INGLWOOD, Calif. – UNLV will face Cal in the Art of Sports LA Bowl Hosted by Gronk on Wednesday, Dec. 18 at 6:00 p.m. PT at SoFi Stadium.
UNLV heads into the bowl game after an impressive 10-3 season but will have an interim head coach after Barry Odom left Sunday to become Purdue’s new head coach. Odom led UNLV to back-to-back Mountain West Championship games but fell short both seasons.
The Rebels are led by quarterback Hajj-Malik Williams, who had 1,845 passing yards and 17 touchdowns as well as 9 rushing touchdowns and 824 rushing yards. Senior wideout Ricky White III had 1,041 yards and 11 touchdowns and was named the Mountain West Special Teams Player of the Year after leading the nation with four blocked punts.
A win in the LA Bowl would give UNLV its most wins in a season since finishing 11-2 in 1984.
Four-time Super Bowl Champion Rob Gronkowski returns to host the Art of Sport LA Bowl Hosted by Gronk. Cal and UNLV have only played each other once before, with the Bears edging out the Rebels 20-14 on Sept. 10, 2022.
Cal finished the regular season with a 6-6 record under head coach Justin Wilcox. Quarterback Fernando Mendoza was recently named the ACC Quarterback of the Week after leading Cal to a win over Stanford in the 127th Big Game in November.
“We’re thrilled to kick off the college football bowl season with the Art of Sport LA Bowl Hosted By Gronk,” said Adolfo Romero, executive director, Art of Sport LA Bowl Hosted By Gronk. “Welcoming back the Mountain West and Pac-12 Conferences to SoFi Stadium for our fourth edition, we can’t wait to see UNLV and Cal battle it out.”