Hawaii Bowl

Annual college football bowl game

This article is about the team-competitive bowl game. For the college football all-star game, see Hula Bowl. For the Hawaiian dish, see Poke (Hawaiian dish).

College football bowl game

Sheraton Hawaiʻi Bowl

Stadium| Clarence T. C. Ching Athletics Complex
Location| Honolulu, Hawaii
Previous locations| Aloha Stadium, Honolulu, Hawaii
Operated| 2002–present
Conference tie-ins|

* MWC (2012–present; Hawaii if bowl-eligible and not in CFP bowl)
* AAC (2019–present)

Previous conference tie-ins|

* WAC (2002–2011)
* C-USA (2002–2018)
* Pac-10 (2005–2008)

Payout| US$1.2 million (2019)[1]
Website| thehawaiibowl.com
Preceded by| Aloha Bowl
Sponsors

* ConAgra Foods (2002)
* Sheraton Hotels and Resorts Hawaii (2003–2013)
* SoFi (2018–2019)
* EasyPost (2021–2023)
* Sheraton (2025–present)

Former names

* ConAgra Foods Hawai'i Bowl (2002)
* Sheraton Hawai'i Bowl (2003–2013)
* Hawai'i Bowl (2014–2017, 2024)
* SoFi Hawai'i Bowl (2018–2019)
* EasyPost Hawai'i Bowl (2021–2023)

2023 matchup
Coastal Carolina vs. San Jose State (Coastal Carolina 24–14)
2024 matchup
South Florida vs. San Jose State (South Florida 41–395OT)

The Hawaiʻi Bowl[a] is a college football bowl game that has been played in the Honolulu, Hawaii, area since 2002. The game was originally held at Aloha Stadium in Halawa, Hawaii, a suburb of Honolulu, before moving to the Clarence T. C. Ching Athletics Complex in 2022. The bowl is one of the post-season contests run by ESPN Events. Typically played on or near Christmas Eve, the bowl normally features a team from the Mountain West Conference, playing a team from either the American Athletic Conference or Conference USA.

For practical and logistical reasons, the Mountain West Conference's tie-in is automatically allocated to the Hawaii Rainbow Warriors if the team is bowl-eligible, and was not selected to play in a New Year's Six (or previously, BCS) bowl game. This means that the Rainbow Warriors do not have to travel to the mainland for a bowl game unless it is of significant importance. As a result of this practice, the Rainbow Warriors have made the most appearances in the game, at nine.[2]

For the 2021 through 2023 editions, the bowl was sponsored by EasyPost.[3] Previous sponsors include ConAgra Foods (2002) and Sheraton Hotels and Resorts Hawaii (2003–2013), and SoFi (2018–2019). On April 24, 2025, it was announced that Sheraton would be returning as the title sponsor of the game.[4]

## Bowl games in Hawaii

[edit]

The Hawaii Bowl is not affiliated with other bowl games previously staged in Hawaii: the Poi Bowl (1936–1939), Pineapple Bowl (1940–1941, 1947–1952), Aloha Bowl (1982–2000), and Oahu Bowl (1998–2000), or the Hula Bowl all-star game (1960–2008, and resuming in 2020). While the Aloha Bowl tried to move to San Francisco, California, and was decertified by the NCAA, the Oahu Bowl was moved to Seattle, Washington, and was held for two years as the Seattle Bowl before losing certification in 2002.

## Game history

[edit]

In its first year, the Hawai'i Bowl was sponsored by ConAgra Foods, making it officially the ConAgra Foods Hawai'i Bowl. The following year, Sheraton Hotels and Resorts Hawaii assumed sponsorship; the game's full name was changed to the Sheraton Hawai'i Bowl until Sheraton declined to renew sponsorship in 2014.[5] In 2018, SoFi signed on as title sponsor of the game which is officially known as the SoFi Hawai'i Bowl.[6][7]

The current Mountain West tie-in was held by the Western Athletic Conference (WAC) until 2012, when the WAC ceased sponsoring college football, and Hawaii moved to the Mountain West.[8]

The first two editions were played on the Aloha Bowl's traditional Christmas Day date, but ESPN's acquisition of NBA rights came with the league's Christmas Day games, thus the game moved to Christmas Eve after 2004 in most years.

