WEST POINT, N.Y. -- The Army West Point Black Knights Football team has accepted an invitation to the 48th edition of the Radiance Technologies Independence Bowl and will play the Sun Belt Conference champions, the Marshall Thundering Herd (10-3), announced by Independence Bowl Chair Claire Rebouche.
The game is scheduled for Saturday, Dec. 28, at Independence Stadium in Shreveport, Louisiana, with the kickoff slated for 9:15 p.m. on ESPN.The matchup will be the first matchup of conference champions in the Independence Bowl since the inaugural bowl in 1976. Army has once before appeared in the Independence Bowl in 1996, a 32-29 loss vs. Auburn.This will mark the Army's 11th all-time Bowl appearance. Army is 7-3 in previous games, which includes a 4-1 record in the Jeff Monken era, the last bowl game coming in 2021, an Armed Forces Bowl victory over SEC Missouri. Army is 0-1 all-time vs. Marshall, meeting at Michie Stadium in 1997. "Playing in a postseason bowl game is a measure of success for every team in FBS football. It rewards the players for a good season and recognizes the accomplishments of a great, team effort. I am thrilled that our team will play in the Independence Bowl, one of America's best and most historic games, and be rewarded for being conference champions and winning 11 games," said Army head coach Jeff Monken." "It is also one more opportunity for us to showcase our program and our incredible institution on a national stage, displaying our brand of football and the values of West Point in front of the nation. Our team, and especially our seniors, are incredibly proud to join the other great Army teams that have played in the postseason." Army (11-1) won the AAC Championship, taking down Tulane, 35-14, on Dec. 6. The conference championship was Army's first conference title in the program's 134-year history, as the program has been Independent for most of that time. The conference title gave Army its 11th victory of the season, only Army's second 11-win season in school history, the other coming in 2018, also under Head Coach Jeff Monken.Army has maintained a spot in the AP Top 25 for nine consecutive weeks, the longest stretch since being ranked each week of the 1958 season. In the final AP Poll before the College Football Playoffs, Army climbed five spots to No. 19 following its conference title win. Army has been led by senior quarterback Bryson Daily whose 29 rushing touchdowns are tied for the FBS lead with Boise State's Ashton Jeanty, despite playing in two fewer games than Jeanty. Army now heads into the annual Army-Navy Game presented by USAA on Saturday, Dec. 14, at Northwest Field in Landover, Maryland, before having two weeks to prepare for the Independence Bowl. Army has defeated rivals, Navy, in two consecutive years (2022 and 2023) and have won six of the last eight meetings vs. the Midshipmen since 2016, all under Monken. Army and Navy will battle in a winner-take-all game for the Commander-in-Chief's Trophy as they have both defeated Air Force this season. It is the first time since 2017 and just the fifth time since 1978 that the Army-Navy Game will be a winner-take-all game for the Commander-in-Chief's Trophy. This year will be the second straight Independence Bowl to kickoff in primetime on a Saturday night on ESPN. Last year's game between Texas Tech and California drew the best crowd since the 2019 Louisiana Tech-Miami matchup – with a paid attendance of 33,071. This year will be the 32nd consecutive year that the Radiance Technologies Independence Bowl will be televised on an ESPN network.Fans are encouraged to purchase tickets through the Army West Point Ticket Office in order to have a direct impact to benefit the cadet-athlete experience. Tickets for the matchup can be purchased by clicking the link below.TicketsFor information on Independence Stadium rules and the clear bag policy, please visit RadianceTechnologiesIndependenceBowl.com/stadium-rules. Radiance Technologies Independence Bowl fans can visit OpportunityLouisiana.com to explore why Louisiana businesses are positioned to win.