BOISE, Idaho – The Eastern Michigan University football team will play in its fifth bowl game in the last seven years when it participates in the 26th Annual Famous Idaho Potato Bowl Tuesday, Dec. 20, on the blue turf of Albertsons Stadium. The Eagles finished the regular season with an 8-4 mark and a 5-3 record in Mid-American Conference play. EMU made appearances in the 2016 Bahamas Bowl, the 2018 Camellia Bowl, the 2019 Quick Lane Bowl, and the 2021 LendingTree Bowl.

The Spartans finished the regular season with a 7-4 record, going 5-3 in the Mountain West Conference. SJSU is bowling for the first time since 2020. It will be Head Coach Brent Brennan's second bowl game as head coach of SJSU. Furthermore, he is the first head coach to lead the Spartans to two bowl games since Claude Gilbert in 1986 and 1987.

The Eagles will face off against San Jose State for the second time in the postseason, as the matchup is a rematch of the 1987 California Bowl. The then-Hurons were a 17-point underdog, but EMU prevailed with a 30-27 win over the Spartans in Fresno, Calif., Dec. 12, 1987.

A triumph would give Eastern Michigan exactly nine victories in a season for the first time ever, and would go down as the second-best win total in the 131-year history of the program. Eastern's best season came in 1987, when the team won 10 games (nine regular season) en route to the program's lone Mid-American Conference title and postseason bowl victory (California Bowl). EMU teams have finished with eight wins six times, including this season.

Kickoff from Boise State University's campus is set for 1:30 p.m. MT (3:30 p.m. ET) and the contest will be broadcast on ESPN and ESPN Deportes. Clay Matvick and Rocky Boiman will be in the booth, while Dawn Davenport reports from the sideline. The game will also be aired on WEMU (89.1 FM) with veteran broadcasters Tom Helmer and Rob Rubick calling the action on the field. WEMU's special 30-minute pregame show from the stadium begins at 1 p.m. MT (3 p.m. ET).