The 2005 appearance of the UCF Knights at the Hawaii Bowl was the first ever bowl game in that school's history. In 2006, the Pac-10 replaced Conference USA (C-USA) as the WAC's opposition, with C-USA as an alternate. 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). In 2008, the bowl organizers selected Notre Dame as an at-large bid, marking the first time an independent played in the contest. C-USA again became a primary tie-in starting in 2009. The 2011 game featured the C-USA champion for the first time, as Southern Mississippi played instead of going to the Liberty Bowl, where the C-USA champion typically played at the time. The bowl featured the Mountain West champion for the first time in 2015, as San Diego State played instead of going to the Las Vegas Bowl, where the Mountain West champion typically plays.

Between 2002 and 2018, C-USA sent a team to the bowl 12 times, registering an 8–4 record. In 2019, the American Athletic Conference (The American) superseded C-USA as the primary tie-in to face a Mountain West team (or independent BYU).[9]

On October 2, ESPN Events announced that the 2020 edition of the bowl game had been canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[10]

On August 10, 2021, EasyPost was announced as the new sponsor of the bowl, making it the EasyPost Hawai'i Bowl.[11] EasyPost remained the sponsor through the 2023 edition.

On December 23, 2021, the game was cancelled for the second consecutive season, after the Rainbow Warriors withdrew due to injuries and COVID-19 issues within the team.[12]

The 2024 edition of the bowl took five overtime periods to decide, setting a new record for the most overtime periods in a Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) bowl game.[13][14] However, this record was surpassed just two days later when the 2024 GameAbove Sports Bowl took six overtimes to decide.[15]

### Tenth anniversary team (2011)

[edit]

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 tenth anniversary team. Nine players were selected by a public vote, and an additional seven players were picked by a panel of sportswriters and organizers. The team was announced on December 16, 2011.

Ten Year Anniversary Team

Year | Player | College | Performance
2002 | Justin Colbert | Hawaii | 9 catches for 158 yards and 2 TD's.
2003 | Timmy Chang
Jackie Battle | Hawaii
Houston | 26 for 42, 475 yards, 5 TD's passing.
19 carries for 124 yards and 3 TD's.
2004 | Chad Owens | Hawaii | 8 catches for 114 yards, 2 TD's.
5 punt returns for 90 yards and a TD.
2005 | Caleb Spencer
Brandon Marshall | Nevada
UCF | 11 receptions for 114 yards.
11 receptions for 210 yards and 3 TD's.
2006 | Colt Brennan
Jason Rivers | Hawaii
Hawaii | 33 for 42, 559 yards and 5 TD's.
14 receptions for 308 yards and 2 TD's.
2007 | Chris Johnson | East Carolina | 408 all purpose yards, 2 TD's.
2008 | Golden Tate
Jimmy Clausen
Aaron Bain | Notre Dame
Notre Dame
Hawaii | 6 receptions for 177 yards and 3 TD's.
22 for 26, 401 yards and 5TD's
8 receptions for 109 yards and 2 TD's.
2009 | Kyle Padron | SMU | 32 of 41 passing for 460 yards and 2 TD's.
2010 | Damaris Johnson
Curnelius Arnick
Greg Salas | Tulsa
Tulsa
Hawaii | 5 carries for 98 yards and 1 TD, 4 receptions for 101 yards and 1 TD, 6 returns for 127 yards.
2 sacks, 8 UA Tackles, 2 Asst. Tackles, 2.5 TFL, 2 Int's for 106 yards and 1 TD
13 receptions for 214 yards and 2 TD's.

