CFB Bowl Preview 2025: Union Home Mortgage Gasparilla Bowl
Memphis Tigers vs NC State Wolfpack
By Stiofán Mac Fhilib
Bowl season is in full swing, and we will be previewing every bowl game this year. This year’s Union Home Mortgage Gasparilla Bowl will be contested between Mephis Tigers and NC State Wolfpack. Let’s take a look at the key matchups.
Where and When
Location: Raymond James Stadium, Tampa, Florida
Date: Friday December 19
Time: 2.30pm EST / 7.30pm GMT
Story So Far...
These two schools have never met before, but it promises to be a fascinating encounter between teams that finished the season on very different trajectories, each with their own issues to work through this Winter and the coming Spring.
Memphis got off to a great start in 2025 with sixth-year Head Coach, Ryan Silverfield leading the Tigers to an 8-1 record that included a win against SEC neighbour, Arkansas. A tough November run-in, however, saw them lose three straight against three of the best teams in the American Conference: Tulane, East Carolina, and Navy.
That didn’t tarnish Silverfield’s reputation, though, in a season where he became the fastest ever HC to win 50 games with Memphis, and he left to take up the Arkansas job after the end of the regular season. DB coach, Reggie Howard, is the interim HC for the bowl game, as the Tigers seek a fifth consecutive bowl win this decade.
NC State had an up-and-down season that left Dave Doeren’s side at 5-5. A win over slumping Florida State secured bowl eligibility, before victory in the Thanksgiving rivalry game over Bill Belichick and UNC guaranteed a winning season. Success in this bowl game would give the Wolfpack an 8-win season for the seventh time in the last nine years. To do so, however, will require State to end a five-bowl game losing streak, going back to 2018.
The Quarterbacks
Sixth-year (Covid) senior, Brendon Lewis, spent three years at Colorado, then two at Nevada, before landing at the Tigers. He enters his final game having thrown for over 2,500 yards with a 15:6 TD:INT ratio and is a true dual threat, running for over 600 yards and 9 TDs. His output on the ground has dropped off a bit in the second half of the season, after he sustained a lower-body injury that he continues to battle through.
In his second season in Raleigh, sophomore, CJ Bailey improved significantly on his freshman year. Throwing for almost 2,900 yards, he had 23 TDs to 9 INTs and finished the season strongly, with a pair of TD passes and no picks in the last two regular-season wins. With 20 sacks on the season, however, and 13 of those coming in just three games, the Tigers’ pass rush will fancy its chances of making his afternoon difficult in Tampa.
Who to Watch
Memphis
Cortez Braham Jr., Wide Receiver
The redshirt senior from Baltimore spent two seasons with West Virginia, then one at Nevada, before following his QB from the Wolf Pack near the west coast, to now face the Wolfpack from the east. He had the best season of his career with almost 900 yards and 8 TDs, and was the Tigers’ leading receiver in the win over Arkansas. He will be looking to help Lewis finish his college career on a winning high.
NC State
Hollywood Smothers, Running Back
The redshirt sophomore from Charlotte, with one of the best names in all of college football, had an excellent season, which saw him earn First Team All-ACC honours and finish as the conference’s third-leading rusher. His 939 yards came at a fraction under 6 yards per carry, and he notched half a dozen TDs along the way. His output tailed off a little in November, and he will be keen to get back on track in the bowl game.
Prediction
Memphis will be keen to end its late-season slide, but it could be difficult amid the coaching upheaval. The Bailey/Smothers combo will put enough points on the scoreboard to end their bowl game drought and secure another eight-win season for Doeren.
Memphis 24-31 NC State
STIOFÁN MAC FHILIB
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A VERY LONG-DISTANCE SUBWAY ALUMNUS OF NOTRE DAME, COUNTY ANTRIM-BASED STIOFÁN HAS BEEN A FAN OF THE FIGHTING IRISH SINCE 2000. FOLLOW HIM ON TWITTER @SMACFHILIB.