From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Pythian Bowl was a postseason
college football
bowl game played from 1949 through 1951.
[1] In 1952, the game was played under the name of Lions Bowl .
[2] The game was played each year in December in
Salisbury, North Carolina , at
Shuford Stadium
[3] on the grounds of
Catawba College . The bowl's original name came from the
Knights of Pythias , a
fraternal organization , with proceeds from the game going to a local
orphanage .
[3] The 1952 game was named after
Lions Clubs International , with game proceeds again being used for charitable works. Like some other postseason match-ups of the era, such as the
Grape Bowl ,
Glass Bowl , and
Optimist Bowl , results are listed in
NCAA records, but the games were not considered NCAA-sanctioned bowls.
[1]
NCAA records list the date of the first Pythian Bowl as "11-26-1949",
[1] which is inconsistent with contemporary newspaper reports.
[3]
[4]
The 1949 game was listed as the "Olympian Bowl" in some newspapers.
[11]
[1]
For the 1952 game,
West Chester had been invited and accepted, however the school later withdrew its acceptance due to the bowl not being sanctioned by the NCAA; Clarion was then invited and replaced West Chester.
[12]
^
a
b
c
d
"BOWL/ALL STAR GAME RECORDS" (PDF) . NCAA. 2016. Retrieved January 7, 2017 .
^
"West Chester In Lions Bowl" .
The Greenville News .
Greenville, South Carolina .
AP . November 18, 1952. Retrieved March 29, 2017 – via newspapers.com.
^
a
b
c
"Pythian Bowl Slated Today At Salisbury" .
Asheville Citizen-Times .
Asheville, North Carolina .
AP . December 10, 1949. Retrieved March 29, 2017 – via newspapers.com.
^
a
b
"Appalachian State Tops Catawba, 21-7" .
The Courier-Journal .
Louisville, Kentucky .
AP . December 11, 1949. Retrieved March 29, 2017 – via newspapers.com.
^
"Appalachian bowls over Indians, 21–7" . The Charlotte Observer . December 11, 1949. Retrieved December 9, 2021 – via
Newspapers.com .
^
"West Liberty rally in 4th beats Appalachian, 28–26" . The News and Observer . December 10, 1950. Retrieved December 9, 2021 – via
Newspapers.com .
^
"West Liberty – Postseason History" . West Liberty Hilltoppers . May 18, 2016. Retrieved March 29, 2017 .
^
"State Set For Pythian Content Here Tomorrow" .
Salisbury Post .
Salisbury, North Carolina . December 7, 1951. p. 8. Retrieved March 2, 2024 – via
Newspapers.com
.
^ Turner, C. G. (December 10, 1951).
"Bears Win Pythian Clash" .
Hickory Daily Record .
Hickory, North Carolina . p. 6. Retrieved March 2, 2024 – via
Newspapers.com
.
^
"Clarion wins in Lions Bowl, stays unbeaten" . Sunday News . December 15, 1952. Retrieved March 6, 2021 – via
Newspapers.com .
^
"Bowl Results" .
Idaho State Journal .
Pocatello, Idaho . December 11, 1949. Retrieved March 29, 2017 – via newspapers.com.
^
"Clarion State In Lions Bowl" .
The Greenville News .
Greenville, South Carolina .
AP . November 23, 1952. Retrieved March 29, 2017 – via newspapers.com.