Cure Bowl 2018, Tulane vs. UL Lafayette: Where, when, and team info

The first Saturday of college football’s bowl season includes the Cure Bowl from Orlando, Fla., which features UL Lafayette and Tulane.

The Green Wave are favored by 3.5 points, and S&P+ gives Tulane a 54 percent chance to win on Saturday. Tulane’s offense and the Cajuns’ defense are ranked inside the 100s in S&P+, so don’t be surprised if this one is low scoring.

This bowl game is unique in that the proceeds go directly to the Breast Cancer Research Foundation, so it’s always a fun game for a great cause.

The Ragin’ Cajuns are doing well under Billy Napier, the former Nick Saban assistant who took the reins this year after Mark Hudspeth’s tenure headed south. ULL finished the regular season 27th in Offensive S&P+, which largely offset the defense being 111th. The Cajuns started 1-3, but that didn’t mean much; their win was against FCS Grambling, and their losses were to Alabama and Mississippi State. (Impressively, they played Bama’s scout team evenly in the second half.) They were solid in the Sun Belt and will bowl for the sixth time in eight years, but the first time since 2016. They lost to Appalachian State in the Sun Belt title game but were competitive in Boone.

Willie Fritz’s Green Wave have improved bit by bit every year he’s been in charge. He took over a 3-9 team after 2015 and has gone 4-8, 5-7, and now 6-6, with bowl eligibility clinched via a 1-point win over Navy on the last day of the season. Tulane’s not great and has one of the worst offenses of any bowl-eligible team. But it can defend a bit and gain an edge on special teams, where freshman Amare Jones is one of the better kick returners in the country. This’ll be Tulane’s first bowl showing since the 2013 New Orleans.

Camping World Stadium in Orlando, Fla.

2:30 p.m. ET Saturday, Dec. 15 on CBS Sports Network