MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — A game that is not featured in the Big 12 bowl lineup is West Virginia’s postseason destination. The Mountaineers (8-4) will face North Carolina in the Duke’s Mayo Bowl. The game will be played at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte, N.C. on Wednesday, December 27. Kickoff is set for 5:30 p.m and the game will be televised by ESPN.
The SEC and ACC are aligned with the Duke’s Mayo Bowl but the SEC was unable to fill all of its tie-ins with bowl eligible teams. The Big 12 had one more eligible team than their normal allotment with nine teams reaching the six-win mark.
The Tar Heels won their first six games of the season but they finished the year with four losses in their final six contests. UNC suffered back-to-back road losses to Clemson and North Carolina State in their final two games.
UNC opened their season in the Duke’s Mayo Classic in Charlotte. They defeated South Carolina, 31-17. The Mountaineers and the Tar Heels share one common opponent. North Carolina defeated Pittsburgh, 41-24 on September 23, a week after WVU defeated the Panthers in the Backyard Brawl.
Former WVU assistant coach Lonnie Galloway is the Assistant Head Coach/Passing Game Coordinator/Wide Receivers Coach of the Tar Heels.
UNC sophomore quarterback Drake Maye is expected to be one of the top picks in the 2024 NFL Draft. Maye has passed for 3,609 yards with 24 touchdown passes against nine interceptions. He has also rushed for 449 yards and nine more scores.
West Virginia has played a pair of bowl games in Charlotte. The Mountaineers fell to Virginia, 48-22 in 2002 and defeated North Carolina, 31-30 in 2008. WVU defeated Tennessee, 40-14 in the 2018 season opener at Bank of America Stadium.
🎶 COUNTRY ROADS 🎶 pic.twitter.com/TCJokrdsQL
— Duke’s Mayo Bowl (@DukesMayoBowl) September 1, 2018
“We are excited to share the selection of West Virginia and North Carolina for this year’s Duke’s Mayo Bowl,” said Danny Morrison, executive director of Charlotte Sports Foundation,” These two teams have amazing fan bases, and we are confident this matchup will provide a compelling game and memorable experiences for fans and players alike.”Â
The Mountaineers are 1-1 in bowl games under Neal Brown. WVU defeated Army, 24-21 in the 2020 Liberty Bowl and lost to Minnesota, 18-6 in the 2021 Guaranteed Rate Bowl.
West Virginia finished tied for fourth place in the Big 12 this season, with a league record of 6-3.
Other Big 12 bowl assignments:
- Texas – vs. Washington in the Sugar Bowl (CFP semifinals)
- Oklahoma – vs. Arizona in the Alamo Bowl
- Iowa State – vs. Memphis in the Liberty Bowl
- Oklahoma State – vs. Texas A&M in the Texas Bowl
- Kansas – vs. UNLV in the Guaranteed Rate Bowl
- Texas Tech – vs. California in the Independence Bowl
- Kansas State – vs. North Carolina State in the Pop-Tarts Bowl
- UCF – vs. Georgia Tech in the Gasparilla Bowl