The Duke Blue Devils will play Ole Miss Rebels in the 80th TaxSlayer Gator Bowl on Jan. 2 at EverBank Stadium.
The Gator Bowl announced the matchup of Atlantic Coast Conference Duke and Southeastern Conference Ole Miss on Dec. 8.
It is the first meeting of the football teams and the first appearance by Duke in the Gator Bowl.
Ole Miss (9-3) is No. 14 in the final College Football Playoff rankings, failing to reach the 12-team playoff. The Rebels are No. 16 in the Associated Press Poll. The head coach of Ole Miss is Lane Kiffin.
The Gator Bowl said Ole Miss has appeared in the game three times. In January 1971, Ole Miss met Auburn in Jacksonville for the 26th Gator Bowl featuring Heisman runner-up and Ole Miss icon Archie Manning in a full arm cast.
Duke (9-3) is unranked but has won its last five bowl appearances. The head coach of Duke is Manny Diaz.
“As the 6th oldest bowl game in the nation, writing the 80th chapter of this iconic game carries a lot of pride for our membership and our community,” TaxSlayer Gator Bowl Chairman Andy King said in a news release. “The opportunity to host two top-tier teams in Duke vs Ole Miss as well as their players, coaches and fans to our city for a great week of activities celebrating both programs’ successful seasons.”
Duke, in Durham, North Carolina, is a private college with an undergraduate enrollment of 6,488, according to U.S. News & World Report. The University of Mississippi, in Oxford, Mississippi, has an undergraduate enrollment of 19,094.
The game starts at 7:30 p.m. and will be nationally televised on ESPN.
For more information, visit taxslayergatorbowl.com.