AUBURN, Ala.— Auburn will play No. 20 Houston in the 2021 TicketSmarter Birmingham Bowl at 11 a.m. CT on December 28 at the new Progressive Stadium in downtown Birmingham.

It will be the Tigers’ 46th bowl appearance and the seventh meeting between Auburn (6-6) and Houston (11-2). Auburn holds a 5-1 advantage in the series with the last meeting a 7-0 Tiger win in 1973 at Jordan-Hare Stadium.

“Auburn football has a long history of playing in Birmingham, and now we have a chance to continue that against a nationally ranked Houston team that has won 11 games this year,” Harsin said.

Auburn’s all-time bowl record is 24-19-2 and will be making its ninth consecutive bowl appearance, tying the longest stretch in school history. The Tigers went to nine straight bowl games from 1982-90.

“Our mindset is to end the season with a win as we build momentum for 2022, while allowing our guys to enjoy a great bowl experience,” Harsin said. “This game is an opportunity for a number of our players to play close to home and many of our fans to easily attend after Christmas. We want the Auburn Family to turn the new Protective Stadium in Birmingham orange and blue, creating a home field advantage on game day.”

This will be the 15th edition of the Birmingham Bowl. Auburn defeated Memphis, 31-10, in 2015.

Houston went 11-2 during the regular season, losing the American Conference Championship game to Cincinnati on Saturday.

“We look forward to competing in the TicketSmarter Birmingham Bowl and the opportunity to send our seniors off on a positive note as we build for the future,” Auburn Director of Athletics Allen Greene said. “We invite the Auburn Family to support the Tigers December 28 in the first postseason game at state-of-the-art Protective Stadium.”

About the Birmingham Bowl:
The TicketSmarter Birmingham Bowl is one of 17 college football bowl games owned and operated by ESPN Events. For more information, please visit TicketSmarterBirminghamBowl.com. For up-to-the-minute information, please follow its social handles on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

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ESPN Events 
ESPN Events, a division of ESPN, owns and operates a portfolio of 35 collegiate sporting events nationwide. The roster includes five early-season college football games, 17 college bowl games, 12 college basketball events and a college softball event, which accounts for approximately 400 hours of live programming, reaches nearly 64 million viewers and attracts over 800,000 attendees each year. With satellite offices in more than 10 markets across the country, ESPN Events builds relationships with conferences, schools and local communities, as well as providing unique experiences for teams and fans.

COURTESY AUBURN ATHLETIC COMMUNICATIONS