The best and worst college football bowl gifts of 2018
One of the most fun parts of bowl season is seeing what the bowls give out to the participating players. Sports Business Journal did its annual compilation of bowl gifts this year and we, Nick Bromberg and Sam Cooper, combed through the entire list to give you our favorites. Bowls can give up to $550 in gifts to each player, though some did not provide specifics. Two bowls — the Cotton Bowl and the national championship game — didn’t provide gift details at all.
Nick’s Top Five
5. Quick Lane Bowl ($175 Best Buy gift card, JBL headphones, personalized Fathead decal, backpack, shirts, mini helmet, football): A personalized Fathead would be awesome. Yeah, kind of egotistical too, but how else are you going to remember the Quick Lane Bowl?
4. Liberty Bowl (Bass Pro Shops shopping Trip, Bose speaker, Bulova watch, Nike shoes, sandals, backpack, sunglasses, football): I’m not sure how much the Bass Pro shopping trip is worth, but that coupled with everything else is a good perk.
3. Fiesta Bowl (PS4 package, Fossil Watch, Ogio backpack): A PS4 is a great gift for a college football player. If only the NCAA Football game still existed.
2. Citrus Bowl ($400 Best Buy gift card, Fossil watch, Ogio backpack): $400 at Best Buy is good for a PS4 or an Xbox One. That gets the edge over the PS4 from the Fiesta Bowl because you’re in a good spot if you’re an Xbox loyalist.
1. Alamo Bowl ($425 Amazon gift card, Fossil watch, mini helmet, team photo): $425 at Amazon can go a long way for whatever you want. Yeah, Amazon is a polarizing company, but the flexibility to buy nearly anything (and a lot of that anything) is a big perk, especially for a bowl game that isn’t one of the most prestigious.
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Sam’s Top Five
5. Belk Bowl (Belk shopping trip, Fossil watch): In past years, players have gotten $450 gift cards for a shopping spree at a Belk department store. That can go a long way, unless you’re Jeremy Sprinkle.
4. Peach Bowl ($300 Visa gift card, Fossil watch, Mophie power bank, Amazon Echo Dot, football): A lot of the gift cards given out are specific to one place, so the Visa gift card is pretty awesome, especially if you need to do some late holiday shopping.
3. Cheez-It Bowl (Fossil watch, JBL speaker, corn hole set, Yeti cooler, Yeti rambler, duffel bag, RuMe bag, hat, shave set): To me, the Cheez-It Bowl is providing a nice variety of stuff and all of it is useful, the corn hole set especially. I’m not a person who likes big brand logos on my stuff, but I would use a duffel bag with a Cheez-It logo as much as possible.
2. Fiesta Bowl (PS4 package, Fossil Watch, Ogio backpack): The PS4 gift package apparently has the console, games and controllers. That’s a dream for most college kids. I’m still more of an N64 guy, myself, but I’m old.
1. Alamo Bowl ($425 Amazon gift card, Fossil watch, mini helmet, team photo): I have to agree with Nick on this one. The $425 to Amazon is tremendous. Oh, and you get a commemorative team photo from the bowl game to remember your time in San Antonio. Good work.
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Worst Gift
Nick: This is tricky because what if the Gasparilla Bowl’s simple “gift suite” stinks? We have no idea what’s in it. With that in mind I’m going with the Pinstripe Bowl. Hats are cool, but if you can get up to $550 in gifts, variety is a good thing.
Sam: The Frisco Bowl really needs to bring more to the table than its selection of a cowboy hat, beanie, coin and a pin. That’s not very exciting.
Oddest Gift
Nick: The Las Vegas Bowl went full tourist hipster with the “dad hat” and the fanny pack. Let the kids age 40 more years before they dress like 60-year-old tourists going to Vegas for the all-you-can eat buffets and early bird specials.
