2017 TaxSlayer Bowl

{{Infobox NCAA football yearly game

| game_name = TaxSlayer Bowl

| subheader = 73rd Gator Bowl

| title_sponsor =

| image =

| caption =

| date_game_played = December 30

| year_game_played = 2017

| football_season = 2017

| stadium = EverBank Field

| city = Jacksonville, Florida

| visitor_school = University of Louisville

| visitor_name_short = Louisville

| visitor_nickname = Cardinals

| visitor_record = 8–4

| visitor_conference = ACC

| visitor_rank_AP =

| visitor_rank_coaches =

| visitor_rank_CFP =

| visitor_coach = Bobby Petrino

| visitor_1q = 7

| visitor_2q = 14

| visitor_3q = 3

| visitor_4q = 3

| home_school = Mississippi State University

| home_name_short = Mississippi State

| home_nickname = Bulldogs

| home_record = 8–4

| home_conference = SEC

| home_rank_AP = 24

| home_rank_coaches = 24

| home_rank_CFP = 23

| home_coach = Greg Knox
(interim)

| home_1q = 14

| home_2q = 3

| home_3q = 0

| home_4q = 14

| odds = Louisville by 7.5

| MVP = Mark McLaurin (S, Mississippi State) & Lamar Jackson (QB, Louisville)

| anthem =

| referee = Jerry McGinn (Big Ten)

| halftime =

| attendance = 41,310{{Cite web|url=https://www.newsday.com/sports/college/college-football/college-football-bowl-game-attendance-2017-18-1.12784796|title = 2017-18 bowl game attendance and schedule}}

| payout =

| us_network = ESPN

| us_announcers = Tom Hart, Jordan Rodgers, Cole Cubelic

| ratings =

| different_previous = 2016 (Dec.)

| different_next = 2018

}}

The 2017 TaxSlayer Bowl was a post-season American college football bowl game played on December 31, 2017, at EverBank Field in Jacksonville, Florida. The 73rd edition of the Gator Bowl featured the Louisville Cardinals of the Atlantic Coast Conference against the Mississippi State Bulldogs of the Southeastern Conference. It was one of the 2017–18 bowl games that concluded the 2017 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The game's naming rights sponsor was tax preparation software company TaxSlayer,{{cite web|url=http://www.taxslayerbowl.com/|title=TaxSlayer Bowl|access-date=December 27, 2015}} and for sponsorship reasons was officially known as the TaxSlayer Bowl.

Teams

=Louisville=

{{See also|2017 Louisville Cardinals football team|2017 Atlantic Coast Conference football season}}

=Mississippi State=

{{See also|2017 Mississippi State Bulldogs football team|2017 Southeastern Conference football season}}

