The 2018 Gator Bowl was a college football bowl game played on December 31, 2018. It was the 74th edition of the Gator Bowl, and one of the 2018âÂÂ19 bowl games concluding the 2018 FBS football season. Sponsored by the financial technology company TaxSlayer, the game was officially known as the TaxSlayer Gator Bowl, after four seasons without "Gator" in the bowl name.
The game featured the NC State Wolfpack from the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) and the Texas A&M Aggies from the Southeastern Conference (SEC); the teams had never played each other. This was Texas A&M's second Gator Bowl and NC State's fourth.
NC State received and accepted a bid to the Gator Bowl on December 2. The Wolfpack entered the bowl with a 9âÂÂ3 record (5âÂÂ3 in conference).
Texas A&M received and accepted a bid to the Gator Bowl on December 2. The Aggies entered the bowl with an 8âÂÂ4 record (5âÂÂ3 in conference).
After holding a 21âÂÂ13 lead at halftime, Texas A&M outscored NC State 31âÂÂ0 in the second half, for a 52âÂÂ13 final. Aggie running back Trayveon Williams set a new Gator Bowl rushing record with 236 yards, breaking the prior record of 216 that had been set in the 1966 edition by Floyd Little. The game's attendance of 38,206 was the smallest since the 1950s.