Sam: One of the items provided by the First Responder Bowl is a “RFID-blocking Ridge wallet.” A quick Google search tells me that it is supposed to protect you from electronic pickpocketing, which is apparently a thing. Honorable mention goes to the “personalized bobblehead of each student-athlete” given out by the Orange Bowl.
Full Gift List
Cure Bowl
Holloway Force jacket, sunglasses, power bank, duffle bank, sandals, dopp kit, long-sleeve T-shirt, hat
New Mexico Bowl
Gift suite, Oakley sunglasses, Oakley backpack, speaker, water bottle, beanie, pen, trucker hat
Las Vegas Bowl
Gift suite, a Las Vegas item, “dad hat,” beanie, fanny pack
Camellia Bowl
Gift suite, Fossil watch, Samsonite duffle bag, beanie, football
New Orleans Bowl
Gift suite, Fossil watch
Boca Raton Bowl
Gift suite, drawstring backpack, beach towel, football
Frisco Bowl
Gift suite, cowboy hat, beanie, coin, pin, football
Gasparilla Bowl
Gift suite
Bahamas Bowl
Gift suite, Yeti rambler, string backpack, board shorts, towel, pin
Potato Bowl
Gift suite, Oakley backpack, hydro flask, beanie
Birmingham Bowl
Gift suite, Oakley backpack or sunglasses, cooling hoodie, football
Armed Forces Bowl
Gift suite, helmet that is a speaker, football
Dollar General Bowl
Yamaha sounder, Timely watch, Maui Jim Sunglasses, game ball
Hawaii Bowl
Gift suite, Oakley backpack, Oakley sunglasses, Tori Richard shirt, shorts, t-shirt, beach towel
First Responder Bowl
Gift suite, RFID-blocking Ridge wallet, football
Quick Lane Bowl
$175 Best Buy gift card, JBL headphones, personalized Fathead decal, backpack, shirts, mini helmet, football
Cheez-It Bowl
Fossil watch, JBL speaker, corn hole set, Yeti cooler, Yeti rambler, duffel bag, RuMe bag, hat, shave set
Independence Bowl
Gift suite, Timely watch, New Era hat, football
Pinstripe Bowl
New Era products
Texas Bowl
Gift suite, Academy gift card, Adidas backpack, belt buckle
Music City Bowl
Gift suite, Fossil Watch
Camping World Bowl
$400 Best Buy gift card, Ogio backpack, Fossil Watch
Alamo Bowl
$425 Amazon gift card, Fossil watch, mini helmet, team photo
Peach Bowl
$300 Visa gift card, Fossil watch, Mophie power bank, Amazon Echo Dot, football
Belk Bowl
Belk shopping trip, Fossil watch
Arizona Bowl
Backpack with power bank and USB port, Beats Buds, Fire Kindle, hydro flask, cooling towel, Frito Lay products
Orange Bowl
Gift suite, Tourneau watch, personalized bobblehead, sling bag
Military Bowl
Dell mobile projector, $100 AmEx gift card, iSlides
Sun Bowl
Gift suite, Timely watch, fleece pullover, Ogio backpack, Under Armour hat, coin
RedBox Bowl
Fossil watch, Timbuktu backpack, Roku, headphones, RedBox Bowl stuff
Liberty Bowl
Bass Pro Shops shopping Trip, Bose speaker, Bulova watch, Nike shoes, sandals, backpack, sunglasses, football
Holiday Bowl
Gift suite, Fossil watch, New Era hat
Gator Bowl
Fossil watch, Maui Jim sunglasses, Amazon Echo, iSlides, tumbler, Dopp kit
Outback Bowl
Fossil watch, Jostens ring, $125 Best Buy gift card, Outback gift card, hat
Citrus Bowl
$400 Best Buy gift card, Fossil watch, Ogio backpack
Fiesta Bowl
PS4 package, Fossil Watch, Ogio backpack
Rose Bowl
Gift suite, Fossil watch, Ogio backpack, New Era hat
Sugar Bowl
Gift suite, Fossil watch, New Era hat, Rock ‘Em socks, cufflinks
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