The Elks Bowl was a postseason college football bowl game played after the 1953 and 1954 regular seasons.[1] There was also an earlier playing of the game, at the junior varsity level, in 1952.[2] Each game was held at a different venue in North Carolina. The bowl's name came from the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks, a fraternal order, with proceeds from the game going to their charitable works.[3] Like some other postseason match-ups of the era, such as the Grape Bowl, Glass Bowl, and Optimist Bowl, results are listed in NCAA records, but the games were not considered NCAA-sanctioned bowls.[1]
| Season | Date | Winner | Loser | Venue | Att. (est.) | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1952 | October 24, 1952 | North Carolina† | 13 | Wake Forest† | 7 | Memorial Stadium[4] – Burlington, North Carolina | 1,600[4] |
| 1953 | January 2, 1954 | Morris Harvey | 12 | East Carolina | 0 | College Stadium[5] – Greenville, North Carolina | 4,500[1] |
| 1954 | December 11, 1954 | Newberry | 20 | Appalachian State | 13 | Riddick Stadium[3] – Raleigh, North Carolina | 400[6] |
† The 1952 game was played between junior varsity teams.