Organizers announced that, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, there would be no fans in attendance at the game.
[4] The bowl was contested by the Nevada Wolf Pack, from the Mountain West Conference, and the Tulane Green Wave, from the American Athletic Conference (The American).
Tulane of The American entered the bowl with an overall record of 6–5 (3–5 in conference play).
Nevada of Mountain West entered the bowl with a record of 6–2, with all games having been played in conference.
The Wolf Pack had previously appeared three times in the bowl, losing each contest, most recently the January 2020 edition.