By George Zeliff
Mail

The Valley is getting a first every matchup in the region’s biggest college football bowl game this year.

The No. 8 Oregon Ducks (11-2) and No. 23 Liberty Flames (13-0) will face each other for the first time in the 53rd annual Vrbo Fiesta Bowl Monday, Jan. 1, 2024, at State Farm Stadium.

Oregon makes its second Fiesta Bowl appearance in four seasons, and Liberty earns its first New Year’s Six bowl berth in school history.

Oregon chased a College Football Playoff berth all season, but Heisman finalist and quarterback Bo Nix announced he will not opt-out and will finish his college career in the Fiesta Bowl. The former Auburn Tiger will face off against sophomore quarterback Kaidon Salter, a former Tennessee Volunteer and No. 7 quarterback prospect from the 2021 recruiting class according to 247Sports.

Oregon is no stranger to the Valley’s big game as its fans have made trips to Glendale for the Fiesta Bowl in 2002, 2013 and 2021. Liberty joined the FBS in 2018 and has qualified for a bowl game every year since 2019. Fans will fly from Virginia for the Flames’ biggest bowl game ever.
Tickets on resale markets like SeatGeek are starting about $47 as of Dec. 18.

With the influx of out-of-town visitors for the bowl game and other holiday activities, Glendale officials encourage residents to be careful on the roads and plan ahead for parking. State Farm Stadium’s exclusive ticket provider, SeatGeek.com, offers parking passes to five lots around the stadium starting at $34. Visit seatgeek.com/fiesta-bowl-tickets/parking to see available passes.

The Fiesta Bowl is the kickoff to an events season in the Phoenix area that includes the WM Phoenix Open, Barrett-Jackson auto auction and Major League Baseball spring training. This year, the events will include the NCAA Final Four for men’s basketball.

The Valley’s annual big game has an estimated annual economic of $175 million to the state, according to the organization, and it hands out millions in grants to local nonprofits yearly.

Arizona Department of Transportation Spokesman Doug Nintzel said ADOT recognizes the holiday travel period between Thanksgiving and New Year’s weekend and the importance of keeping roads clear.

“Our goal is to limit impacts on holiday season traffic, shopping and the delivery of products,” Nintzel said. “ADOT and our contractors will not be scheduling freeway restrictions for ongoing improvement projects over the Christmas or New Year’s weekends. That bodes well for fans heading across the Valley on Loop 101 toward State Farm Stadium.”

The Fiesta Bowl will kick off at 11 a.m. Game-related traffic will be at its highest after the game ends. Nintzel still encourages fans to add extra time into their schedules in case of accidents and unscheduled incidents slowing freeway traffic. Fiesta Bowl staff hopes to limit pregame traffic and parking issues by inviting fans of all ages to the Vrbo Fiesta Bowl Fan Fest Pregame Party, starting at 7:30 a.m.

Fan Fest will offer inflatables and traditional tailgate games in the main plaza of State Farm Stadium between access points 6-11. There will be six bars spread across the tailgate party, five food trucks, and music entertainment, including performances from both the Liberty and Oregon marching bands. Fans will also be able to take photos with the Fiesta Bowl Trophy at Fan Fest.
The 51st Fiesta Bowl Parade takes place weeks before the game, which also helps reduce the traffic for New Year’s weekend. This year’s parade was held Saturday, Dec. 16.

“Traffic across the Valley is not an issue during bowl time, but the high demand around State Farm Stadium can be strong,” said Scott Leightman, Fiesta Bowl vice president of communications. “It’s not any worse than other big events like the Super Bowl and Final Four.”

Liberty’s first-year head coach Jamey Chadwell led the Flames to its first 13-0 record in program history and a Conference USA Championship title this year. This was the Flames first year in the conference, and they will be the first Conference USA team to appear in any New Year’s Six bowl game.

Several players on both teams have already entered the transfer portal and won’t play in the Fiesta Bowl, but Oregon has three key players who have opted-out to start preparing for the NFL draft. The Ducks will be without cornerback Khyree Jackson, who earned First Team All-Pac-12 honors, and Jackson Powers-Johnson, the 2023 Rimington Trophy winner for the nation’s top center.

Oregon junior running back Bucky Irving also declared for the NFL draft and will forgo his senior season. He led the Ducks with 1,063 yards and 10 touchdowns on the ground this season and has opted-out of the game. The Ducks have several more potential opt-out players, including both of their 1,000-yard receivers, juniors Troy Franklin and Tez Johnson.

Second-year head coach Dan Lanning is taking Oregon to its 19th consecutive bowl game and hopes to continue to be a CFP contender next year when the playoffs expand to a 12-team format. The CFP will give automatic bids to the six-highest rated conference champions starting next year, meaning Liberty would have been a playoff team this year if this were the first year in the expanded playoffs.

In the Valley’s other bowl game, the Kansas Jayhawks (8-4) will face the UNLV Rebels (9-4) in the Guaranteed Rate Bowl on Tuesday, Dec. 26, at 7 p.m. at Chase Field in Downtown Phoenix.

Fans can purchase tickets for both bowl games by visiting fiestabowl.org/tickets or calling 480-350-0911.

Guaranteed Rate Bowl tickets are still available starting at $62, and Fiesta Bowl tickets are still available starting at $36, before taxes and fees.

We invite our readers to submit their civil comments on this issue. Email AZOpinions@iniusa.org. George Zeliff can be reached at gzeliff@iniusa.org.