Armed Forces Bowl set for January kickoff

FORT WORTH, Texas (AP) The Armed Forces Bowl will be played in January for the first time.

Bowl officials announced Thursday that the 12th annual game on the TCU campus in Fort Worth, Texas, will be played next Jan. 2.

If Army becomes bowl eligible during the upcoming season, the Black Knights will have a spot in the game that is scheduled for an 11 a.m. Central kickoff. The opposing team is set to come from the American Athletic Conference.

Middle Tennessee State defeated Navy 24-6 in the Armed Forces Bowl last Dec. 30.

After the first four games (2003-06) were played on Dec. 23 each year, the bowl has since been held on Dec. 30 or 31, with the exception of 2012 when it was played Dec. 29.