Here is a look back at each of the last 76 Hyundai Sun Bowl games:

1935 – The first Sun Bowl game was played at El Paso High School’s Jones Stadium, with the El Paso All-Stars defeating Ranger 25-21. 2003 Legend of the Sun Bowl Ken Heineman accounted for ever El Paso All-Star point.

 

1936 – The first college Sun Bowl game between New Mexico State and Hardin-Simmons ended in a 14-14 tie.  Hardin-Simmons had missed the tying extra point following its second touchdown, but New Mexico State was offside on the play, and the re-kick was successful.

1937 – Texas Mines (now UTEP) represented the Border Conference, while Hardin-Simmons came back as the Texas Conference champion. The Miners were no match for Hardin-Simmons, as the Cowboys rolled to a 34-6 win.

1938 – The Sun Bowl game was moved to Kidd Field, at 15,000-seat stadium on the UTEP campus. Texas Tech represented the Border Conference against independent West Virginia. The Sun Bowl Traveling Trophy was introduced. The Mountaineers won the game and were seen hoisting the trophy in their train car from El Paso to Morgantown.

1939 – Mountain State Conference champion Utah rolled over New Mexico, 26-0, in front of a sellout crowd of 13,000. It marked the fourth straight year that the Border Conference representative failed to win the Sun Bowl.

1940 – Border Conference champion Arizona faced off against East Coast power Catholic University of Washington, D.C. Entering the game, these two teams had been known for high-scoring offenses, but high winds halted both teams to a scoreless tie.

1941 – Hascall Henshaw of Arizona State turned in the longest run in Sun Bowl history, a 94-yard touchdown, in a losing cause, as the Sun Devils fell to Case Western Reserve, 26-13. Steve Belichick was Reserve’s starting fullback. His son, Bill Belichick, is the head coach of the New England Patriots.

1942 – Just weeks after the bombing of Pearl Harbor, Missouri Valley Conference champion Tulsa took on Border Conference champion Texas Tech. In the days of run, run, run, Tulsa passed the ball 39 times and scored the games only touchdown with two minutes left in the game. The star of the game was quarterback Glenn Dobbs, who went on to fame in the NFL. His brother Bobby would come back to El Paso to coach at UTEP in 1965.

1943 – All profits from the Sun Bowl were donated to World War II charities. Hardin-Simmons made its third appearance, but this time as Border Conference champion. They faced off against the U.S. Army Air Corps’ Second Air Force in a battle of unbeatens. A late fourth quarter score game the GI’s a 13-7 win. El Pasoan Camp Wilson was the game’s leading rusher with a 104 yards for HSU.

1944 – With World War II in full effect, some colleges shut down their football programs. But schools like Southwestern University in Georgetown were turned into the U.S. Navy’s V-12 Program for commissioning officers. Because of the V-12 Program, Southwestern became a college football power during the war, transferring in players from the Southwest Conference and the Southeastern Conference. The Pirates downed New Mexico, 7-0, in front of the largest Sun Bowl crowd ever – 18,000.

1945 – Teams were even scarcer in 1944, so the Sun Bowl Association turned south of the border to find a team. Southwestern University returned to take on the Mexican National Champion – the Pumas of the University of Mexico (Universidad Nacional Autóma de México). Southwestern rolled to a 35-0 win. Each team was paid $6,511 for participating in the game.

1946 – The streak finally ended, as the Border Conference finally won a Sun Bowl after 11 tries. New Mexico scored 21 unanswered points in the fourth quarter to roll past Denver, 34-24, on a sunny 70-degree day. It was one of the warmest Sun Bowls ever.

1947 – One year after having the warmest Sun Bowl ever, Cincinnati played Virginia Tech in the coldest Sun Bowl to date. The Bearcats rolled to an 18-6 win on a snow-covered Kidd Field. The inclement weather dipped attendance to 10,000 spectators, its lowest mark since moving to Kidd Field.

