| Hawaiʻi Bowl | |
|---|---|
| Sheraton Hawaiʻi Bowl | |
Hawaiʻi Bowl logo |
|
| Stadium | Aloha Stadium |
| Location | Honolulu (Halawa), Hawaii |
| Operated | 2002-Present |
| Conference tie-ins | MWC WAC (2002-2011) C-USA (2005, 2007, 2009–present) Pac-12 (2006, 2008) |
| Payout | US$750,000 (each team) |
| Sponsors | |
| ConAgra Foods (2002) Sheraton Hotels and Resorts Hawaii (2003-present) |
|
| 2011 matchup | |
| Southern Miss vs. Nevada (Southern Miss 24–17) | |
| 2012 matchup | |
| TBA (TBA) | |
The Hawaiʻi Bowl is a post-season National Collegiate Athletic Association Football Bowl Subdivision college football bowl game that has been played annually at Aloha Stadium in Honolulu, Hawaii since 2002. Typically played on either Christmas Day or Christmas Eve, the game matches teams from either Conference USA or the Pac-10 vs. WAC member schools. As part of the agreement with the WAC, a "Hawaiʻi guarantee" allows the University of Hawaiʻi the Hawaiʻi Bowl bid, regardless of its standings in the WAC, provided it is bowl eligible and doesn't qualify for the BCS (as it did in 2007). If Hawaiʻi is not eligible then another WAC member is chosen. However, since Hawai'i is leaving the WAC for the Mountain West Conference in football, it is unclear whether the guarantee or the WAC's bid to this game will be retained.
The bowl is one of six post-season contests run by ESPN Regional Television ("ESPN Plus"), a subsidiary of ESPN, which has carried the game since its outset.
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The Hawaii Bowl succeeds the Poi Bowl (1936–1939), Pineapple Bowl (1940–1941, 1947–1952), Aloha Bowl (1982–2000) and the Oahu Bowl (1998–2000) as bowl games played in Hawaiʻi. This bowl is a new event not affiliated with the previous games. While the Aloha Bowl tried to move to San Francisco, California and was decertified by the NCAA, the Oʻahu Bowl was moved to Seattle, Washington and was held for two years as the Seattle Bowl before losing certification in 2002.
In its first year, the Hawaiʻi Bowl was sponsored by ConAgra Foods. The following year, Sheraton Hotels and Resorts Hawaii assumed sponsorship which it continues to hold today; the game's full name was changed to the Sheraton Hawaiʻi Bowl.
The 2005 appearance of the UCF Knights at the Hawaiʻi Bowl was the first ever bowl game in that school's history.
In 2006, the Pac-10 replaced C-USA as the WAC's opposition. If the Pac-10 was not able to provide a bowl-eligible team, C-USA would have supplied the team (assuming it had a sixth team that was bowl eligible). If neither conference had a bowl-eligible team, the spot would have been filled by an at-large team. In 2007, C-USA had a guaranteed spot in the Hawaiʻi Bowl, which was filled by the East Carolina Pirates.[1]
Since Christmas Eve fell on a Monday in 2007, the game was scheduled for the night prior (December 23) to avoid a conflict with Monday Night Football (also on ESPN).
The 2011 Hawai'i Bowl featured the Conference USA champion for the first time, as Southern Mississippi played in the bowl instead of going to the Liberty Bowl, where the C-USA champion typically plays.
To celebrate the tenth anniversary of the Hawai'i Bowl, the Honolulu Star-Advertiser, in conjunction with the bowl game, allowed fans to vote on a ten year anniversary team. For each year of the Hawai'i Bowl, fans were given a choice of three highlighted players who played in that specific game to choose from, with the highest vote receiver being named to the team. The contest will run through November 24, 2011.