## Game results

[edit]

Date  | Winning team  | Losing team  | Attendance  | notes

|
|
|
|

December 25, 2002 | Tulane | 36 | Hawai'i | 28 | 35,513 | notes
December 25, 2003 | Hawai'i | 54 | Houston | 48 (3OT) | 29,005 | notes
December 24, 2004 | Hawai'i | 59 | UAB | 40 | 39,754 | notes
December 24, 2005 | Nevada | 49 | UCF | 48 (OT) | 16,134 | notes
December 24, 2006 | Hawai'i | 41 | Arizona State | 24 | 43,435 | notes
December 23, 2007 | East Carolina | 41 | Boise State | 38 | 30,467 | notes
December 24, 2008 | Notre Dame | 49 | Hawai'i | 21 | 43,487 | notes
December 24, 2009 | SMU | 45 | Nevada | 10 | 32,650 | notes
December 24, 2010 | Tulsa | 62 | Hawai'i | 35 | 43,673 | notes
December 24, 2011 | Southern Miss | 24 | Nevada | 17 | 32,630 | notes
December 24, 2012 | SMU | 43 | Fresno State | 10 | 30,024 | notes
December 24, 2013 | Oregon State | 38 | Boise State | 23 | 29,106 | notes
December 24, 2014 | Rice | 30 | Fresno State | 6 | 25,365 | notes
December 24, 2015 | San Diego State | 42 | Cincinnati | 7 | 22,793 | notes
December 24, 2016 | Hawai'i | 52 | Middle Tennessee | 35 | 23,175 | notes
December 24, 2017 | Fresno State | 33 | Houston | 27 | 20,546 | notes
December 22, 2018 | Louisiana Tech | 31 | Hawai'i | 14 | 30,911 | notes
December 24, 2019 | Hawai'i | 38 | BYU | 34 | 21,582 | notes
December 24, 2020 | Canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic[16] | — | —
December 24, 2021 | Canceled[17][b] | — | —
December 24, 2022 | Middle Tennessee | 25 | San Diego State | 23 |  6,605 | notes
December 23, 2023 | Coastal Carolina | 24 | San Jose State | 14 |  7,089 | notes
December 24, 2024 | South Florida | 41 | San Jose State | 39 (5OT) |  6,720 | notes

Source:[18]

## MVPs

[edit]

### 2002–2019

[edit]

The bowl named an MVP from each team from inception through the 2019 edition.

Year  | Winning team MVP  | Losing team MVP

|
|

Player  | Team  | Position  | Player  | Team  | Position
2002  | Lynaris Elpheage | Tulane | CB  | Justin Colbert | Hawai'i | WR
2003  | Timmy Chang | Hawai'i | QB  | Jackie Battle | Houston | RB
2004  | Timmy Chang
Chad Owens | Hawai'i | QB
WR  | Darrell Hackney | UAB | QB
2005  | B.J. Mitchell | Nevada | RB  | Brandon Marshall | UCF | WR
2006  | Colt Brennan
Jason Rivers | Hawai'i | QB
WR  | Ryan Torain | Arizona State | RB
2007  | Chris Johnson | East Carolina | RB  | Jeremy Avery | Boise State | RB
2008  | Jimmy Clausen
Golden Tate | Notre Dame | QB
WR  | Aaron Bain | Hawai'i | WR
2009  | Kyle Padron | SMU | QB  | Kevin Basped | Nevada | DE
2010  | Damaris Johnson | Tulsa | WR  | Greg Salas | Hawai'i | WR
2011  | Cordarro Law | Southern Miss | DL  | Lampford Mark | Nevada | RB
2012  | Margus Hunt | SMU | DE  | Davante Adams | Fresno State | WR
2013  | Rashaad Reynolds | Oregon State | CB  | Matt Miller | Boise State | WR
2014  | Driphus Jackson
Brian Nordstrom | Rice | QB
DE  | Carl Mickelsen | Fresno State | LB
2015  | Dakota Gordon | San Diego State | FB  | Zach Edwards | Cincinnati | S
2016  | Dru Brown | Hawai'i | QB  | Richie James | Middle Tennessee | WR
2017  | Marcus McMaryion | Fresno State | QB  | Steven Dunbar | Houston | WR
2018  | Jaylon Ferguson | Louisiana Tech | DE  | Kendall Hune | Hawai'i | DE
2019  | Cole McDonald | Hawai'i | QB  | Zach Wilson | BYU | QB

