Events

The Fenway Bowl invites college football’s postseason to Boston

Virginia and SMU promises to be high-scoring, with not much to lose for either transitioning team.

Fenway Park played host to high school football ahead of Thanksgiving, the precursor to college teams from Virginia and Southern Methodist University taking the field for a bowl game to close out 2021.

By Dave D'Onofrio

2 minutes to read

Fenway Park has a long history as a football stadium, and has been building on that legacy since reinstalling its gridiron for Boston College vs. Notre Dame in 2015. Now it’s ready to add a new chapter.

America’s Most Beloved Ballpark will host its first college football bowl game, the Wasabi Fenway Bowl, when Virginia and Southern Methodist come north to do battle on Dec. 29. The Cavaliers (6-6) earned their invitation by finishing fourth in the ACC, while SMU (8-4) will be representing the American Athletic Conference, in which it finished the season sixth.

The Cavaliers bring a big-time passing game, with quarterback Brennan Armstrong leading an aerial assault that averaged 392 yards per game to rank second nationally. In fact, when his running is added in, Armstrong accounted for more yardage per game than any player in the nation this season. That’s not a great matchup for the Mustangs, who rated among the 10 worst pass defenses in the Football Bowl Subdivision this season.

Overall, Virginia has posted the third-most yards in the FBS – though SMU can take confidence in the fact that it’s built to hang with its opponent offensively. SMU is averaging 38.4 points per game, while Virginia is at 34.6. Their own quarterback, Tanner Mordecai, has been a big reason why after transferring from Oklahoma. However, his top receiver, Reggie Roberson, has already declared for the 20222 NFL Draft and has opted out of joining the Mustangs at Fenway.

So, not only is this a transition to a new era for Fenway as a college football destination, it’s also a transition to a new era for both of the teams involved — including both players and coaches. Shortly after the Cavaliers finished the regular season with four straight losses (three to ranked foes), Virginia head coach Bronco Mendenhall announced that he would be leaving his job after the team’s bowl game. Meanwhile, SMU’s Sonny Dykes was hired away from the school by TCU. He’s gone, and although Rhett Lashlee has been named as his replacement, the Mustangs will go the interim route for their season finale. Defensive coordinator Jim Leavitt will lead the team in Boston.

The timing of the game isn’t exactly convenient – it’s on a Wednesday morning – and neither of the schools is local, so seats are still available. Tickets start at $30 through the Red Sox, though leading into Christmas they were going for less on the open market, and Fenway was offering a four-ticket package similar to what they’ve offered for baseball games in the past. That deal includes four tickets, hot dogs, and sodas for a total of $99.

That might not be a bad price to witness a piece of history.