The Oyster Bowl is a regular season college football game played annually in the Hampton Roads-area of Virginia. The game has featured match-ups between high school, NCAA Division III, and at present, NCAA Division I teams, at various points in its existence. It is sponsored by the Norfolk, Virginia-based Khedive Temple of the Shriners, with a portion of the revenue going to children's charity. The 2023 Oyster Bowl was the 73rd edition of the game.
| Oyster Bowl | |
|---|---|
| Stadium | S.B. Ballard Stadium (1946–1995, 2011–present) |
| Location | Norfolk, Virginia |
| Previous stadiums | Joseph S. Darling Memorial Stadium (1999–2004) The Apprentice School (2005–2010) |
| Previous locations | Hampton, Virginia Newport News, Virginia |
| Operated | 1946, 1948–1995 1999–present |
| Conference tie-ins | Sun Belt Conference |
| Previous conference tie-ins | Southern Conference Atlantic Coast Conference Colonial Athletic Association Conference USA |
| Sponsors | |
Khedive Temple of the Shriners | |
| 2024 matchup | |
| Marshall vs. Old Dominion (November 23, 2024) | |
In its heyday as a major college or Division I neutral-site contest (1948–1995), the Oyster Bowl served as Norfolk's counterpart to the Tobacco Bowl in Richmond, Virginia (1949–1982), and the short-lived Harvest Bowl in Roanoke, Virginia (1958–1969), which were also regular season neutral-site games.
History
editDuring the first incarnation of the Oyster Bowl, the game was held at Foreman Field in Norfolk, Virginia. The inaugural contest, held in 1946, featured two high school teams, the local Granby Comets and the Clifton Mustangs of Clifton, New Jersey.[1][2] After a one-year break, the game was resumed in 1948 as a major college football contest, and was played continuously until 1995, when it was discontinued for financial reasons.[1][2][3] The series of games from 1946 to 1995 generated more than $3 million for the Shriners Hospitals for Children.[3]
Many well known players participated in the Oyster Bowl during the time it featured Division I teams. These include Ernie Davis of Syracuse, Bruce Smith of Virginia Tech, Roger Staubach of Navy, Fran Tarkenton of Georgia, and Randy White of Maryland.[4] The 1977 game between East Carolina and William & Mary featured an incident well-publicized at the time, in which former East Carolina head coach Jim Johnson, attending the game as a sideline spectator, tackled a William & Mary player about to score the game-winning touchdown.[5]
In 1999, after a hiatus of three years, the Oyster Bowl was revived and relocated to Joseph S. Darling Memorial Stadium in nearby Hampton, Virginia, as a match-up between Division III college teams.[6] Three of the six games in Hampton featured the Apprentice School from nearby Newport News, Virginia. In 2005 the Oyster Bowl moved to Newport News as an annual home game for the Apprentice School.
In 2011, the Oyster Bowl returned to a renovated Foreman Field (now known as S.B. Ballard Stadium) as an annual home game for Division I Old Dominion University (ODU). Recent visiting teams have been conference rivals of ODU from Conference USA (through 2021) and the Sun Belt Conference (2022 to the present).
Game results
edit| Year | Site | Winning team | Losing team | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1946 | Norfolk, Virginia | Granby High School | 6 | Clifton High School | 0 |
| 1947 | No game held | ||||
| 1948 | Norfolk, Virginia | William & Mary | 31 | VMI | 0 |
| 1949[7] | Norfolk, Virginia | NC State | 14 | VPI | 13 |
| 1950 | Norfolk, Virginia | William & Mary | 34 | NC State | 0 |
| 1951 | Norfolk, Virginia | Duke | 55 | VPI | 6 |
| 1952 | Norfolk, Virginia | South Carolina | 21 | Virginia | 14 |
| 1953 | Norfolk, Virginia | Duke | 48 | Virginia | 6 |
| 1954 | Norfolk, Virginia | Navy | 40 | Duke | 7 |
| 1955 | Norfolk, Virginia | North Carolina | 32 | South Carolina | 14 |
| 1956 | Norfolk, Virginia | Pittsburgh | 27 | Duke | 14 |
| 1957 | Norfolk, Virginia | Navy | 27 | Georgia | 14 |
| 1958 | Norfolk, Virginia | Tulane | 14 | Navy | 6 |
| 1959 | Norfolk, Virginia | Syracuse | 32 | Navy | 6 |
| 1960 | Norfolk, Virginia | Navy | 26 | SMU | 7 |
| 1961 | Norfolk, Virginia | Duke | 30 | Navy | 9 |
| 1962 | Norfolk, Virginia | Navy | 32 | Pittsburgh | 9 |
| 1963 | Norfolk, Virginia | Navy | 21 | VMI | 12 |
| *1964 | Norfolk, Virginia | Maryland | 10 | North Carolina | 9 |
| 1965 | Norfolk, Virginia | William & Mary | 3 | Southern Miss | 0 |
| *1966 | Norfolk, Virginia | Southern Miss | 7 | NC State | 6 |
| 1967 | Norfolk, Virginia | Duke | 35 | Navy | 16 |
