Eight former Camping World Bowl participants selected to 2019 NFL Pro Bowl

The NFL released its Pro Bowl rosters last month, with eight former Camping World Bowl participants selected to appear in the game, which will take place on Sunday, Jan. 27 at 3 p.m. at Camping World Stadium.

The list includes 2000 and 2003 Camping World Bowl MVP Philip Rivers, an eighth-time Pro Bowl pick, along with 2010 game MVP Russell Wilson, a fifth-time Pro Bowl selection. The 2019 roster will also reunite former Notre Dame teammates Zack Martin and Harrison Smith, who played together in 2011 matchup against Florida State.

The full list of Camping World Bowl alumni on this year’s rosters can be found below:

• Philip Rivers (2000, 2001, 2003 – North Carolina State)
• Olivier Vernon (2009 – Miami)
• JJ Watt (2009 – Wisconsin)
• Russell Wilson (2010 – North Carolina State)
• Zack Martin (2011 – Notre Dame)
• Harrison Smith (2011 – Notre Dame)
• Kyle Fuller (2012 – Virginia Tech)
• Xavien Howard (2015 – Baylor)

In the 2000 game, then known as the MicronPC.com Bowl, Rivers rallied the Wolfpack from 24 points down to defeat Minnesota 38-30. Rivers completed 24 of 39 passes for 310 yards and a pair of touchdowns that game. The following year, he threw for 289 yards and a score in the Visit Florida Tangerine Bowl, the game’s first edition to be played in Orlando.

In 2003, Rivers not only earned MVP honors for his 475 passing yards and five touchdowns, but set multiple Camping World Bowl marks in the process. Rivers still holds the records for completions (37), completion percentage (82.2 percent), passing yards (475), passing touchdowns (5) and attempts without an interception (45). His performance helped lead NC State to a 56-26 victory over Kansas.

Wilson’s MVP performance came in his final game before transferring from NC State to Wisconsin. He threw for 275 yards and two touchdowns and added 41 rushing yards to help the Wolfpack defeat West Virginia 23-7 in 2010. His 28 completions rank fourth in Camping World Bowl history, and his 45 attempts tied Rivers’ mark for passes without an interception.

The 2018 Pro Bowl, a 24-23 AFC victory, drew a corwn of 51,019 in its second year in Orlando. In addition to the current players on the field, this year’s game will also feature a first-class team of legends captains in Jim Kelly, Emmitt Smith, Brian Urlacher and Demarcus Ware. To purchase your tickets to this year’s game, click here.