Dec. 6, 2015
Alumni Association bowl information
The San Jose State University football program, with its best finish in the Mountain West's West Division in its three years of conference membership, accepted an invitation to play in the AutoNation Cure Bowl presented by Florida Hospital in Orlando, Fla. Gene Bleymaier, the Spartans' director of athletics, made the announcement.
San Jose State (5-7, 4-4 Mountain West) will face Georgia State (6-6, 5-3 Sun Belt) on Saturday, December 19, at 7:00 p.m. (ET)/4:00 p.m. (PT) in the Orlando Citrus Bowl. The CBS Sports Network will provide national television coverage.
The San Jose State University football program is both honored and excited to participate in The AutoNation Cure Bowl game and the festivities surrounding it. Our players look forward to another opportunity to compete together as a team and represent San Jose State University," says head coach Ron Caragher. "We are thankful for this tremendous opportunity for our program and look forward to contributing to this bowl's cause -- raise the awareness and help find a cure for breast cancer."
This year's San Jose State team features a balanced offense that was the second in school history to score at least 20 touchdowns each rushing and passing and gain at least 2,000 rushing and passing. The Spartans had 11 All-Mountain West players led by first-team selections running back Tyler Ervin, tight end Billy Freeman, a John Mackey Award semifinalist, and punter Michael Carrizosa, one of three finalists for the Ray Guy Award. Linebacker Christian Tago, the team's leading tackler, and offensive tackle Wes Schweitzer, two of the team's four captains, were second-team All-Mountain West choices.
San Jose State is facing Georgia State for the first time and will be making its tenth post-season bowl appearance. The Spartans have an all-time record of 6-3 in bowl games.
The AutoNation Cure Bowl will be the University's second consecutive post-season game in the Eastern Time Zone. San Jose State defeated Bowling Green, 29-20, in the 2012 Military Bowl in Washington, D.C. The Spartans will be traveling to Central Florida with a three-game bowl winning streak that includes victories over Central Michigan in the 1990 California Raisin Bowl and New Mexico in the 2006 inaugural New Mexico Bowl.
"We're pleased and excited to extend the season and play in the AutoNation Cure Bowl in Orlando. It's worth noting that it was the team's academic performance coupled with what they did on the field that made this invitation possible. We're looking to representing our University and the Mountain West in this post-season event," says Bleymaier, whose mother, Rosemary, succumbed to breast cancer in 1984.
The AutoNation Cure Bowl is produced by the Orlando Sports Foundation and supports the Breast Cancer Research Foundation.
To purchase tickets, visit Ticketmaster.com or contact the San Jose State University Athletics Ticket Office at (408) 924-SJTX.