2015 Armed Forces Bowl, California vs. Air Force: Date, time, location and more

The Armed Forces Bowl has featured many different conference tie-ins in its 12-year history, and was supposed to pit the Mountain West against the Big Ten in the 2015 matchup in Fort Worth, Texas, but will instead feature a matchup of the Mountain West against the Pac-12.

Lockheed Martin will serve as the title sponsor of the game for the second year after securing the rights in 2014, as the game was previously sponsored by PlainsCapital Bank and Bell Helicopter.

At halftime of every Armed Forces Bowl, the Great American Patriot Award is given to a member of the service who has “gone beyond the call of duty to serve and protect this country, with proven dedication and loyalty in upholding the Constitution and the laws of the nation.”

Here is everything you need to know to get ready for this year’s Armed Forces Bowl:

Date and time: Tues., Dec. 29, 2 p.m. ET

TV channel: ESPN

Location: Fort Worth, Texas

Stadium: Amon G. Carter Stadium, 45,000

Last year’s score: Houston 35, Pittsburgh 34

Last year’s attendance: 37,888

Last year’s TV rating: 1.5

Last year’s payout for each school: $675,000

Teams with the most all-time appearances: Houston and Air Force, 4

Teams with the most all-time wins: Houston, 2

Sonny Dykes’ Golden Bears were one of the more bi-polar teams in the country this season, starting out 5-0 but winning just two of the next seven, against lowly Oregon State and Arizona State. The Bears allowed 30 or more points six times this season, making things pretty tough for star quarterback Jared Goff.

The Cal signal caller led his conference with 37 touchdown passes this season, among 4,252 yards on the season, and ranked 15th nationally with a 156.36 passer rating. A whopping six different Golden Bears finished with 400-plus receiving yards this season.

On defense, linebacker Hardy Nickerson, the son of the former All-Pro, finished third in the Pac-12 with 100 total tackles, but that wasn’t enough to stop the Golden Bears from still allowing some 200-plus rushing yards per game

Last bowl game: 2011 Holiday Bowl (21-10 loss to Texas)

All-time bowl record: 10-10-1

Head coach’s bowl record: Sonny Dykes is 0-1 in bowl games.

Air Force had a strong season in 2015, despite falling in the Mountain West Championship game to San Diego State. The Falcons dropped two tough games in the beginning of the season to Michigan State and Navy, but went on a roll from there. They would win six of their final eight regular season games, including wins over Boise State and Utah State.

The triple option attack for Air Force was effective once again, as they averaged 5.4 yards per carry as a team. The bulk of the production on the ground came via Jacobi Owens (853 yards, 5.0 yards per carry, 6 TD) and Karson Roberts (591 yards, 4.3 yards per carry, 18 total TD).

Beating Air Force is just like beating any other triple option attack -- either you can or you can’t. The Falcons will spend the entire game wearing you down and coming at you until they can take advantage of fatigue in the fourth quarter, where they thrive. A bowl game date with Air Force will test a defense’s toughness and stamina like few others.

Last bowl game: 2014 Famous Idaho Potato Bowl (38-24 win over Western Michigan)

All-time bowl record: 11-12-1

Head coach’s bowl record: Troy Calhoun is 3-4 in bowl games.