Sun Bowl

Sun Bowl
Tony the Tiger Sun Bowl
"Tony the Tiger Sun Bowl"
Stadium	Sun Bowl
Location	El Paso, Texas, U.S.
Previous stadiums	Kidd Field (1938–1962) Jones Stadium (1935–1937)
Operated	1935–present
Conference tie-ins	Pac-12, ACC
Previous conference tie-ins	Big Ten (1995–2005) Big 12 (2006–2009) Big East/Notre Dame (2006–2009)
Payout	US$2,150,000 (as of 2015)[1]
Sponsors
John Hancock (1987–1993) Norwest Corporation (1996–1998) Wells Fargo (1999–2003) Helen of Troy Limited (2004–2009;      through its Vitalis and Brut brands) Hyundai (2010–2018) Kellogg's (2019- present)
Former names
Sun Bowl (1936–1986) John Hancock Sun Bowl (1987–1988) John Hancock Bowl (1989–1993) Sun Bowl (1994–1995) Norwest Bank Sun Bowl (1996) Norwest Sun Bowl (1997–1998) Wells Fargo Sun Bowl (1999–2003) Vitalis Sun Bowl (2004–2005) Brut Sun Bowl (2006–2009) Hyundai Sun Bowl (2010-2018)
2017 matchup
Arizona State vs. NC State (NC State 52–31)
2018 matchup
Pittsburgh vs. Stanford (Stanford 14–13)

El Paso

Location in the United States

 El Paso

Location in Texas

The Sun Bowl is a college football bowl game that has been played since 1935 in the southwestern United States at El Paso, Texas. Along with the Sugar Bowl and Orange Bowl, it is the second-oldest bowl games in the country, behind the Rose Bowl. Usually held near the end of December, games are played at the Sun Bowl stadium on the campus of the University of Texas at El Paso; since 2011, it has featured teams from the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) and the Pac-12 Conference.

Since 2019, the game has been sponsored by Kellogg's and is officially known as the Tony the Tiger Sun Bowl.^[2], after the mascot for the company's cereal Kellogg's Frosted Flakes. Previous sponsors include John Hancock (1987–1993), Norwest Corporation (1996–1998), Wells Fargo (1999–2003), Vitalis (2004–2005), Brut (2006–2009) and Hyundai (2010-2018).

History[edit]

The first Sun Bowl was the 1935 edition, played on New Year's Day between Texas high school teams;^[3] the 1936 edition, played one year later, was the first Sun Bowl contested between college teams.^[4] In most of its early history, the game pitted the champion of the Border Conference against an at-large opponent;^[5] the first three editions were played at El Paso High School stadium (1935–1937), then switched to Kidd Field until the present stadium was ready in 1963.^[6] Through the 1957 season, the game was played on January 1 or January 2; since then, with the exception of the 1976 season, the game has been played in late December, with a majority of games played on or near New Year's Eve.^[4]

Notable games[edit]

The 1940 game set the record for fewest points scored, when the Arizona State Teachers College at Tempe Bulldogs played the Catholic University Cardinals to a scoreless tie, the only 0–0 result in Sun Bowl history.

In advance of the 1949 game, Lafayette College turned down an invitation from the Sun Bowl Committee because the committee would not allow an African American player to participate; this bid rejection led to a large student demonstration on the Lafayette campus and in the city of Easton, Pennsylvania, against segregation.

Due to a freak snowstorm before the 1974 game,^[7] followed by warming temperatures as the sun created a rising steam from the field during the first half, the game was nicknamed the "Fog Bowl."^[5]

The 1992 game was the final head coaching appearance of 2001 College Football Hall of Fame inductee Grant Teaff of Baylor; his Bears won 20–15 over Arizona.^[8]

The 1994 game was voted the greatest Sun Bowl ever played, and included four touchdowns by Priest Holmes, as Texas defeated North Carolina.^[5]

The 2005 game set the record for most points scored (88), as UCLA defeated Northwestern 50–38.

Since the NCAA started the use of overtime in Division I bowl games in 1995,^[9] the 2011 game is the only Sun Bowl decided in overtime; Utah defeated Georgia Tech, 30–27.^[4]

Sponsorship[edit]

From 2010 to 2018, the tournament was sponsored by the Hyundai Motor Company (succeeding Helen of Troy Limited, Norwest Corporation/Wells Fargo, and John Hancock Insurance as past sponsors)..^[10] Hyundai renewed its sponsorship through the 2018 season; in August 2019, it was announced that Kellogg's had been named the new title sponsor, and that the game would be branded as the Tony the Tiger Sun Bowl—referencing Tony the Tiger, the mascot of the company's cereal brand Frosted Flakes.^[11]

Conference tie-ins[edit]

Starting with the 2011 edition, the bowl has been contested between teams from the Pac-12 and ACC.

