The 2021 Holiday Bowl was meant to be the first holiday bowl at Petco Park. But due to complications from Covid, the kickoff never happened.

The highly anticipated game against NC State in San Diego was canceled just hours before the scheduled start due to COVID-19 issues in the UCLA Bruins program. Jarmond expressed his deep regret for the players and clearly stated their health and safety was the main priority. Coach Dave Doeren of the Wolfpack voiced his frustration and shared the hurt and anger from his players when he informed them of the news. Jarmond responded to Doeren’s statement, saying their medical staff deemed it unsafe to compete based on the day’s COVID-19 results, although the Bruins had been cleared to participate until then. Nick Carparelli, executive director of Bowl Season, highlighted the cancelation was due to COVID-19 protocols, not the virus itself. It was an unfortunate situation for both teams, the Holiday Bowl organizers and fans.