Bowl: Gator Bowl 2005
Sport: College Football
Background:
Built more than 70 years ago with a seating capacity of 7,600, the old stadium, originally called Fairfield Stadium, bears no resemblance to the $200 million, 73,000-seat stadium currently occupying the same corner of Jacksonville.
The original stadium, which ran East and West, was constructed primarily to service Jacksonville's three new high schools - Lee, Jackson and Landon. Governor John Martin, on hand for its opening, called the stadium "the best place in Florida to watch a football game!"

On January 1, 1946, the stadium emerged into the national spotlight with the advent of the first Gator Bowl Classic and the beginning of a new tradition. Because of the overwhelming success of this postseason college football classic, the stadium was expanded in 1948 to 16,000 seats and renamed the Gator Bowl.

Today the stadium has a new name and renovations have brought on a new look. Through the support of its fans, Gator Bowl Tradition continues to grow and the spirit of college football remains intact.

Football is a passion for Jacksonville and no where is that more evident than at ALLTEL Stadium. Jacksonville has one of the largest stadiums in the NFL and the biggest capacity in the current rotation on Super Bowl cities.

Situated on ten acres, ALLTEL Stadium is located in Downtown Jacksonville inside the Sports and Entertainment Complex, a stone's throw away from the sparkling St. John's River. In addition to being centrally located, Jacksonville's stadium is a convenient 20-minute drive from Jacksonville International Airport. The stadium features 73,000 permanent seats equipped with backs and arm rests, including approximately 10,000 club seats and 85 luxury suites. Approximately 75 percent of the seats are located on the sides, with just 25 percent of the seats behind the end zones. Temporary seating may be added as needed in the south end zone, increasing capacity to 80,000 seats. The football playing field is 53.3 years wide by 120 yards in length and has a natural grass playing surface.

Renovations totaling $40 million were completed just before the start of the 2003-2004 football season. The new stadium includes a Terrace Suite with 700 outdoor seats. The new Terrace Suite sits atop the south end zone, with a 10,000 square foot veranda, and a 19,000 square foot restaurant-style lounge. Floor-to-ceiling view windows offer panoramic vistas of the playing field on one side and the St. John's River on the other. Renovations also include a 15,000-square-foot sports bar called the Budweiser BUD ZONE that is open to the field and features a state-of-the-art audio-visual system. Outside the stadium, 100-foot escalators sweep fans into the 82,000-seat stadium, a sporting facility like no other in the country.

What happened: Maryland had its way with the Mountaineers scoring the first 31 points of the game as Scott McBrien threw two touchdown passes to Jafar Williams and ran for another. Steve Suter added a 76-yard punt return in the run. West Virginia got a 15-yard Rasheed Marshall touchdown run, but Maryland answered with Nick Novak's second field goal of the game and McBrien threw his third touchdown pass on a 14-yard strike to Jo Jo Walker.

Player of the game: Maryland QB Scott McBrien completed 21 of 33 passes for 381 yards and three touchdowns. He ran for another.

Thoughts & notes: Third down conversions: Maryland 13 of 20 - WVU 3 of 12. ... West Virginia: Rasheed Marshall completed 10 of 16 passes for 87 yards and ran eight times for 35 yards and a score. ...Kay-Jay Harris ran six times for 56 yards. ... Maryland: Bruce Perry ran 20 times for 67 yards. ... Steve Suter caught four passes for 84 yards.