After finishing the regular season with a 7-5 (4-5) record, Maryland has accepted a bid to play in the TransPerfect Music City Bowl in Nashville, TN. This marks their third straight bowl appearance for the first time since 2006-08, and they'll have a chance to win a bowl game in three consecutive years for the first time in program history. Following bowl games against ACC opponents in 2016, 2021, and 2022, this will be their first non-ACC postseason opponent since facing off against Stanford in 2014.
They'll be playing against Auburn in this game, their first bowl appearance against an SEC team since the 2002 Peach Bowl. The Tigers finished this season with a 6-6 (3-5) record in their first year under head coach Hugh Freeze. They finished on a two-game losing streak following losses to New Mexico State and Alabama. Their offense is led by their rushing attack, which includes dual-threat QB Payton Thorne. Defensively, they've defended the pass better than the run this season.
This will be the fourth time these teams have met, and the first since 1982. Auburn won that game, and the one in 1958. Maryland's only win in the series came all the way back in 1952.