LIHU‘E — It won’t be June Jones heading back to Honolulu, but the University of Hawai‘i will be taking on one of the hottest teams in Conference USA after it was announced Saturday that the University of Tulsa Golden Hurricane
LIHU‘E — It won’t be June Jones heading back to Honolulu, but the University of Hawai‘i will be taking on one of the hottest teams in Conference USA after it was announced Saturday that the University of Tulsa Golden Hurricane have accepted a bid to play in the Sheraton Hawai‘i Bowl.
Tulsa (9-3, 6-2 CUSA), Conference USA West Division co-champions, has won its last six games including a victory at Notre Dame. They feature one of the country’s most potent offenses, ranking fifth nationally in total offense at 503.5 yards per game and ninth in scoring at 39.7 points per game.
“We are excited to be hosting Coach (Todd) Graham and his Golden Hurricane football squad in the 9th Annual Sheraton Hawai‘i Bowl,” Matlin said. “Spending the Christmas season in Hawai‘i will be a well-deserved reward for the players, coaches and loyal Tulsa fans.”
Golden Hurricane wide receiver Damaris Johnson leads the nation in all-purpose yards and is the NCAA’s all-time leader in kickoff return yardage. Quarterback G.J. Kline is among the nation’s leaders in total offense and averages 263.7 passing yards per game with 24 touchdowns.
That potent attack should provide for a shootout of sorts, combining two of the nation’s top scoring offenses.
“Hawai‘i is a very tough team,” Coach Graham said. “They have a tremendous program and some great players. Hawai‘i does a great job and have had some big time wins. The location is a very special destination for us and naturally playing such a great team in Hawai‘i and having an opportunity to compete for a big win is huge for our program.”
This is the 17th bowl game appearance for the Hurricane and the fifth time in the last six years.
“Making a bowl game each year is really the minimum to keep moving your program forward,” Graham said. “Having these extra practices is big for us, and it’s a big reward for these kids to get an opportunity to go to a bowl game and compete for a bowl championship.”
Graham is in his fourth season with the Golden Hurricane and boasts a 34-17 record. He led Tulsa to back-to-back 10-win seasons for the first time in school history in 2007 and ’08 and consecutive GMAC Bowl wins and C-USA West Division championships.
“We’ve played well on the road this season,” Graham said. “In Hawai‘i, the key is staying focused on the game and that’s pretty difficult to do. We’ll have to be focused on football, yet enjoy the reward of going to a bowl game, especially going to an unbelievable place like Hawai‘i… We played there before in 2004, and it’s a very tough and difficult place to play. Our guys have played in some pretty tough places, and hopefully it’s prepared them for it.”
The game is scheduled for Dec. 24 with kickoff at 3 p.m.
