The game between the Mid-American Conference ( MAC ) team Bowling Green and Big Ten Conference Northwestern was played at neutral-site Ford Field . As then organized the Motor City Bowl matched a MAC team and a team from either the Big Ten , the Big East Conference , or an at-large team . Bowling Green accepted a bid for the Motor City Bowl after losing to Miami ( OH ) in the MAC Championship Game . It was Bowling Green 's first appearance in a bowl game since the 1992 Las Vegas Bowl . Northwestern was the first Big Ten team to play in the Motor City Bowl and had not appeared in a bowl game since the 2000 Alamo Bowl . Bowling Green and Northwestern last played each other on November 17 , 2001 , a meeting that Bowling Green won 42 – 43
Big East Conference
Big East Conference (1979–2013)
2003 Motor City Bowl