2018 Cheez-It Bowl
| 2018 Cheez-It Bowl | ||||||||||||||||||||||
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| 30th Cheez-It Bowl | ||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Date | December 26, 2018 | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Season | 2018 | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Stadium | Chase Field | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Location | Phoenix, Arizona | |||||||||||||||||||||
| MVP | Sewo Olonilua (RB, TCU) Jaylinn Hawkins (S, California) | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Favorite | Pick (even) | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Referee | Marc Curles (SEC) | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Attendance | 33,121 | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Payout | US$1,037,000 | |||||||||||||||||||||
| United States TV coverage | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Network | ESPN | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Announcers | Jason Benetti, Kelly Stouffer, and Olivia Dekker | |||||||||||||||||||||
| International TV coverage | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Network | ESPN Deportes | |||||||||||||||||||||
The 2018 Cheez-It Bowl was a college football bowl game played on December 26, 2018, at Chase Field in Phoenix, Arizona, United States. The game was the 30th annual playing of the Cheez-It Bowl and the first played under that name. It featured the California Golden Bears from the Pac-12 Conference and the TCU Horned Frogs from the Big 12 Conference in the teams' first meeting. The game began at 7:00 p.m. MST and was broadcast on ESPN. It was one of the 2018–19 bowl games concluding the 2018 FBS football season.
TCU defeated California, 10–7, to win the game in overtime. California scored first on a rushing touchdown by quarterback Chase Garbers in the first quarter and held their 7–0 lead until a rushing touchdown by TCU running back Sewo Olonilua on the last play from scrimmage of the third quarter. The game was tied 7–7 at the end of regulation; California's overtime possession ended in an interception and TCU placekicker Jonathan Song made a 27-yard field goal on TCU's overtime possession, securing a victory for the Horned Frogs.
The teams combined to throw nine interceptions, leading to the nickname Cheez-INT Bowl being used by some. This tied it for the third-most interceptions in bowl game history and led to media coverage that both praised the game for its entertainment value and criticized the low quality of play.