The Sun Bowl is part of the ACC's pool arrangement where the Belk, Pinstripe, Music City, and Gator bowls each share choice of the conference's eligible teams following the College Football Playoff (CFP) and the Camping World Bowl; the Sun Bowl can take any team ranked fourth through eighth in the ACC.

The Pac-12 currently employs the Sun Bowl as its fifth choice, behind the CFP and the Alamo, Holiday, and Redbox (formerly Foster Farms) bowls.

Game results[edit]

Italics denote a tie game.

No.	Date played	Winning team		Losing team		Attnd.	Notes
1	January 1, 1935	El Paso All-Stars	25	Ranger (Texas)	21	3,000	notes
2	January 1, 1936	Hardin–Simmons	14	New Mexico A&M	14	12,000	notes
3	January 1, 1937	Hardin–Simmons	34	Texas Mines	6	8,000	notes
4	January 1, 1938	West Virginia	7	Texas Tech	6	12,000	notes
5	January 2, 1939	Utah	26	New Mexico	0	13,000	notes
6	January 1, 1940	Arizona State	0	Catholic	0	13,000	notes
7	January 1, 1941	Western Reserve	26	Arizona State	13	14,000	notes
8	January 1, 1942	Tulsa	6	Texas Tech	0	14,000	notes
9	January 1, 1943	Second Air Force	13	Hardin–Simmons	7	18,000	notes
10	January 1, 1944	Southwestern	7	New Mexico	0	18,000	notes
11	January 1, 1945	Southwestern	35	UNAM	0	13,000	notes
12	January 1, 1946	New Mexico	34	Denver	24	15,000	notes
13	January 1, 1947	Cincinnati	18	Virginia Tech	6	10,000	notes
14	January 1, 1948	Miami (Ohio)	13	Texas Tech	12	18,000	notes
15	January 1, 1949	West Virginia	21	Texas Mines	12	13,000	notes
16	January 2, 1950	Texas Western	33	Georgetown	20	15,000	notes
17	January 1, 1951	West Texas State	14	Cincinnati	13	16,000	notes
18	January 1, 1952	Texas Tech	25	Pacific	14	17,000	notes
19	January 1, 1953	Pacific	26	Southern Miss	7	11,000	notes
20	January 1, 1954	Texas Western	37	Southern Miss	14	9,500	notes
21	January 1, 1955	Texas Western	47	Florida State	20	14,000	notes
22	January 2, 1956	Wyoming	21	Texas Tech	14	14,500	notes
23	January 1, 1957	George Washington	13	Texas Western	0	13,500	notes
24	January 1, 1958	Louisville	34	Drake	20	13,000	notes
25	December 31, 1958	Wyoming	14	Hardin–Simmons	6	13,000	notes
26	December 31, 1959	New Mexico A&M	28	North Texas	8	14,000	notes
27	December 31, 1960	New Mexico State	20	Utah State	13	16,000	notes
28	December 30, 1961	Villanova	17	Wichita	9	15,000	notes
29	December 31, 1962	West Texas State	15	Ohio	14	16,000	notes
30	December 31, 1963	Oregon	21	SMU	14	18,646	notes
31	December 26, 1964	Georgia	7	Texas Tech	0	23,292	notes
32	December 31, 1965	Texas Western	13	TCU	12	24,598	notes
33	December 24, 1966	Wyoming	28	Florida State	20	17,965	notes
34	December 30, 1967	UTEP	14	Mississippi	7	28,630	notes
35	December 28, 1968	Auburn	34	Arizona	10	27,062	notes
36	December 20, 1969	Nebraska	45	Georgia	6	26,668	notes
37	December 19, 1970	Georgia Tech	17	Texas Tech	9	26,188	notes
38	December 18, 1971	LSU	33	Iowa State	15	29,377	notes
39	December 30, 1972	North Carolina	32	Texas Tech	28	27,877	notes
40	December 29, 1973	Missouri	34	Auburn	17	26,108	notes
41	December 28, 1974	Mississippi State	26	North Carolina	24	26,035	notes
42	December 26, 1975	Pittsburgh	33	Kansas	19	29,910	notes
43	January 2, 1977	Texas A&M	37	Florida	14	31, 896	notes
44	December 31, 1977	Stanford	24	LSU	14	30,621	notes
45	December 23, 1978	Texas	42	Maryland	0	30,604	notes
46	December 22, 1979	Washington	14	Texas	7	30,124	notes
47	December 27, 1980	Nebraska	31	Mississippi State	17	31,332	notes
48	December 26, 1981	Oklahoma	40	Houston	14	29,985	notes
49	December 25, 1982	North Carolina	26	Texas	10	29,055	notes
50	December 24, 1983	Alabama	28	SMU	7	41,412	notes
51	December 22, 1984	Maryland	28	Tennessee	27	50,126	notes
52	December 28, 1985	Arizona	13	Georgia	13	50,203	notes
53	December 25, 1986	Alabama	28	Washington	6	48,722	notes
54	December 25, 1987	Oklahoma State	35	West Virginia	33	43,240	notes
55	December 24, 1988	Alabama	29	Army	28	43,661	notes
56	December 30, 1989	Pittsburgh	31	Texas A&M	28	44,887	notes
57	December 31, 1990	Michigan State	17	USC	16	50,562	notes
58	December 31, 1991	UCLA	6	Illinois	3	42,281	notes
59	December 31, 1992	Baylor	20	Arizona	15	41,622	notes
60	December 24, 1993	Oklahoma	41	Texas Tech	10	43,684	notes
61	December 30, 1994	Texas	35	North Carolina	31	50,612	notes
62	December 29, 1995	Iowa	38	Washington	18	49,116	notes
63	December 31, 1996	Stanford	38	Michigan State	0	42,721	notes
64	December 31, 1997	Arizona State	17	Iowa	7	49,104	notes
65	December 31, 1998	TCU	28	USC	19	46,612	notes
66	December 31, 1999	Oregon	24	Minnesota	20	48,757	notes
67	December 29, 2000	Wisconsin	21	UCLA	20	49,093	notes
68	December 31, 2001	Washington State	33	Purdue	27	47,812	notes
69	December 31, 2002	Purdue	34	Washington	24	48,917	notes
70	December 31, 2003	Minnesota	31	Oregon	30	49,864	notes
71	December 31, 2004	Arizona State	27	Purdue	23	51,288	notes
72	December 30, 2005	UCLA	50	Northwestern	38	50,426	notes
73	December 29, 2006	Oregon State	39	Missouri	38	48,732	notes
74	December 31, 2007	Oregon	56	South Florida	21	49,867	notes
75	December 31, 2008	Oregon State	3	Pittsburgh	0	49,037	notes
76	December 31, 2009	Oklahoma	31	Stanford	27	53,713	notes
77	December 31, 2010	Notre Dame	33	Miami (Florida)	17	54,021	notes
78	December 31, 2011	Utah	30	Georgia Tech	27 (OT)	48,123	notes
79	December 31, 2012	Georgia Tech	21	USC	7	47,922	notes
80	December 31, 2013	UCLA	42	Virginia Tech	12	47,912	notes
81	December 27, 2014	Arizona State	36	Duke	31	47,809	notes
82	December 26, 2015	Washington State	20	Miami (Florida)	14	41,180	notes
83	December 30, 2016	Stanford	25	North Carolina	23	42,166	notes
84	December 29, 2017	NC State	52	Arizona State	31	39,897	notes
85	December 31, 2018	Stanford	14	Pittsburgh	13	40,680	notes