| Year | Player | College | Performance |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2002 | Justin Colbert | Hawaiʻi | 9 catches for 158 yards and 2 TD's. |
| 2003 | Timmy Chang | Hawaiʻi | 26 for 42, 475 yards, 5 TD's passing. |
| 2004 | Chad Owens | Hawaiʻi | 8 catches for 114 yards, 2 TD's. 5 punt returns for 90 yards and a TD. |
| 2005 | Caleb Spencer | Nevada | 11 receptions for 114 yards. |
| 2006 | Colt Brennan | Hawaiʻi | 33 for 42, 559 yards and 5 TD's. |
| 2007 | Chris Johnson | East Carolina | 408 all purpose yards, 2 TD's. |
| 2008 | Aaron Bain | Hawaiʻi | 8 catches for 109 yards and 2 TD's. |
| 2009 | Kyle Padron | SMU | 32 of 41 passing for 460 yards and 2 TD's. |
| 2010 | Greg Salas | Hawaii | 13 receptions for 214 yards and 2 TD's. |
| Date | Winning team | Losing team | Attendance | TV | notes | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| December 25, 2002 | Tulane | 36 | Hawaiʻi | 28 | 35,513 | ESPN | notes |
| December 25, 2003 | Hawaiʻi | 54 | Houston | 48* | 29,005 | ESPN | notes |
| December 24, 2004 | Hawaiʻi | 59 | UAB | 40 | 39,754 | ESPN | notes |
| December 24, 2005 | Nevada | 49 | UCF | 48* | 16,134 | ESPN | notes |
| December 24, 2006 | Hawaiʻi | 41 | Arizona State | 24 | 43,435 | ESPN | notes |
| December 23, 2007 | East Carolina | 41 | Boise State | 38 | 30,467 | ESPN | notes |
| December 24, 2008 | Notre Dame | 49 | Hawaiʻi | 21 | 43,487 | ESPN | notes |
| December 24, 2009 | SMU | 45 | Nevada | 10 | 32,650 | ESPN | notes |
| December 24, 2010 | Tulsa | 62 | Hawaiʻi | 35 | 43,673 | ESPN | notes |
| December 24, 2011 | Southern Miss | 24 | Nevada | 17 | 32,630 | ESPN | notes |
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* Overtime game |
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| Date | MVP(s) | School | Position |
|---|---|---|---|
| December 25, 2002 | Lynaris Elpheage | Tulane | CB |
| Justin Colbert | Hawaiʻi | WR | |
| December 25, 2003 | Timmy Chang | Hawaiʻi | QB |
| Jackie Battle | Houston | RB | |
| December 24, 2004 | Chad Owens | Hawaiʻi | WR |
| Timmy Chang | Hawaiʻi | QB | |
| Darrell Hackney | UAB | QB | |
| December 24, 2005 | Brandon Marshall | UCF | WR |
| B.J. Mitchell | Nevada | RB | |
| December 24, 2006 | Colt Brennan | Hawaiʻi | QB |
| Jason Rivers | Hawaiʻi | WR | |
| Ryan Torain | Arizona State | RB | |
| December 23, 2007 | Chris Johnson | East Carolina | RB |
| Jeremy Avery | Boise State | RB | |
| December 24, 2008 | Jimmy Clausen | Notre Dame | QB |
| Golden Tate | Notre Dame | WR | |
| Aaron Bain | Hawaiʻi | WR | |
| December 24, 2009 | Kyle Padron | SMU | QB |
| Kevin Basped | Nevada | DE | |
| December 24, 2010 | Damaris Johnson | Tulsa | WR |
| Greg Salas | Hawaii | WR | |
| December 24, 2011 | Cordarro Law | Southern Miss | DL |
| Lampford Mark | Nevada | RB |
| Rank | Team | Appearances | Record |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Hawaiʻi | 6 | 3–3 |
| 2 | Nevada | 3 | 1–2 |
| T3 | East Carolina | 1 | 1–0 |
| T3 | Notre Dame | 1 | 1–0 |
| T3 | SMU | 1 | 1–0 |
| T3 | Southern Miss | 1 | 1–0 |
| T3 | Tulsa | 1 | 1–0 |
| T3 | Tulane | 1 | 1–0 |
| T3 | Arizona State | 1 | 0–1 |
| T3 | Boise State | 1 | 0–1 |
| T3 | UCF | 1 | 0–1 |
| T3 | Houston | 1 | 0–1 |
| T3 | UAB | 1 | 0–1 |
| Conference | Wins | Losses | Pct. |
|---|---|---|---|
| WAC | 4 | 5 | .444 |
| C-USA | 4 | 3 | .571 |
| Independent | 1 | 0 | 1.000 |
| Pac-12 | 0 | 1 | .000 |
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