### 2022–present

[edit]

Since the 2022 playing, the award—given to a single player—has been known as the Hugh Yoshida Most Valuable Player Award, honoring a former athletic director at the University of Hawai'i.[19]

Year  | Bowl MVP  | Ref.

|
|

Player  | Team  | Position
2022 | Jordan Ferguson | Middle Tennessee | DE | [20]
2023 | Ethan Vasko | Coastal Carolina | QB | [21]
2024 | John Cannon | South Florida | K | [22]

Source:[23]

## Most appearances

[edit]

Updated through the December 2024 edition (21 games, 42 total appearances).

Teams with multiple appearances
Rank  | Team  | Appearances  | Record  | Win pct.

|
|
|
|

1 | Hawai'i | 9 | 5–4 | 0.556
2 | Nevada | 3 | 1–2 | 0.333
Fresno State | 3 | 1–2 | 0.333
4 | SMU | 2 | 2–0 | 1.000
Middle Tennessee | 2 | 1–1 | 0.500
San Diego State | 2 | 1–1 | 0.500
Houston | 2 | 0–2 | 0.000
Boise State | 2 | 0–2 | 0.000
San Jose State | 2 | 0–2 | 0.000

Teams with a single appearance

Won (10): Coastal Carolina, East Carolina, Louisiana Tech, Notre Dame, Oregon State, Rice, South Florida, Southern Miss, Tulane, Tulsa
Lost (5): Arizona State, BYU, Cincinnati, UAB, UCF

## Appearances by conference

[edit]

Updated through the December 2024 edition (21 games, 42 total appearances).

Conference  | Record  | Appearances by season

|
|

Games  | W  | L  | Win pct.  | Won  | Lost
C-USA | 13 | 9 | 4 | .692 | 2002, 2007, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2014, 2018, 2022 | 2003, 2004, 2005, 2016
Mountain West | 11 | 4 | 7 | .364 | 2015, 2016, 2017, 2019 | 2012, 2013, 2014, 2018, 2022, 2023, 2024
WAC | 10 | 4 | 6 | .400 | 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006 | 2002, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011
The American | 3 | 1 | 2 | .333 | 2024 | 2015, 2017
Pac-12 | 2 | 1 | 1 | .500 | 2013 | 2006
Independents | 2 | 1 | 1 | .500 | 2008 | 2019
Sun Belt | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1.000 | 2023 |

* The record of the Pac-12 includes appearances when the conference was known as the Pac-10 (before 2011).
* The WAC no longer sponsors FBS football.
* Independent appearances: Notre Dame (2008), BYU (2019)

## Game records

[edit]

