The Coca-Cola Classic was a regular season National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) college football game played in Tokyo, Japan, from 1977 to 1993. It was originally sponsored by Mitsubishi and known as the Mirage Bowl, and later sponsored by The Coca-Cola Company, renamed for the soft drink Coca-Cola Classic. Since the game was merely a re-location of a late regular season game, it was not considered a traditional postseason bowl game.

Background Japan universities began forming their own college football teams since 1934.History of American Football in Japan, Japan American Football Association, accessed May 28, 2024. In 1971, the Utah State Aggies became the first American college football team to play in Japan, in a series of games against teams of Japan's college all-stars.Kaz Nagastuka, Coaches recall trail-blazing '71 Utah State visit, The Japan Times, January 20, 2016.Bobak Ha'Eri, /r/CFB Reporting: Mills Bowl IV is this Saturday: What to know about the team from Japan and notes from the ground at Southern Oregon, /r/CFB, May 3, 2024. January 1976 saw the beginning of the Japan Bowl, a post-season college football all-star game played in Japan each January from 1976 to 1993.

In September 1976, Grambling State and Morgan State played a regular-season game at Korakuen Stadium in Tokyo, Japan. Won by Grambling State, 42–16, it was the first regular-season NCAA game played in Japan. Referred to as the "Pioneer Bowl" in some sources, the game was unrelated to the postseason Pioneer Bowl played in Wichita Falls, Texas, between 1971–1982, or the later Pioneer Bowl contested between historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs) between 1997–2012.

Corporate sponsorship

Mitsubishi

The Mirage Bowl was hosted by Mitsubishi Motors in Japan from its inception through 1985. The name refers to Mitsubishi's Mirage line of subcompact cars. Chrysler imported the Mirage, and sold it in the US as the Dodge Colt and Plymouth Champ.

Coca-Cola Company

The Coca-Cola Company took over corporate sponsorship from Mitsubishi in 1986, renaming it the "Coca-Cola Classic". Other sports contests sponsored by Coca-Cola have also been called "Coca-Cola Classic"; for example, in college basketball and volleyball.University of Alaska Fairbanks Volleyball Archives The company's flagship beverage, itself, was re-branded "Coca-Cola Classic" in the wake of the "New Coke" fiasco.

Game results SeasonDate Winners Runners-upVenueAttendanceReference 1977 11 December 1977 Grambling 35 Temple 32 Korakuen Stadium 50,000 1978 10 December 1978 Temple 28 Boston College 24 55,000 1979 24 November 1979 Notre Dame 40 Miami (FL) 15 62,574 1980 30 November 1980 No. 14 UCLA 34 Oregon State 3National Olympic Stadium 80,000 1981 28 November 1981 Air Force 21 San Diego State 16 60,000 1982 27 November 1982 No. 10 Clemson 21 Wake Forest 17 80,000 1983 26 November 1983 No. 6 SMU 34 Houston 12 70,000 1984 17 November 1984 Army 45 Montana 31 60,000 1985 30 November 1985 USC 20 Oregon 6 65,000 1986 30 November 1986 Stanford 29 No. 12 Arizona 24 55,000 1987 28 November 1987 California 17 Washington State 17 54,000 1988 3 December 1988 No. 12 Oklahoma State 45 Texas Tech 42 Tokyo Dome 56,000 1989 4 December 1989 Syracuse 24 Louisville 13 50,000 1990 1 December 1990 No. 11 Houston 62 Arizona State 45 50,000 1991 30 November 1991 No. 13 Clemson 33 Duke 21 50,000 1992 6 December 1992 No. 11 Nebraska 38 Kansas State 24 50,000 1993 5 December 1993 No. 10 Wisconsin 41 No. 25 Michigan State 20 51,000

Notable games

1977 The inaugural Mirage Bowl was played in 1977 at Korakuen Stadium on December 11, between Grambling and Temple. Grambling rallied to win 35–32 with a last-minute touchdown, and All-American quarterback Doug Williams was named MVP.

1984 The eighth edition, between Army and Montana, marked the introduction of "The Wave" to Japan. A line of Army and Montana cheerleaders on the playing field demonstrated the concept of The Wave, and it was quickly adopted by spectators in the stands.

1988

Heisman Trophy winning running back Barry Sanders concluded his Division I-A (now FBS) record-setting rushing season in this game, since the NCAA did not begin counting bowl game statistics until 2002 (four weeks later, he gained 222 yards in the Holiday Bowl, which are not included in his record-setting total). He watched the Heisman Trophy announcement in a Tokyo television studio at five o'clock in the morning. Sanders rushed for more than 300 yards in Oklahoma State's 45–42 win against Texas Tech to finish the season with 2,628 yards.

1990

Houston quarterback David Klingler passed for 716 yards against Arizona State, a Division I-A (now FBS) single-game passing yardage record that stood for over two decades, broken by Connor Halliday in 2014.

1992 Nebraska won the Big Eight conference title, edging out runner-up Colorado with the win. It was the finale of Kansas State's last non-bowl season until 2004.

1993 With their 21-point win over Michigan State, Wisconsin became co-champions of the Big Ten (with Ohio State, who they had tied earlier in the season) and received the invitation to the Rose Bowl, the program's first New Year's Day appearance in 31 years.

See also List of college bowl games List of college football games played outside the United States

References