MOTOR CITY BOWL

* The teams: Marshall (10-2) vs. Mississippi (7-4)

* Series history: Have never played.

* Bowl records: Marshall 0-1, Mississippi 14-11.

* How they got there: Marshall ended its first season in Division I-A with a 34-14 victory over Toledo in the inaugural Mid-American Conference championship game. The 10 wins are the most any school has recorded in its first year of I-A competition. Mississippi finished tied for third in the West division of the Southeastern Conference.

* The game: Marshall was a dominant force in Division I-AA as an annual playoff team with two national titles. But this is Marshall’s first bowl appearance since the 1948 Tangerine Bowl. Containing Marshall wide receiver Randy Moss will be a problem for Mississippi. Still, that doesn’t mean it can’t win the first Motor City Bowl. “Nobody’s stopped him yet,” Coach Tommy Tuberville said. “He’s going to play at the next level [NFL], and nobody’s going to stop him there, either. We’ll put about three men on Moss, and that’s not a pretty sight.” It is the first bowl game since 1992 for Mississippi.

* The line: Mississippi by 2.

MARSHALL

31 West Virginia: L 42-31

35 Army: W 35-25

42 Kent: W 42-17

48 Western Illinois: W 48-7

42 Ball State: W 42-16

52 Akron: W 52-17

21 Miami, Ohio: L 45-21

48 Eastern Michigan: W 48-25

45 Central Michigan: W 45-17

28 Bowling Green: W 28-0

27 Ohio: W 27-0

34 Toledo: W 34-14

MISSISSIPPI

24 Central Florida: W 24-23 (OT)

23 Southern Methodist: W 23-15

9 Auburn: L 19-9

15 Vanderbilt: W 15-3

17 Tennessee: L 31-17

36 Louisiana State: W 36-21

20 Alabama: L 29-20

19 Arkansas: W 19-9

44 Tulane: W 44-24

14 Georgia: L 21-14

15 Mississippi State: W 15-14