Miami (1990–2000) The bowl was founded in 1990 by
Raycom Sports and was originally played at
Joe Robbie Stadium in the
Miami area. It was briefly given the working title of the
Sunshine Football Classic, but it was never played under that moniker. Prior to its first edition, it received corporate title sponsorship. During its Miami existence, it successively went by the names
Blockbuster Bowl (three editions),
CarQuest Bowl (five editions), and the
MicronPC Bowl (three editions). The bowl arose from a desire to hold a second bowl game in the Miami area. It was to be an accompaniment to the traditional
Orange Bowl, showcasing the
brand new stadium in the area that was built in 1987. The Orange Bowl game was still being played in the aging
old stadium, whereas this new game would be played in the new stadium.
Miami Dolphins owner
Wayne Huizenga quickly joined forces with bowl organizers and brought in
Blockbuster Video, which he owned, as title sponsor. five games were played as the
Russell Athletic Bowl. In early 2017,
Camping World became the title sponsor of the game through 2019; three editions were staged as the
Camping World Bowl, concluding with the 30th playing of the bowl. In May 2020,
Kellogg's signed on as the new sponsor of the game, naming the game the
Cheez-It Bowl, after the company's
brand of snack crackers. In May 2023, it was announced that the sponsorship would be switched to the
Pop-Tarts brand, making the game the
Pop-Tarts Bowl. Kellogg's had acquired the naming rights to the
Citrus Bowl, concurrently moving the Cheez-It sponsorship to that game. In October 2023, Kellogg's ceased to exists as a company, but persisted as a brand name—ownership of Pop-Tarts passed to
Kellanova. Kellanova was acquired by
Mars Inc. in December 2025. From 2006 to 2010, the bowl matched teams from the
Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) and the
Big Ten Conference. Under the terms of a television deal signed with
ESPN in 2006, the bowl was to be held after
Christmas Day from 2006 onward, and be shown on ESPN in
prime time. The change was made to move the game from the less-desirable pre-Christmas date utilized from 2001 to 2004. From 2005 to 2009, the stadium faced challenges in preparing the stadium for two bowl games in less than one week (the Citrus Bowl is traditionally held New Year's Day). This was also in part due to the Florida high school football championship games being held at the stadium shortly before the bowls. In 2009, rainy weather turned the stadium's grass field into a muddy, sloppy, quagmire for both bowl games. In 2010, the stadium switched to artificial turf, facilitating the quick turnaround necessary. In 2009, the bowl announced that the
Big East was to be one of the tie-in conferences for four years starting in 2010, with the bowl having the option of selecting
Notre Dame once during the four years. In October 2009, the bowl announced that they had extended their agreement with the ACC for the same term. The game would match the third pick from the ACC against the second selection from the Big East. The previous agreement had matched the 4th pick from the ACC against the 4th or 5th pick from the Big Ten. ACC and Big East teams subsequently met in the 2010 through 2013 games, except for 2011 when Notre Dame was selected (as permitted in the agreement with the Big East). In 2013, the Big East's non-football members broke away from the conference under the
Big East name, and its football-playing members continued as the
American Athletic Conference. Since 2014, the game features the second pick from the ACC after the
New Year's Six bowls make their picks—usually the losing team from the
ACC Football Championship Game, or one of the division runners-up—against the third pick from the Big 12. A new trophy for the bowl was unveiled in December 2023, featuring two slots for Pop-Tarts atop a metallic football. The mascot, named "Strawberry", is a large anthropomorphic Pop-Tart that was deemed the "first-ever edible mascot"; it was lowered into a giant toaster and presented for players to eat after the game, having been replaced by an edible replica. For the 2024 game, the bowl held a fan vote of three flavors to serve as main mascot: Cinnamon Roll, Hot Fudge Sundae, and Wild Berry. Cinnamon Roll was declared the winner on December 6. The 2024 trophy was also a functional toaster, manufactured by
GE Appliances, with a weight of . Strawberry received a memorial outside the stadium, and was subsequently "resurrected" following a tribute during the first half—taking the form of a mascot now resembling the replica after it was eaten. In 2025, bowl organizers promoted the game as “The People’s National Championship.” ==Game results==