IS4S Salute to Veterans Bowl Game Notes Posted December 17, 2025 Troy Trojans vs. Jax State Gamecocks Tuesday, Dec. 16, 2025 Pregame: Weather: Cloudy, 36 degrees, Wind: 3 mph The 36 degrees is the coldest kickoff temperature in Salute to Veterans Bowl history The previous low was 39 degrees in 2000 (Buffalo vs. Marshall) Troy captains were Jordan Lovett, Devin Lafayette, Jordan Stringer and Colton Walls Jax State captains were Caleb Nix, Travis Franklin, Pearson Baldwin and Trevor Woods Jax State won the toss and deferred to the second half Attendance: 15,721; fifth largest crowd in bowl history; largest since 2019 Time of Game: 3:01; the fastest game in bowl history; previous was 3:03 (2018) Final Score: Jax State defeated Troy 17-13 in the 12th annual Salute to Veterans Bowl It was the Gamecocks’ first win over Troy since Nov. 3, 1990, their last meeting as GSC members Jax State leads the all-time series 34-28-2 Redshirt junior running back Andrew Paul scored the winning touchdown on a 1-yard run in fourth quarter Paul had five carries for 12 yards in the Gamecocks win Redshirt sophomore quarterback Caden Creel was the Johnny Williams MVP Creel was 14-of-20 (.700) for 173 yards and one touchdown in the win He threw a 22-yard TD pass to redshirt senior Brock Rechsteiner on the Gamecocks first possession The game was the first FBS Bowl game between two teams from the state of Alabama Game Notes: Jax State finishes the season with a 9-5 record The Gamecocks have won 9 games every year as an FBS member Jax State is 2-1 in its first three FBS bowl games Troy finishes the season with an 8-6 record The Trojans are the fourth FBS team since 2015 to finish 8-6 (USC, Purdue and Boise State) Creel set the Salute to Veterans bowl record for highest completion percentage He completed 14-of-20 (.700) passes for 173 yards and one TD The previous record was 69.2 percent by Logan Woodside (Toledo) in 2019 Jax State quarterbacks completed 14-of-22 (.636) passes for 173 yards and one TD The 63.6 combined completion percentage is the third highest in Salute to Veterans Bowl history Jax State scored in its first possession of the game (9 plays, 71 yards; 3:41 TOP) The Gamecocks are the second team in bowl history to score in their opening possession Northern Illinois scored on its first possession of the game in 2023 Troy scored on a sack and fumble in the first quarter Redshirt junior linebacker TJ Thompson had a 12-yard sack and fumble Senior nose tackle Luis Medina recovered the fumble in the end zone for a touchdown It’s the sixth defensive TD in Salute to Veterans Bowl history and first since 2021 Jax State redshirt sophomore kicker Garrison Rippa kicked a 51-yard field goal with 6:35 left in the third quarter Rippa’s field goal cut the Gamecocks’ deficit to 13-10 The 51-yard FG is the second longest in bowl history FIU’s Jose Borregales holds the bowl game record with a 52-yard FG in 2019 Troy’s DJ Epps returned the ensuing kickoff 79 yards (TD saving tackle by Caleb Nix) The 79-yard kickoff return is the second longest kickoff return in bowl history Appalachian State’s Darrynton Evans had a 97-yard TD return in 2016 Troy’s 13 points are the second fewest in bowl history The Trojans are the first team in bowl history not to score an offensive touchdown The 30 combined points are the second fewest in bowl history Buffalo (17) and Marshall (10) combined for 27 points in 2020 Troy was 2-for-12 (.167) on third downs; the worst third down percentage in bowl history The previous low was 21.4 percent by Ohio (3-for-14) in 2018 Troy senior linebacker Jordan Stringer recorded 16 tackles and one-half sack in the game The 16 tackles are the second most in bowl history South Alabama’s Maleki Harris had 18 tackles in the inaugural game in 2014