Game summary

=Scoring summary=

{{AmFootballScoreSummaryStart|VisitorName=UL|HomeName=MSST|state=}}

{{AmFootballScoreSummaryEntry

|Quarter=1

|Time=10:47

|Team=MSST

|DrivePlays=6

|DriveLength=56

|DriveTime=2:07

|Type=RushTD

|Runner=Aeris Williams

|yards=5

|kickresult=good

|Kicker=Jace Christmann

|Visitor=0

|Home=7

}}

{{AmFootballScoreSummaryEntry

|Quarter=1

|Time=6:35

|Team=UL

|DrivePlays=8

|DriveLength=51

|DriveTime=4:12

|Type=RecTD

|Receiver=Charles Standberry

|QB=Lamar Jackson

|yards=5

|kickresult=good

|Kicker=Blanton Creque

|Visitor=7

|Home=7

}}

{{AmFootballScoreSummaryEntry

|Quarter=1

|Time=3:11

|Team=MSST

|DrivePlays=9

|DriveLength=79

|DriveTime=3:24

|Type=RushTD

|Runner=Keytaon Thompson

|yards=14

|kickresult=good

|Kicker=Jace Christmann

|Visitor=7

|Home=14

}}

{{AmFootballScoreSummaryEntry

|Quarter=2

|Time=10:29

|Team=UL

|DrivePlays=5

|DriveLength=74

|DriveTime=1:38

|Type=RushTD

|Runner=Lamar Jackson

|yards=13

|kickresult=good

|Kicker=Blanton Creque

|Visitor=14

|Home=14

}}

{{AmFootballScoreSummaryEntry

|Quarter=2

|Time=4:21

|Team=MSST

|DrivePlays=7

|DriveLength=14

|DriveTime=3:24

|Type=FG

|yards=23

|Kicker=Jace Christmann

|Visitor=14

|Home=17

}}

{{AmFootballScoreSummaryEntry

|Quarter=2

|Time=0:19

|Team=UL

|DrivePlays=3

|DriveLength=88

|DriveTime=0:45

|Type=RecTD

|Receiver=Jaylen Smith

|QB=Lamar Jackson

|yards=11

|kickresult=good

|Kicker=Blanton Creque

|Visitor=21

|Home=17

}}

{{AmFootballScoreSummaryEntry

|Quarter=3

|Time=3:14

|Team=UL

|DrivePlays=6

|DriveLength=27

|DriveTime=2:38

|Type=FG

|yards=23

|Kicker=Blanton Creque

|Visitor=24

|Home=17

}}

{{AmFootballScoreSummaryEntry

|Quarter=4

|Time=13:22

|Team=MSST

|DrivePlays=4

|DriveLength=22

|DriveTime=0:58

|Type=RushTD

|Runner=Keytaon Thompson

|yards=2

|kickresult=good

|Kicker=Jace Christmann

|Visitor=24

|Home=24

}}

{{AmFootballScoreSummaryEntry

|Quarter=4

|Time=7:38

|Team=UL

|DrivePlays=13

|DriveLength=61

|DriveTime=5:54

|Type=FG

|yards=31

|Kicker=Blanton Creque

|Visitor=27

|Home=24

}}

{{AmFootballScoreSummaryEntry

| Quarter=4

| Time=3:39

| Team=MSST

| DrivePlays=11

| DriveLength=65

| DriveTime=3:59

| Type=RushTD

| Runner=Keytaon Thompson

| yards=1

| kickresult=good

| Kicker=Jace Christmann

| Visitor=27

| Home=31

}}

=Statistics=

{{Linescore Amfootball|

|Road=Cardinals

|R1=7 |R2=14|R3=3 |R4=3

|Home=Bulldogs

|H1=14|H2=3 |H3=0 |H4=14}}

class="wikitable" ! Statistics !! style="{{NCAA color cell\|Louisville Cardinals}}"\|UL !!style="{{NCAA color cell\|Mississippi State Bulldogs}}"\|MSST
First downs	20	23
Plays–yards	70–358	75–404
Rushes–yards	39–187	55–287
Passing yards	171	127
Passing: Comp–Att–Int	13–31–4	11–20–1
Time of possession	30:21	29:39

class="wikitable" ! Team !! Category !! Player !! Statistics
rowspan=3 style="{{NCAA color cell\|Louisville Cardinals}}; text-align:center;"\|UL	Passing	Lamar Jackson	13/31, 171 yds, 2 TD, 4 INT
Rushing	Lamar Jackson	24 car, 158 yds, 1 TD
Receiving	Jaylen Smith	7 rec, 107 yds, 1 TD
rowspan=3 style="{{NCAA color cell\|Mississippi State Bulldogs}}; text-align:center;"\|MSST	Passing	Keytaon Thompson	11/20, 127 yds, 1 INT
Rushing	Keytaon Thompson	27 car, 147 yds, 3 TD
Receiving	Jesse Jackson	3 rec, 38 yds

References

TaxSlayer Bowl

Category:Gator Bowl

Category:Louisville Cardinals football bowl games

Category:Mississippi State Bulldogs football bowl games

TaxSlayer Bowl