This was the first time for the bowl to be played at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, as the prior 10 editions of the bowl were held at Tropicana Field in nearby St.
[6] The game featured the Marshall Thundering Herd of Conference USA (C-USA) against the South Florida Bulls of the American Athletic Conference (AAC) in their first meeting against each other.
[7][8] Marshall received and accepted a bid to the Gasparilla Bowl on December 2.
South Florida received and accepted a bid to the Gasparilla Bowl on December 2.
[7] The Bulls entered the bowl with a 7–5 record (3–5 AAC), having lost their final five regular season games.