COLLEGE STATION, Texas – The destination for the first bowl game of the Jimbo Fisher era at Texas A&M will be the TaxSlayer Gator Bowl at TIAA Bank Field in Jacksonville, Fla., where the No. 19-ranked Aggies will face off against North Carolina State of the Atlantic Coast Conference on New Year’s Eve. Kickoff for the game is slated for 7:30 p.m. ET / 6:30 p.m. CT and the game will be televised by ESPN.
"We are very excited to be facing a very good North Carolina State team in a New Year’s Eve bowl game," Texas A&M Head Football Coach Jimbo Fisher said. "The Gator Bowl is a first-class event run by a first-class organization and the city is a great destination. I’m certain the 12th Man will enjoy its time in Florida."
Texas A&M Director of Athletics Scott Woodward said, “We are proud and excited to continue the 2018 season in the TaxSlayer Gator Bowl. It is one of college football's most prestigious postseason games, and is run by an experienced, first-class organization. On behalf of Coach Fisher, our team, and our fans, we are looking forward to the chance to visit Jacksonville to take on the North Carolina State Wolfpack. NC State has an excellent football team and the game should be an exciting challenge on a national venue in a great setting.”
It will be the first-ever meeting between Texas A&M and NC State on the gridiron. It will be Texas A&M’s second appearance in the Gator Bowl. Paul “Bear” Bryant’s final game as the Aggies’ head coach was a 3-0 loss to Tennessee in the 1957 Gator Bowl on Dec. 28, 1957.
“North Carolina State has a very good team and we are looking forward to the challenge. We will have our work cut out for us,” Fisher said.
