The participating teams for the DirecTV Holiday Bowl often aren’t determined until just hours before the Selection Sunday announcement.
Last year’s announcement was delayed nearly an hour while the Atlantic Coast Conference, bowl directors and television executives dickered — bickered? — over how to distribute the conference’s teams between the Holiday and Gator bowls.
By contrast, the matchup for the 2023 Holiday Bowl came together a week ago, with an expected pairing of Clemson against USC.
Then it wasn’t.
When the CFP selection committee snubbed undefeated Florida State for the four-team playoff on Sunday morning, the dominoes began falling.
The Holiday Bowl planned a livestream for a few minutes after noon for the reveal. When the appointed moment arrived, those assembled at a harborside restaurant were told to hold on another 20-30 minutes.
Another hour passed.
At 1:40 p.m., the Holiday Bowl finally revealed the matchup for the 44th annual game: Bi, 15 Louisville vs. USC.
The Cardinals appeared headed to the Orange Bowl as the ACC representative before being bumped when No. 5 Florida State needed a new landing spot.
Mark Neville, CEO of Sports San Diego, which stages the Holiday Bowl, was in Charlotte, N.C., with other bowl executives and ACC officials, who were left scrambling to readjust postseason assignments.
The Holiday Bowl may not have gotten the biggest brand out of the ACC, but it did get a team with a better record.
“The process took a little longer than normal, but in the end we got the highest-ranked team out of the ACC that was available,” Neville said. “We’re excited the Louisville Cardinals are heading our way. I think it’s an awesome matchup.”
This is the first meeting between the programs. The teams took very different roads to the Holiday Bowl, which will be played Dec. 27 at 5 p.m. at Petco Park.
Louisville (10-3) is coming off Saturday night’s 16-6 loss to Florida State in the ACC championship game.
The Cardinals earned the berth after a regular season that included double-digit victories for the first time in a decade. Their only setbacks were against Pitt and Kentucky.
It is Louisville’s 12th bowl appearance in 14 years and the Cardinals’ first appearance in the Holiday Bowl.
They are coached by Jeff Brohm, a Louisville alum who was a rookie third-string quarterback on the 1994 Chargers team that went to the Super Bowl.
USC is making its fourth trip to the Holiday Bowl. The Trojans played in back-to-back games in 2014-15, beating Nebraska and losing to Wisconsin. They lost to Iowa in the 2019 game, which was the last event at SDCCU Stadium.
The Trojans have won 11 national titles over the years and produced eight Heisman Trophy winners.
One of them, quarterback Caleb Williams, may not play in the game. Williams has not made any decision official, but the general sense is that he won’t risk an injury that could hurt his stock in the upcoming NFL Draft.
Williams told the Los Angeles Times on Tuesday that declaring for the draft will be a “gametime decision.”
What that means for his postseason participation remains to be seen as well. USC coach Lincoln Riley would likely go with backup Miller Moss, who is 23-for-32 for 309 yards and one touchdown this season.
“This is a team game,” Neville said. “It’s not just one person. There’s things that are in our control and things that are not. That is one of the things that is out of our control.
“Whichever team suits up for USC, I’m sure is going to play their hardest, want to beat Louisville and put on a great show for our fans.”
Louisville’s lineup includes three first-team all-ACC players — running back Jawhar Jordan, center Bryan Hudson and defensive end Ashton Gillotte. Jordan (181 carries, 1,128 yards, 13 TDs) is averaging 6.2 yards a carry.
The game matches a Louisville offense averaging 30.9 points a game against a USC defense that has struggled to stop opponents this season.
The Trojans are allowing 34.9 points (tied for 120th in the nation) and 438.8 yards (119th).
Last month, Riley fired defensive coordinator Alex Grinch. USC replaced him with UCLA defensive coordinator D’Anton Lynn.
Holiday Bowl ticket prices range from $35 to $225. Tickets can be purchased online at holidaybowl.com or by calling the Holiday Bowl at (619) 283-5808.
