The secret behind Pop-Tarts Bowl's viral success, why Notre Dame passed and more from Citrus Sports CEO

The secret behind Pop-Tarts Bowl’s viral success, why Notre Dame passed and more from Citrus Sports CEO originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

Florida Citrus Sports CEO Steve Hogan has been involved in Orlando’s sports scene for more than 30 years. Yet he had an out-of-body moment during the 2024 Cheez-It Citrus Bowl between No. 21 Illinois and No. 14 South Carolina on Jan. 31, 2024.

“It’s hard not to laugh for different reasons,” Hogan told The Sporting News. “The Cheez-It Citrus Bowl having a wedding on the field. I never thought I would necessarily see that over my career, but there we were.”

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Hogan oversees two of the most popular bowls outside the College Football Playoff. The Pop-Tarts Bowl has become one of the most viral traditions of Bowl Season in recent years, and the Cheez-It Citrus Bowl has employed similar techniques. Both games are held in Orlando at Camping World Stadium, and that is expected to continue past 2025.

“I think there’s a culture of willingness — there has always been on our side — to be very receptive to the creativity of corporate partners without crossing a line of being disrespectful to the teams, players, or coaches,” Hogan said.

Cheez-It hot tubs. Edible mascots. What’s next? That’s all the backdrop for two more intriguing games this season. No. 24 Georgia Tech faces No. 12 BYU in the Pop-Tarts Bowl on Saturday, while No. 13 Texas takes on No. 18 Michigan in the Cheez-It Citrus Bowl on Dec. 31. Hogan discussed both bowl games, No. 11 Notre Dame’s decision not to participate in this year’s bowl season, and what the future might hold for these postseason matchups.

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How Pop-Tarts Bowl, Citrus Bowl emerged as fan favorites

A Barstool Sports tweet showing the “resurrection” of the Strawberry Pop-Tart during its “funeral” has more than 3.1 million viewers – the surest sign that the bowl game has captured the nation’s attention.

Hogan said it is about taking chances at both bowl games. Cheez-It baths. Sprinkles on the teams’ helmets. The collaboration between the bowls, players and corporate sponsors has been an over-the-top hit.

“With Strawberry coming back making an appearance from the after-life and the toaster who knew?” Hogan said. “The collaboration with GE making the trophy really a working toaster literally broke the internet with 2.5-3 million views. Those are the kind of things that you never dreamed would have been possible, but they are just a blast.”

Will that continue this year? Both bowl games should have some new wrinkles, and the matchups on the field are even better.

“We really just want to have fun,” Hogan said. “Content is king these days, and there is no question the country if not the college football community consumes these games in the postseason. As much as we all snicker, there are millions of people watching.”

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Why Notre Dame declined Pop-Tarts Bowl invite

Notre Dame was snubbed from the College Football Playoff on Dec. 7. The Irish were left out despite being ranked ahead of No. 11 Miami – the last at-large team in the field – through much of November. Hogan described the process that followed as a raw experience.

“I don’t take the decision Notre Dame made as a kind of shot at the bowl game opportunity or the ability to play a No. 11 against a No. 12 or any of that,” Hogan said. “I really truly believe there was some severe emotional disappointment and not enough time to deal with that.”

Hogan said both bowls have a strong relationship with Notre Dame. The Irish played LSU in the Cheez–It Citrus Bowl in 2018 and participated in the Pop-Tarts Bowl, then called the Camping World Bowl, in 2011 and 2019. He does not view Notre Dame’s decision to skip this year’s game as a “snub.”

“I don’t link the two,” Hogan said. “I know it was viewed that way, right? People linked them as rejecting it like it wasn’t worth it. I feel like it was more just unfortunate that it happened the way it did emotionally.”

Hogan added that Notre Dame was never in the pool to be selected for the Pop-Tarts Bowl, and decisions had to be made.

“Technically, they were not available to us at that point; they had not put themselves in the pool to be selected,” Hogan said. “That’s a fact. When the pool was provided to us, we picked the team we thought was best, and it was Georgia Tech.”

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How Pop-Tarts Bowl, Cheez-It Citrus Bowl fit in Bowl Season future

The Pop-Tarts Bowl drew 6.8 million viewers in 2024 – the most viewers for that game since 2008. Hogan said viewership will continue to increase with good matchups. The Pop-Tarts Bowl and Cheez-It Citrus Bowl have benefitted from that.

Last year, Illinois beat South Carolina 21-14 in the Cheez-It Citrus Bowl and No. 18 Iowa State beat No. 15 Miami 41 in the Pop-Tarts Bowl.

“The marketplace is forcing the industry back to a place where high-quality games with winning records and ranked teams are all you are going to sustain,” Hogan said. “There is going to be a bubble – and we hope our game is the game the country looks at and says, ‘Look at how they played. Maybe we got that one wrong. That’s a sweet spot for us.'”

It is a good spot this year, even without Notre Dame. BYU and Georgia Tech were in the CFP hunt. So were Texas and Michigan. Hogan is excited about the quarterback collection for those games, which includes Georgia Tech’s Haynes King, BYU’s Bear Bachmeier, Texas’ Arch Manning and Michigan’s Bryce Underwood.

“To have those four guys. Four of the highest quality QBs, and we’re going to see some football outside of the playoff,” Hogan said.

In the meantime, Hogan is looking to build the reputation of both bowls both on and off the field. In the event of College Football Playoff expansion, Orlando would like to be in the mix.

“We are always open, ready and willing to be a part of the best opportunities available for our city, and we want a meaningful place,” Hogan said. “Should they ever competitively bid playoff rounds, we want to be a major player there. We believe the quality of our games have been first-round level. The ratings have substantiated that.”

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