The Arkansas State Red Wolves and Missouri State Bears will play in the Xbox Bowl in Frisco, Texas, which is replacing the Bahamas Bowl this season, it was officially announced Thursday.
Brett McMurphy of On3 first reported the Arkansas State-Missouri State matchup in Frisco on Thursday morning.
This summer, ESPN Events announced that the Bahamas Bowl would not be played at Thomas A. Robinson Stadium in Nassau, Bahamas, in 2025. Instead, ESPN Events stated that “…league commitments will be fulfilled through other ESPN owned-and-operated games.”
Note from ESPN on the Bahamas Bowl:
"While the Bahamas Bowl will not be played during 2025-26 Bowl Season, league commitments will be fulfilled through other ESPN owned-and-operated games."
— FBSchedules.com (@FBSchedules) June 5, 2025
A similar situation occurred during the 2023 season, when renovations at Thomas A. Robinson Stadium relocated the Bahamas Bowl to Jerry Richardson Stadium in Charlotte, N.C., and the contest was later dubbed the Famous Toastery Bowl.
“We’re proud to welcome Xbox as the title sponsor of this bowl game as their brand aligns perfectly with the excitement and energy of college football and especially the Bowl Season,” said Sean Johnson, Executive Director of the Xbox Bowl. “Plus, we couldn’t be more excited to have the opportunity to host two great football teams to experience the Xbox Bowl.”
Arkansas State and Missouri State will square off in the Xbox Bowl on Thursday, Dec. 18, 2025 at the Ford Center at The Star in Frisco, per the report. The game will kickoff at 9:00pm ET and it will be televised nationally via ESPN2.
“The Xbox Bowl is where the thrill of game day meets the joy of play,” said Chris Lee, Vice President of Xbox Marketing. “Teaming up with ESPN Events lets us bring fans even closer to the fun, whether they are in the stands in Frisco, watching the bowl game at home, or playing with friends around the world. Together we are celebrating the passion for play, on the field and in the ways people love to game, and reimagining what game day can be for lifelong players and for those experiencing the thrill for the first time.”
A second bowl game is also scheduled to be played at the Ford Center at The Star this season due to renovations to Toyota Stadium in Frisco. That contest is the Scooter’s Coffee Frisco Bowl and it’s slated for Tuesday, Dec. 23 at 9:00pm ET on ESPN.
In four previous meetings on the gridiron, Arkansas State owns a 3-1 record against Missouri State. The series began in 1991 and all four games were played in Jonesboro, Ark.
The Xbox Bowl will mark Arkansas State’s 13th overall post-season bowl game appearance (5-7 record). Led by head coach Butch Jones, Arkansas State finished the regular-season 6-6 overall and 5-3 in Sun Belt Conference action.
The Missouri State Bears, a first-year member of Conference USA after moving up from the Football Championship Subdivision (FCS), earned a bowl spot after there were only 80 bowl eligible teams for 82 spots. Missouri State, led by head coach Ryan Beard, finished the 2025 regular-season 7-5 overall and 5-3 in conference play.
The 12-team College Football Playoff field and complete College Football Bowl Schedule will be finalized on Sunday, Dec. 7, beginning at noon ET on ESPN.
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Congrats to Missouri State & Delaware for going bowling in their first FBS season! Before anyone complains about too many bowls, I think it’s great that there will be more games to watch.
More football > less football
….meanwhile, no Va. Tech, no FSU, no Kentucky, no Florida, no Tar Heels, no Prime,
yay now 2 bowl games on the dallas cowboys practice “field”