Florida Sports Wire

  (Photo by Jim Brady/Florida Sports Wire) By Jeff White, VirginiaSports.com JACKSONVILLE — A month after hoisting the Commonwealth Cup in the jubilant home locker room at Scott Stadium, Virginia head football coach Tony Elliott lifted another prize in triumph late Saturday night: the trophy awarded to the TaxSlayer Gator Bowl champion. In its first bowl appearance since 2019, No. 20 UVA defeated No. 25 Missouri 13-7 at EverBank Stadium, home of the NFL’s Jacksonville Jaguars. In doing so, the Cavaliers made history. “Welcome to the 11-win club,” Elliott told his players. “That’s history. That’s legacy, and it’s not easy to leave a legacy.” The 11 victories are the most ever by a UVA team. Only twice have the Wahoos reached the 10-win mark: in 1989 and then this season, their fourth under Elliott. Not bad for a group that, in the media’s preseason poll, was picked to finish 14th out of the ACC’s 17 teams. “It’s been a special year,” Elliott said. “It's been a fun group to coach. T...

JACKSONVILLE - The Gator Bowl Sports Board of Trustees recently elected its 2025-26 full slate of volunteer leadership including Chairman, Officers and Advisory Board. Elected as Chairman for the 2025-26 season is Sara Pomposo, Vice President of Sales for Money Pages.  Prior to her new role with Money Pages, Sara built strong corporate and community relationships through her previous leadership as VP of Marketing & Brand Strategy for BHRS Companies and as Publisher and Market President for the Jacksonville Business Journal, which brought her to Jacksonville in 2017.   Chairman Pomposo joined Gator Bowl Sports in 2017 and has served in a variety of volunteer leadership positions.  In 2021, she was instrumental in founding “The Bowl’d Ladies” which is the women’s membership group of the Gator Bowl. In her spare time, Sara and her husband Chris Pomposo own Wick ‘n Twisted, a pour your own experience in Jacksonville Beach featuring custom candle scents and the beach’...

JACKSONVILLE (Florida Sports Wire)   —   Gator Bowl Sports Board of Trustees and TaxSlayer, as the title sponsor of the Gator Bowl game since 2012, announced today a sponsorship extension which will last through 2027.   The new term makes TaxSlayer the longest tenured entitlement sponsor in Gator Bowl Sports history. “We express our gratitude to the TaxSlayer family for extending their sponsorship of our historical post-season bowl game,” said Greg McGarity, Gator Bowl Sports President & CEO.  “As we enter our second decade of this sponsorship, we are blessed to work alongside such an incredible partner as TaxSlayer.” In 2023, the TaxSlayer Gator Bowl will enter into the second half of its current agreement with the Southeastern Conference and Atlantic Coast Conference to host a team from each conference in the annual game and will be broadcast on ESPN. The 78 th  TaxSlayer Gator Bowl, held on Dec. 30, 2022, showcased a dynamic match-up between Not...

(SportsDay Photo by Nancy Beecher/Florida Sports Wire) By Mike Bonts JACKSONVILLE (Florida Sports Wire) – Notre Dame quarterback Tyler Buchner ran for two touchdowns and threw for three more as the Irish rallied to defeat South Carolina 45-38 before 67,383 in the Gator Bowl Friday. He was named the MVP. The sophomore threw for a career-high 274 yards with 18 completions on 33 attempts and three scores. He also added 61 yards on the ground. Tight end Mitchell Evans caught the winning TD from Buchner with 1:38 to play. The Irish offense ran for 264 yards total. Audric Estime led with 95 yards on 14 attempts. Logan Diggs added 13 carries for 89 yards and a touchdown. Chris Tyree added 21 yards on five rushes. Braden Lenzy added four catches for a game-best 89 yards and a touchdown. Buchner ran for an 11-yard score in the third quarter and 15 yards to tie the game with 5:54 to play in the first quarter. He had two passes returned for touchdowns. Trailing 38-31, O’Donnell Fortune picked off...

MIKE BONTS JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Heather Duncan, chairwoman of the TaxSlayer Bowl, announced today that Pennsylvania State University will play the University of Georgia in the Saturday, Jan. 2, 2016 TaxSlayer Bowl.  “Both Penn State and Georgia have storied football programs with fantastic fan bases,” said Duncan.  “We are thrilled to host these two top-notch teams and their players, coaches and fans in Jacksonville for a great day of football.” The Nittany Lions and the Bulldogs have only squared off once, in 1983’s Sugar Bowl, as the teams battled for the National Championship.  Penn State defeated Georgia by a score of 27-23. “We couldn’t be more excited to have Penn State and Georgia play in the 2016 TaxSlayer Bowl,” said TaxSlayer President Jimmy Rhodes. “We know the competitive matchup will be a highlight for college football fans traveling to Jacksonville and watching from home. There’s no better way to kickoff tax season than with a great American tradition...