Team  | Record, Team vs. Opponent  | Year

|
|

Most points scored (one team)  | 62, Tulsa vs. Hawai'i  | 2010
Most points scored (losing team)  | 48, shared by:
Houston vs. Hawai'i
UCF vs. Nevada  |
2003
2005
Most points scored (both teams)  | 102, Hawai'i vs. Houston  | 2003
Fewest points allowed  | 6, Rice vs. Fresno State  | 2014
Largest margin of victory  | 35, shared by:
SMU vs. Nevada
San Diego State vs. Cincinnati  |
2009
2015
Total yards  | 680, Hawai'i vs. Arizona State  | 2006
Rushing yards  | 369, Nevada vs. UCF  | 2005
Passing yards  | 559, Hawai'i vs. Arizona State  | 2006
First downs  | 32, Hawai'i vs. Arizona State  | 2006
Fewest yards allowed  | 170, San Diego State vs. Middle Tennessee  | 2022
Fewest rushing yards allowed  | –66, San Diego State vs. Middle Tennessee  | 2022
Fewest passing yards allowed  | 93, Rice vs. Fresno State  | 2014
Individual  | Record, Player, Team vs. Opponent  | Year
All-purpose yards | 408, Chris Johnson, East Carolina vs. Boise State | 2007
Touchdowns (all-purpose) | 3, several players—most recent:
Shawnbrey McNeal, SMU vs. Nevada |
2009
Rushing yards | 224, Chris Johnson, East Carolina vs. Boise State | 2007
Rushing touchdowns | 3, several players—most recent:
Shawnbrey McNeal, SMU vs. Nevada |
2009
Passing yards | 559, Colt Brennan, Hawai'i vs. Arizona State | 2006
Passing touchdowns | 6, Colt Brennan, Hawai'i vs. Arizona State | 2006
Receptions | 14, Jason Rivers, Hawai'i vs. Arizona State | 2006
Receiving yards | 308, Jason Rivers, Hawai'i vs. Arizona State | 2006
Receiving touchdowns | 3, several players—most recent:
Golden Tate, Notre Dame vs. Hawai'i |
2008
Tackles | 16, Roosevelt Cooks, Nevada vs. UCF | 2005
Sacks | 4, Willie Baker, Louisiana Tech vs. Hawai'i | 2018
Interceptions | 2, several players—most recent:
Khoury Bethley, Hawai'i vs. BYU |
2019
Long Plays  | Record, Player, Team vs. Opponent  | Year
Touchdown run | 78, Kevin Smith, UCF vs. Nevada | 2005
Touchdown pass | 85, Matt Miller from Grant Hedrick, Boise State vs. Oregon State | 2013
Kickoff return | 100, Rashaad Penny, San Diego State vs. Cincinnati | 2015
Punt return | 60, Chad McCullar, Houston vs. Hawai'i | 2003
Interception return | 83, Hayden Greenbauer, SMU vs. Fresno State | 2012
Fumble return | 70, Rashaad Reynolds, Oregon State vs. Boise State | 2013
Punt | 73, Mat McBriar, Hawai'i vs. Tulane | 2002
Field goal | 52, Jack Browning, San Diego State vs. Middle Tennessee | 2022

Source:[24]

## Media coverage

[edit]

The bowl has been televised on ESPN since its inception.

## Notes

[edit]

1. ^ The bowl name often appears as Hawaii Bowl, without the okina character.
2. ^ The 2021 game had been scheduled to feature Memphis vs. Hawai'i.

## References

[edit]