| 1968 | Norfolk, Virginia | Duke | 30 | Maryland | 28 |
| 1969 | Norfolk, Virginia | VPI | 48 | Duke | 12 |
| 1970 | Norfolk, Virginia | NC State | 7 | Maryland | 0 |
| 1971 | Norfolk, Virginia | Clemson | 3 | Duke | 0 |
| *1972 | Norfolk, Virginia | Duke | 17 | Navy | 16 |
| *1973 | Norfolk, Virginia | Maryland | 30 | Duke | 10 |
| 1974 | Norfolk, Virginia | Maryland | 56 | Duke | 13 |
| 1975 | Norfolk, Virginia | Virginia Tech | 24 | William & Mary | 7 |
| 1976 | Norfolk, Virginia | VMI | 13 | Virginia | 7 |
| 1977 | Norfolk, Virginia | William & Mary | 21 | East Carolina | 17 |
| *1978 | Norfolk, Virginia | East Carolina | 21 | Richmond | 14 |
| 1979 | Norfolk, Virginia | Navy | 24 | William & Mary | 7 |
| 1980 | Norfolk, Virginia | Virginia Tech | 21 | VMI | 6 |
| 1981 | Norfolk, Virginia | VMI | 14 | The Citadel | 0 |
| 1982 | Norfolk, Virginia | Virginia Tech | 14 | VMI | 3 |
| 1983[8] | Norfolk, Virginia | William & Mary | 26 | Yale | 14 |
| 1984 | Norfolk, Virginia | Virginia Tech | 54 | VMI | 7 |
| 1985 | Norfolk, Virginia | Richmond | 38 | James Madison | 15 |
| 1986[9] | Norfolk, Virginia | Temple | 29 | Virginia Tech | 16 |
| 1987 | Norfolk, Virginia | William & Mary | 17 | VMI | 6 |
| 1988 | Norfolk, Virginia | The Citadel | 30 | VMI | 20 |
| *1989 | Norfolk, Virginia | William & Mary | 13 | Boston University | 10 |
| 1990 | Norfolk, Virginia | William & Mary | 59 | VMI | 47 |
| 1991 | Norfolk, Virginia | The Citadel | 17 | VMI | 14 |
| 1992 | Norfolk, Virginia | Richmond | 41 | VMI | 18 |
| 1993 | Norfolk, Virginia | William & Mary | 49 | VMI | 6 |
| 1994 | Norfolk, Virginia | The Citadel | 58 | VMI | 14 |
| 1995 | Norfolk, Virginia | Georgia Southern | 31 | VMI | 13 |
| 1996 | No game held | ||||
| 1997 | No game held | ||||
| 1998 | No game held | ||||
| 1999 | Hampton, Virginia | Wesley (DE) | 48 | Apprentice | 33 |
| 2000 | Hampton, Virginia | Methodist | 30 | Apprentice | 8 |
| 2001 | Hampton, Virginia | Christopher Newport | 14 | Ferrum | 11 |
| 2002 | Hampton, Virginia | Salisbury | 48 | Apprentice | 17 |
| 2003 | Hampton, Virginia | Bridgewater | 58 | Catholic University | 20 |
| 2004 | Hampton, Virginia | Christopher Newport | 21 | Bridgewater | 16 |
| 2005 | Newport News, Virginia | Wesley (DE) | 45 | Apprentice | 0 |
| 2006 | Newport News, Virginia | Apprentice | 37 | Chowan | 0 |
| 2007 | Newport News, Virginia | Chowan | 61 | Apprentice | 55 |
| 2008 | Newport News, Virginia | Apprentice | 37 | Southern Virginia | 14 |
| 2009 | Newport News, Virginia | Southern Virginia | 14 | Apprentice | 10 |
| 2010 | Newport News, Virginia | Webber International | 40 | Apprentice | 7 |
| 2011 | Norfolk, Virginia | Old Dominion | 23 | James Madison | 20 |
| 2012 | Norfolk, Virginia | Old Dominion | 31 | Delaware | 26 |
| 2013 | Norfolk, Virginia | Old Dominion | 66 | Albany | 10 |
| 2014 | Norfolk, Virginia | Old Dominion | 30 | Louisiana Tech | 27 |
| 2015 | Norfolk, Virginia | Florida Atlantic | 33 | Old Dominion | 31 |
| 2016 | Norfolk, Virginia | Old Dominion | 42 | FIU | 28 |
| 2017 | Norfolk, Virginia | Old Dominion | 24 | Rice | 21 |
| 2018 | Norfolk, Virginia | Old Dominion | 77 | VMI | 14 |
| 2019 | Norfolk, Virginia | Charlotte | 38 | Old Dominion | 22 |
| 2020 | No game held | ||||
| 2021 | Norfolk, Virginia | Old Dominion | 56 | Charlotte | 34 |
| 2022 | Norfolk, Virginia | James Madison | 37 | Old Dominion | 3 |
| 2023 | Norfolk, Virginia | Old Dominion | 28 | Appalachian State | 21 |
References
edit- ^ a b Peggy Haile, Pages from Norfolk's Past, Norfolk Public Library, retrieved January 31, 2009.
- ^ a b 20th Century History Archived 2009-02-09 at the Wayback Machine, The City of Norfolk, VA, retrieved January 31, 2009.
- ^ a b Oyster Bowl runs out of downs, Shriners pull plug on 49-year tradition, The Virginian Pilot, February 22, 1996, retrieved January 31, 2009.
- ^ Oyster Bowl Information, Newport News Apprentice School, November 13, 2008, retrieved February 1, 2009.
- ^ Kirsch, Fred (December 1, 2004). "Coach Jim tackled a lot, but one was most memorable". The Virginian-Pilot. Archived from the original on October 23, 2012.
- ^ Keith McMillan, Around the Nation, D3 Football, November 9, 2001, retrieved January 31, 2009.
- ^ "Short Shot on State's 1949 Football Opponents". Media guide, Football, North Carolina State, 1949 season.
- ^ Rogers, Thomas (1983-10-04). "Scouting". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2020-02-13.
- ^ "Oyster Bowl Will Be Televised by Home Team Sports". scholar.lib.vt.edu. Retrieved 2020-02-13.