It’s official, the University of Houston and Louisiana State University football teams will face off at NRG Stadium on the 20th anniversary of the Kinder’s Texas Bowl, an event expected to draw major attendance.
Kicking off at 8:30 p.m. on Saturday, December 27, Kinder’s Texas Bowl will air nationally on ESPN, with radio coverage on Bowl Season Radio and a local broadcast available on Sports Radio 610 (KILT-AM), according to a press release by Lone Star Sports & Entertainment.
“We couldn’t be more excited to welcome LSU and Houston to NRG Stadium on December 27 as we celebrate 20 years of delivering meaningful impact for Houston through our community’s biggest college football event, the Kinder’s Texas Bowl,” said Kinder’s Texas Bowl Executive Director David Fletcher in the release.
The Kinder’s Texas Bowl has been an economic driver for Houston, generating an average of more than $30 million annually, according to the release.
Last year’s bowl game, in which LSU came away with a 44-31 victory against Baylor, drew 77,220 fans to NRG Stadium and generated a total live audience of 4.2 million viewers, according to organizers.
This year’s Kinder’s Texas Bowl is a few miles away from home for the Houston Cougars and within a few hours of a road trip for the LSU Tigers, likely to draw a larger crowd and possibly bolster hotel performance during the holidays. In 2024, major Houston submarkets showed strong occupancy during the bowl weekend, with the Downtown submarket logging a nearly 200% year-over-year gain in demand for the day of game and the Medical Center/NRG submarket lifting almost 30% in occupancy.
This matchup marks No. 21 UH’s first bowl appearance in three years to finish an impressive 9-3 season, and marks the return of LSU (7-5) for the second consecutive year. UH will be representing the Big 12, while LSU will represent the Southeastern Conference.
Written by Norma Salcedo
