Colorado State Rams to meet Idaho Vandals in Idaho Potato Bowl

It’s back to the blue turf for coach Mike Bobo and the CSU Rams. The announcement came out Sunday afternoon that the green and gold accepted an invitation to play in the 20th edition of the Famous Idaho Potato Bowl on Thursday, December 22nd in Boise State’s Albertsons Stadium.

Kickoff is scheduled for 5 p.m. and televised by ESPN.

Idaho, one of the top teams in the Sun Belt this season, finished 8-4, including a 6-2 record in conference play. Head coach Paul Petrino led the Vandals to victories over Montana State, UNLV, Louisiana-Monroe, New Mexico State, Louisiana-Lafayette, Texas State, South Alabama and Georgia State.

Their four losses came against Washington, Washington State, Troy and Appalachian State. Both CSU and Idaho come in having won four of their last five games.

The Potato Bowl will be the fourth consecutive bowl game for the Rams. The streak began with the 2013 Gildan New Mexico Bowl (defeated Washington State 48-45), followed by the 2014 Royal Purple Las Vegas Bowl (lost to Utah 45-10) and the 2015 NOVA Home Loans Arizona Bowl (lost to Nevada 28-23).

CSU has an all-time bowl game record of 6-9. Aside from the school’s first bowl game appearance in 1949, every other one has come since 1990. Sonny Lubick coached the Rams to nine bowl appearances from 1994-2005. Steve Fairchild got CSU to the New Mexico Bowl in 2008, his lone winning season in a four-year tenure.

Jim McElwain, now the head coach at the University of Florida, was at the helm during the 2013 and 2014 bowl seasons. Bobo, looking for his first postseason win as head coach of the Rams, stands by himself as the only CSU coach to win seven regular-season games in his first two seasons.

Bobo’s squad will be back at practice Friday afternoon as they begin their preparation for the Vandals.