NC State's football team will ring in the New Year in the Sunshine State, as the Wolfpack has been selected to play in the TaxSlayer Gator Bowl. The game, which will be played at TIAA Bank Field in Jacksonville, Fla., on Jan. 2, 2021 and will kick off at 12 p.m. on ESPN.
The Wolfpack finished the season with eight regular season wins and set a record with seven ACC victories. The invitation marks the eighth in Dave Doeren's 10-year stint as a head coach and his sixth in his eight seasons at the helm of the Wolfpack.
"We are excited for the chance to return to the TaxSlayer Gator Bowl," said Doeren, who ranks second in school history with 55 victories. "This is a great reward for our players at the end of what has been a very unique season."
The Wolfpack will face SEC foe Kentucky, which enters the game with a record of 4-6 after closing the regular season with a 41-18 win over South Carolina.This will mark only the fourth all-time meeting between the two schools, with the Wildcats holding a slight 2-1 edge. The two squads have met only one time since 1909, a 27-2 Kentucky win in 1970 in Lexington, Ky.
This is NC State's 33rd bowl appearance (17-14-1) and its fifth in the Gator Bowl. The Wolfpack played its first bowl game at the storied bowl in 1947 and also played there in 1992, 2002 and 2018.
"We're grateful for the opportunity to compete in the TaxSlayer Bowl against a quality opponent from the SEC, "said NC State Director of Athletics Boo Corrigan. "We look forward to heading to Jacksonville, our players, coaches and staff have worked incredibly hard throughout this season to put our program in this position, and we're glad it will end in a January bowl game."