Photo courtesy of @usffootball on Instagram
On the night before Christmas, the University of South Florida (6-6) will attempt to gift its fans one more win.
USF will have a chance to take home one last victory of the season in the Hawaii Bowl against San Jose State (7-5) on Dec. 24.
During the program’s 27-year history, the USF’s record is 7-4 in bowl games. This will be the Bulls’ second consecutive bowl game appearance under head coach Alex Golesh, following the shutout against Syracuse, 45-0, in the Boca Raton Bowl last season.
Even during the holidays, USF has fully embraced Hawaii’s tropical atmosphere by wearing a new floral helmet decal for the game.
Hawaii will be the farthest that USF has traveled for a game in team history, being almost 4,700 miles away from Tampa.
The Hawaii Bowl began at Aloha Stadium in Honolulu, Hawaii in 2002. The games were then moved to Clarence T.C. Ching Athletics Complex in 2022 and has continued to be held there.
The two teams have only gone head-to head once on Aug. 27, 2017 with USF winning 44-22.
This game will be déjà vu for SJSU, as they played in the Hawaii Bowl last year, where they lost 24-14 to Coastal Carolina University.
Getting back to Hawaii was not a straightforward path for SJSU. The Spartans won its first three games, then lost five of its last nine.
SJSU started the season with sophomore quarterback Emmett Brown, but switched to Walker Eget against the University of Nevada. Eget remained the starter for the rest of the season.
Despite the switch, San Jose State finished the season with the fifth most passing yards in Division One (FBS) college football. Neither quarterback could have succeeded without senior wide receiver Nick Nash.
Nash began his career at SJSU as a backup quarterback, but he finished it as one of the best wide receivers in the country. He is the first wide receiver to end the season as the Division One (FBS) leader in catches (104), yards (1382) and touchdowns (16) since Alabama receiver, Devonta Smith in 2020.
After his historic season, Nash opted to sit out this game in preparation for the NFL Draft in April. Nash’s absence will be a huge break for a USF defense that gave up the tenth most passing yards in the FBS.
USF will be without sophomore quarterback Israel Carter, who was expected to get playing time in this game before he entered the transfer portal on Dec. 5.
With Carter opting out and Byrum Brown’s health uncertain, Bryce Archie is likely to be the starting quarterback. Archie has been taking snaps for the Bulls since Brown suffered a leg injury against Tulane University on Sept. 28.
Bulls’ fans hope that Archie can get the ball to senior wide receiver Sean Atkins. The former walk-on already has the most receptions in USF history (189) and is just 56 yards away from becoming the program’s all-time leader in yards.
This game will be Atkins’ last chance to break the record and cement himself as the most productive receiver in USF history.
If Atkins has a record-breaking night, there is a great chance that USF wakes up on Christmas Day as Hawaii Bowl champions.
While fans finish last minute present wrapping and leave out cookies and milk for Santa Claus, they can watch the Bulls last ride of the season by tuning in to ESPN at 8 p.m. ET.