1. ^ "2019 Bowl Schedule". collegefootballpoll.com. Retrieved December 13, 2019.
2. ^ Kirshner, Alex (2016-12-24). "Why Hawaii is in the Hawaii Bowl so much". SBNation.com. Retrieved 2018-12-23.
3. ^ "EasyPost Named New Title Sponsor for Hawai'i Bowl". Retrieved August 11, 2021.
4. ^ "Sheraton Returns as Title Sponsor of Hawai'i Bowl". thehawaiibowl.com (Press release). April 24, 2025.
5. ^ "Sheraton Hotels & Resorts drops title sponsorship of Hawaii Bowl college football game".
6. ^ "Hawai'i Bowl Names SoFi As New Title Sponsor". Retrieved November 30, 2018.
7. ^ "Hawaii Bowl lands title sponsor after 4-year vacancy". Retrieved November 30, 2018.
8. ^ "Mountain West Conference aligns with Sheraton Hawaii Bowl starting in 2012". ESPN.com. 21 December 2011. Retrieved 23 December 2015.
9. ^ "2019 SoFi Hawai'I Bowl to Return to Dec. 24". thehawaiibowl.com (Press release). May 23, 2019. Archived from the original on January 7, 2022. Retrieved May 24, 2019.
10. ^ Chinen, Kyle (October 2, 2020). "2020 Hawaii Bowl canceled over pandemic concerns". Hawaii News Now.
11. ^ "EASYPOST NAMED NEW TITLE SPONSOR FOR HAWAI'I BOWL". Hawai‘i Bowl. Hawai‘i Bowl. 10 August 2021. Retrieved 10 August 2021.
12. ^ "Hawai'i Bowl canceled after Hawai'i withdraws". ESPN.com. 2021-12-24. Retrieved 2021-12-24.
13. ^ @HawaiiBowl (December 24, 2024). "The LONGEST bowl game in FBS HISTORY" (Tweet). Retrieved December 25, 2024 - via Twitter.
14. ^ "USF beats SJSU 41-39 in the Hawaii Bowl when Mac Harris knocks down a pass in the 5th overtime". apnews.com. AP. December 25, 2024. Retrieved December 25, 2024.
15. ^ "Toledo Downs Pitt 48-46 in Six Overtimes in GameAbove Sports Bowl". Sports Illustrated. December 26, 2024. Retrieved December 26, 2024.
16. ^ Tsai, Stephen (October 2, 2020). "Hawaii Bowl canceled for 2020 but aims to return in 2021". Honolulu Star-Advertiser. Retrieved November 27, 2020.
17. ^ @usatodaysports (December 23, 2021). "The Hawaii Bowl is off" (Tweet). Retrieved December 23, 2021 - via Twitter.
18. ^ "SoFi Hawaii Bowl" (PDF). Bowl/All Star Game Records. NCAA. 2020. p. 14. Retrieved January 3, 2021 - via NCAA.org.
19. ^ "EasyPost Hawai'i Bowl MVP Award Named in Honor of Hugh Yoshida". thehawaiibowl.com. December 20, 2022. Retrieved December 25, 2022.
20. ^ @MT_FB (December 25, 2022). "Your 2022 @HawaiiBowl Most Valuable Player" (Tweet). Retrieved December 25, 2022 - via Twitter.
21. ^ Takase, Kalani (December 24, 2023). "Oscar Smith High alum Ethan Vasko throws 3 TD passes in Coastal Carolina's Hawaii Bowl victory". Daily Press. Newport News, Virginia. AP. Retrieved December 24, 2023.
22. ^ "2024 Hawai'i Bowl Game Notes". thehawaiibowl.com. December 24, 2024. Retrieved December 25, 2024.
23. ^ "History". thehawaiibowl.com. Retrieved December 24, 2019.
24. ^ "Game-By-Game Recaps & Record Book" (PDF). thehawaiibowl.com. pp. 20–22. Retrieved December 25, 2022.

## External links

[edit]

* Official website

* v
* t
* e

Hawaii Bowl

Games|

* 2002
* 2003
* 2004
* 2005
* 2006
* 2007
* 2008
* 2009
* 2010
* 2011
* 2012
* 2013
* 2014
* 2015
* 2016
* 2017
* 2018
* 2019
* 2020–2021
* 2022
* 2023
* 2024
* 2025

Venues|

* Aloha Stadium (2002–2019)
* Ching Complex (2021–present)

Sponsors|

* ConAgra Foods (2002)
* Sheraton Hotels and Resorts (2003–2013)
* SoFi (2018–2019)
* EasyPost (2021–2023)

* v
* t
* e

NCAA Division I FBS bowl games

College Football Playoff|

* Championship Game
* Cotton
* Fiesta
* Orange
* Peach
* Rose
* Sugar

Other bowl games|

* 68 Ventures
* Alamo
* Arizona
* Armed Forces
* Bahamas
* Birmingham
* Boca Raton
* Citrus
* Cure
* Duke's Mayo
* Famous Idaho Potato
* Fenway
* First Responder
* Frisco
* GameAbove Sports
* Gasparilla
* Gator
* Hawaii
* Holiday
* Independence
* LA
* Las Vegas
* Liberty
* Military
* Music City
* Myrtle Beach
* New Mexico
* New Orleans
* Pinstripe
* Pop-Tarts
* Rate
* ReliaQuest
* Salute to Veterans
* Sun
* Texas

All-Star games|

* East–West Shrine Bowl
* HBCU Legacy Bowl
* Hula Bowl
* Senior Bowl
* Tropical Bowl

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