Bowl selections were handed out late Sunday afternoon, and the Clemson Tigers are headed south to Florida to match up with an SEC foe in the TaxSlayer Gator Bowl.
The Tigers will take on the Kentucky Wildcats on Friday, December 29th.
Clemson will be making their 10th appearance all-time in the Gator Bowl, but their first since 2008. Historically, Clemson is 4-5 in the Gator Bowl, losing 26-21 to Nebraska in that 2008 tilt. Their first appearance came in 1949 when they defeated Missouri 24-23.
As for the Tigers’ opponent, Clemson has played the Wildcats 13 times and is 5-8 against them. Their last meeting came in 2009 when the Tigers were victorious 21-13.
Clemson earned their postseason bid by winning their final four games, including two wins over top-20 opponents in Notre Dame and North Carolina, to finish 8-4 after a disastrous 4-4 start to the season. The Tigers finished ranked number 22 in the country in the final College Football Playoff ranks and will carry lots of momentum into the bowl game.
Kentucky, meanwhile, finished 7-5 and is coming off a 38-31 victory in their rivalry game against the Louisville Cardinals.
Kick-off on December 29th is slated for noon at Bill Gay Grounds at Everbank Stadium.
