University of Houston Athletics
Cougar Football Heads To The Tropics
12/1/2003 12:00:00 AM | Football
Dec. 1, 2003
Houston, Texas - For the first time since 1996, the University of Houston will go "bowling", as the Cougars have officially accepted a bid to play in the Sheraton Hawai'i Bowl on Christmas Day. The Cougars (7-5) will face the University of Hawai'i (8-4 with one game to play) in the island match-up, the first head-to-head encounter between the two schools.
Kickoff for the game is slated for 7 pm CST in Aloha Stadium.
UH Director of Athletics Dave Maggard is excited about the Houston-versus-Hawai'i match-up.
"The process of determining which bowl we were going to play in this year has been somewhat laborious," commented Maggard. "We have now concluded all the conversations and negotiations and our preference from the very beginning has been the (Sheraton) Hawai'i Bowl.
"It has been the Hawai'i Bowl because of three reasons. One, it is a great opportunity for the players considering what they've done for this program. Two, there is only one game played on Christmas day, and that is the Hawai'i Bowl. I believe it will give us great exposure.
"Finally, (the University of) Hawai'i is a great opponent, and we want to play a great opponent.
"So all-in-all this is a wonderful opportunity for us, and we are really excited about it. This is great for our football program. This is great for the athletic program. And, this is great for the university."
This visit to the Hawaiian Islands marks the second time UH has played a post-season game in Honolulu. In 1988 the Cougars played Washington State in the Aloha Bowl, falling to the WSU Cougars, 24-22. The Cougars' last bowl appearance was in the aforementioned '96 campaign, when Houston faced Syracuse in the Liberty Bowl after winning the inaugural Conference USA championship.
Houston is 7-6-1 in their 14 bowl appearances dating back to its initial bowl game in 1951. The Cougars are looking to snap a four-game losing streak in bowl games, since defeating Navy, 35-0, in the 1980 Garden State Bowl.
Below is the complete history of the University of Houston's Bowl Games:
Season Bowl Opponent W/L Score
1951 Salad Dayton W 26-21
1962 Tangerine Miami (Ohio) W 49-21
1969 Bluebonnet Auburn W 36-7
1971 Bluebonnet Colorado L 17-29
1973 Bluebonnet Tulane W 47-7
1974 Bluebonnet N.C. State T 31-31
1976 Cotton Maryland W 30-21
1978 Cotton Notre Dame L 34-35
1979 Cotton Nebraska W 17-14
1980 Garden State Navy W 35-0
1981 Sun Oklahoma L 14-40
1984 Cotton Boston College L 28-45
1988 Aloha Wash. State L 22-24
1996 Liberty Syracuse L 17-30
