(AP Photo/Rob Carr)

In what will be the most compelling Military Bowl (née EagleBank Bowl) in the game’s brief, three-year history, the hometown Maryland Terrapins (8-4, 5-3 ACC) will take on the East Carolina Pirates (6-6, 5-3 C-USA) in RFK Stadium tomorrow afternoon.

Bowl executives have been licking their chops at the opportunity to host the Terps given the school’s proximity to the stadium — and once Maryland dropped into their laps after other bowls passed on the third-best team in the ACC in fear of poor attendance, the Military Bowl got their wish.

Meanwhile, East Carolina has been counting down the days until the bowl game: the school sold out its 10,000-ticket allotment weeks ago. While Pirates fans will have to drive five hours from Greenville, North Carolina as opposed to 20 minutes like their College Park counterparts, this could very well be the most attended Military Bowl to date. Maryland finally sold out their allotment last week.

The most interesting story, however, will not be on the gridiron, but rather on the sidelines. Ralph Friedgen, Maryland’s head coach and ACC Coach of the Year, was recently informed that he would not be retained after the end of the season and will coach his final game for the school at the Military Bowl.