The 2023 68 Ventures Bowl was a college football bowl game played on December 23, 2023, at Hancock Whitney Stadium in Mobile, Alabama. The 25th annual 68 Ventures Bowl (although the first edition played under that name) featured the Eastern Michigan Eagles from the Mid-American Conference (MAC) and the South Alabama Jaguars from the Sun Belt Conference. The game began at approximately 7:00 p.m. CST and was aired on ESPN. The 68 Ventures Bowl was one of the 2023âÂÂ24 bowl games concluding the 2023 FBS football season. 68 VenturesâÂÂan Alabama-based company involved in Gulf Coast development, investment, and constructionâÂÂwas the title sponsor of the game.
Consistent with conference tie-ins, the bowl featured the Eastern Michigan Eagles of the Mid-American Conference (MAC) and the South Alabama Jaguars of the Sun Belt Conference.
This was the first time that Eastern Michigan and South Alabama played each other. While Hancock Whitney Stadium is the regular-season home stadium of South Alabama, Eastern Michigan was designated the home team for the bowl.
The Eagles entered the game with a 6âÂÂ6 record (4âÂÂ4 in the MAC), finishing in third place in their conference's West Division.
This was Eastern Michigan's second 68 Ventures Bowl; they previously appeared in the 2021 LendingTree Bowl (when the bowl operated under a different name), which they lost.
The Jaguars entered the game with a 6âÂÂ6 record (4âÂÂ4 in the Sun Belt), tied for second place in their conference's West Division.
This was South Alabama's first 68 Ventures Bowl.
Following the game, an altercation took place on-field between the teams prior to the trophy presentation, initiated by Eastern Michigan cornerback Korey Hernandez sucker punching South Alabama defensive back Jamarrien Burt while the South Alabama marching band and team were singing the school's alma mater. Eastern Michigan's athletic director apologized the next day, stating (in part) "We strongly condemn the actions of some of the student-athletes".