Special Teams: Ryan Wilbourn (ASU Punter) Offensive: J. D. McKissic (ASU Wide Receiver) Defensive: Qushaun Lee (ASU Linebacker) MVP: Ryan Aplin (ASU Quarterback)
Arkansas State won the Sun Belt championship, finishing the season with a 9–3 record and a 7–1 record in conference play. The team made its second consecutive appearance in the bowl and for the second consecutive year was playing without its head coach. Arkansas State had lost the prior appearance to Northern Illinois in the 2012 game.[3]
The GoDaddy.com Bowl was Kent State's first bowl game appearance in forty years; the team last played in the 1972 Tangerine Bowl. Kent State went 11–1 in regular season games and 8–0 in MAC play before losing the MAC Championship Game to Northern Illinois; their eleven victories set a team record.[4] The team finished the season ranked #25 in the AP Poll. Kent State coach Darrell Hazell was MAC Coach of the Year and accepted the head coach position with the Purdue Boilermakers prior to the game.
