Temple got a phone call about the Birmingham Bowl on Sunday afternoon.
Before the school could talk to coaches, players, and administrators about whether to accept the invitation, it went to someone else. That’s what Temple clarified on Monday after On3’s Brett McMurphy reported the Owls among seven 5-7 teams declining bowl bids.
At least 7 teams that were 5-7 have now declined a bowl bid: Florida State, Auburn, UCF, Baylor, Rutgers, Temple & Kansas, sources told @On3sports. The quest continues to find an opponent for Georgia Southern in the Birmingham Bowl
— Brett McMurphy (@Brett_McMurphy) December 8, 2025
The Birmingham Bowl needed an opponent for Georgia Southern after three bowl-eligible teams —Notre Dame, Iowa State, and Kansas State — all declined to play in bowls despite qualifying. Notre Dame got left out of the playoff and opted out. Iowa State and Kansas State both lost their head coaches and shut it down. That left bowl organizers short on teams and forced them to dip into 5-7 schools ranked by APR. Rice, Auburn, UCF, Mississippi State, Florida State, Baylor, Rutgers, Kansas, and Temple were all in that pool.
Most of them said no. Temple says it never got that far.
“At no point did Temple decline a bowl invitation,” the school’s statement read. “We received a phone call yesterday afternoon to discuss an invitation, and before we were able to discuss the opportunity with our coaching staff, student-athletes, and university leadership, the opportunity was offered to another institution.”
Temple clarifies that it did not turn down the Birmingham Bowl. Official statement: pic.twitter.com/EgZ7N3Kx3i
— Kyle Gauss (@kylegauss) December 8, 2025
Temple wanted to play. Its players wanted to play. A team that hasn’t played in the postseason since 2019 (a 55-13 Military Bowl loss to North Carolina) values bowl participation and was disappointed the opportunity evaporated. But somewhere between that initial call and Temple gathering its people, the Birmingham Bowl moved on. Whether organizers sensed hesitation or couldn’t wait for an answer is unclear.
What is clear is that Appalachian State eventually became the eighth team asked and the first to say yes.
About Sam Neumann
Since the beginning of 2023, Sam has been a staff writer for Awful Announcing and The Comeback. A 2021 graduate of Temple University, Sam is a Charlotte native, who currently calls Greenville, South Carolina his home. He also has a love/hate relationship with the New York Mets and Jets.