Network | FS1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Announcers | Gus Johnson, Joel Klatt and Jenny Taft | ||||||||||||||||||||||
The 2018 Holiday Bowl was a college football bowl game played on December 31, 2018.[6] It was the 41st edition of the Holiday Bowl, and one of the 2018–19 bowl games concluding the 2018 FBS football season. This was the second season in which the Holiday Bowl was held at SDCCU Stadium. Sponsored by San Diego County Credit Union, the game was officially known as the San Diego County Credit Union Holiday Bowl.
Northwestern Wildcats
The game featured the Northwestern Wildcats, champions of the Big Ten West Division, and the Utah Utes, champions of the Pac-12 South Division.[7] The programs had previously met twice, with Northwestern winning in 1927 and Utah winning in 1981.[8]
Northwestern was defeated in the 2018 Big Ten Football Championship Game on December 1 by Ohio State, then received and accepted a bid to the Holiday Bowl on December 2.[7] The Wildcats entered the bowl with an 8–5 record (8–1 in conference).
Utah Utes
Utah was defeated in the 2018 Pac-12 Football Championship Game on November 30 by Washington, then received and accepted a bid to the Holiday Bowl on December 2.[7] The Utes entered the bowl with a 9–4 record (6–3 in conference).