Source: ^[12]:18
The 1935 game was contested between high school teams.^[3][4]

Awards[edit]

C.M. Hendricks Most Valuable Player Trophy[edit]

Named after the first Sun Bowl Association president, Dr. C. M. Hendricks.^[13]
Two players have been two-time MVPs; Charley Johnson (1959, 1960)^[14] and Billy Stevens (1965, 1967).^[15]

Source: ^{[12]:26 [22]}

Jimmy Rogers Jr. Most Valuable Lineman Trophy[edit]

Named after former Sun Bowl president Jimmy Rogers Jr.^[23]

Source: ^{[12]:27 [22]}

John Folmer Most Valuable Special Teams Player Trophy[edit]

Named after former Sun Bowl president John Folmer.^[26]

Source: ^{[12]:27 [22]}

Most appearances[edit]

Only teams with at least three appearances are listed.

California and Colorado are the only current Pac-12 members to have never appeared in the Sun Bowl. Northern Arizona (now in the in FCS) is the only former member of the Border Conference to have never appeared in a Sun Bowl.

Appearances by conference[edit]

Updated through the December 2018 edition (85 games, 170 total appearances).

The first edition of the game, played in 1935, was contested between high school teams.

Records are based on teams' conferences at the time each game was played.

Pac-12 records include appearances by teams when the conference was the Pac-8 and Pac-10.

Game records[edit]

Source: ^[12]:28–32

Future games[edit]

Source:^[27]

Media coverage[edit]

The Sun Bowl's contract with CBS Sports is the longest continuous relationship between a bowl game and one TV network,^[28] spanning since 1968 and running through at least 2019, it is one of only two college football games on CBS that does not involve the Southeastern Conference (the other being the Army–Navy Game). Although every other year, CBS broadcasts the Notre Dame–Navy game when the latter is playing as the home team; as of 2017, the game is one of only five bowls that is not being carried by the ESPN family of networks - the Cure Bowl and Arizona Bowl are also under contract with CBS Sports and air on CBS Sports Network, while the Holiday Bowl and Foster Farms Bowl rights are held by Fox Sports.

The game traditionally kicks off at "High Noon" MST (2 p.m. EST). Before 2010, Helen of Troy also sponsored the halftime show, which featured such artists as Los Lonely Boys, The Village People, Baby Bash, David Archuleta, Rihanna, and Diamond Rio.^{[needs update]}

References[edit]

External links[edit]

• Official website