BYU Announces Bowl Affiliations for 2012 and 2013

PROVO -- Brigham Young University has accepted invitations to play in football bowl games following the 2012 and 2013 regular seasons. If bowl eligible and not selected by a BCS bowl, BYU will play in the San Diego County Credit Union Poinsettia Bowl in 2012, and travel to San Francisco for the Kraft Fight Hunger Bowl following the 2013 season.

“We are thrilled to have a relationship with these outstanding bowls. It’s an important step for our football program as we begin playing an independent schedule,” said BYU director of athletics Tom Holmoe. “Both bowls are located in destination cities that appreciate great football tradition. BYU enjoys a large fan base in Southern California and the Bay Area. I’m excited for fans in those areas to have the opportunity to see our team play.”

While BYU has never played in the Poinsettia Bowl, it is no stranger to the postseason in San Diego. The Cougars participated in the first seven Holiday Bowls from 1978 to 1984, then returned four more times between 1988 and 1993. In the 1984 Holiday Bowl, BYU defeated the Michigan Wolverines to cap an undefeated season and earn a National Championship. The Cougars will face one of the top teams from the Mountain West Conference in the 2012 San Diego County Credit Union Poinsettia Bowl.

“We’re thrilled to have the Cougars set to play in the eighth annual bowl game,” said San Diego Bowl Game Association president Eric Graves. “BYU played a significant role in the growth and success of the Holiday Bowl. It’s so fitting that they, along with their incredibly loyal fans, will join us and participate in San Diego’s newer game, the San Diego County Credit Union Poinsettia Bowl.”

BYU will also be making its first appearance in the Kraft Fight Hunger Bowl. The Cougars are scheduled to play a team from the soon-to-be Pac-12 Conference at AT&T Park. The Kraft Fight Hunger Bowl will feature a Pac-12 squad vs. an independent in each of its next three games — Army in 2011, Navy in 2012 and BYU in 2013.

“We’ve had our eye on BYU for a long time, dating back to when our game had the Mountain West as a partner,” said Gary Cavalli, co-founder and executive director of the Kraft Fight Hunger Bowl. “I’m grateful to BYU athletics director Tom Holmoe, who I have known since our days together at Stanford, and to WAC commissioner Karl Benson, for their cooperation in making this happen. Our bowl will continue to have a backup agreement with the WAC in 2011, 2012 and 2013.”

BYU has a storied bowl history that dates back to the 1974 Fiesta Bowl. Since then, the Cougars have been invited to 29 bowls, including this year’s New Mexico Bowl on Dec. 18. BYU has won three of its last four bowl games, including a 2009 triumph over No. 16 Oregon State, 44-20, at the Maaco Bowl Las Vegas.