Mercy Bowl
Template:Use mdy dates The Mercy Bowl was the name to two one-off charity bowl games played at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum and Anaheim Stadium.
The first was played between Fresno State University and Bowling Green State University on November 23, 1961, as a special fundraiser in memory of sixteen Cal Poly-San Luis Obispo football players killed in a plane crash following a game against Bowling Green a year earlier.<ref name="seattle.times">Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Foldesy, Jody. "Bowls burgeon as big business", The Washington Times. December 21, 1997. Page A1.</ref> The game, attended by 33,145 spectators, raised $200,000 for the surviving widows and children and for a memorial in their honor.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Pro Football Hall of Fame coach and Cal Poly alumnus John Madden commented in 2008 that "it wouldn't be a bad idea to play a game like that again. Hold a bowl game for a cause. There are a lot of good ones. I'd like to see that."<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
A second Mercy Bowl was staged in 1971 between Cal State Fullerton and Fresno State, intended to benefit the fourteen surviving children of three CSUF assistant coaches and a pilot who died in an airplane crash a month earlier.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The NCAA initially rejected the game due to a lack of available postseason dates, but pressure from California Governor Ronald Reagan and President Richard Nixon's advisor Robert Finch convinced them to approve it.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> CSUF head coach Dick Coury described the game, which his team won, as "the biggest victory I've been a part of."<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> With 16,854 in attendance, the second Mercy Bowl raised over $50,000.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
Game resultsEdit
| Date | Winner | Loser | Venue | Location | Attendance | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| November 23, 1961 | Fresno State | 36 | Bowling Green | 6 | Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum | Los Angeles, California | 33,145 |
| December 11, 1971 | Cal State Fullerton | 17 | Fresno State | 14 | Anaheim Stadium | Anaheim, California | 16,854 |
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Template:California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo
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