1948 – Miami University capped an undefeated season with a 13-12 Sun Bowl victory over Texas Tech.  Miami’s reputation as the “Cradle of Coaches” was enhanced by this team which included Sid Gillman as head coach, and Richard “Doc” Urich, Paul Dietzel, High Hindeman, and Ara Parseghian as players. In fact, Parseghian dislocated his shoulder during the second quarter, and was unable to return to the game. The Sun Bowl gained more national exposure when celebrity Art Linkletter originated his popular national radio broadcast from Liberty Hall in El Paso during the Sun Bowl week of activities.

1949 – Texas Mines (now UTEP) represented the Border Conference against national power West Virignia. Though statistically, the game was almost dead even, four Miner turnovers gave the Mountaineers a 21-12 win. For the second time in Sun Bowl history, the game featured the nation’s leading rusher – TCM’s Fred Wendt, who rushed for an NCAA record 1,570 yards. The record stood until 1968.

1950 – After changing their name to Texas Western College in 1949, the Miners rolled to their first Sun Bowl win with a resounding 33-20 win over Georgetown University. For the second straight year, Texas Western (now UTEP) led the nation in rushing and pounded out 348 yards on the ground against the Hoyas.

1951 – West Texas State (now West Texas A&M) finished the year 10-1 after a blocked extra point was the deciding factor in the game, as the Buffalos squeaked past Cincinnati, 14-13.

1952 – Border Conference champion Texas Tech won its first and only Sun Bowl with a 25-14 win over the University of Pacific. Texas Tech capitalized on the Pacific Tigers’ seven turnovers to win the game. Eddie Macon of Pacific became the first African-American to play in the Sun Bowl.

1953 – Pacific returned to El Paso to take on a 10-1 Southern Mississippi. The Tigers were considered underdogs entering the game, but used four USM turnovers to topple the Golden Eagles, 26-7.

1954 – Dr. C. M. Hendricks, one of the Sun Bowl founding fathers, its first President, and an active director in the Association from 1935-45, died on December 9th. A Most Valuable Player Award was established in his honor, and UTEP quarterback Dick Shinaut was the first recipient for his efforts in the Miners 37-14 Sun Bowl victory over Southern Mississippi. 

1955 – The highest scoring Sun Bowl to date occurred as Texas Western (now UTEP) defeated Florida State, 47-20. The Miners were led by Green Bay Packer Hall of Famer Jesse Whittenton, who was named the game’s MVP. Florida State’s offense featured ESPN’s Lee Corso and actor Buddy “Burt” Reynolds.

1956 – Wyoming topped Texas Tech, 21-14, on the third Sun Bowl game played on January 2. At the time, bowl tradition was no team would play on Sunday and games were moved to Monday.

1957 – For the first time in Sun Bowl history, the game featured a national-ranked Top 20 team – No. 17 George Washington University. Despite being ranked, the Colonials were considered underdogs to the hometown Texas Western Miners. But GW withstood the Miner attack and rolled to a 13-0 win over TWC (now UTEP).

1958 – For the first time in Sun Bowl history two games were played in the same calendar year, Jan. 1 and Dec. 31.  It was believed that a move away from New Year’s Day would allow the Sun Bowl to get more national exposure.  In the Dec. 31 game a legendary coaching match up developed as Wyoming, coached by Bob Devaney, defeated Hardin-Simmons, coached by Sammy Baugh, 14-6.  For the first time, a lineman (Leonard Kuczewski of Wyoming) won the MVP Award.

1959 – Charley Johnson of New Mexico State (and later the St. Louis Cardinals) won the first of his back-to-back MVP awards.  The Aggie team included NCAA rushing champion Pervis Atkins.  El Paso County voters approved a $1.75 million bond issue to finance the construction of a 30,000 seat Sun Bowl Stadium adjacent to Kidd Field.  Construction was set to begin in 1961.

1960 – New Mexico State completed a perfect season with a 20-13 victory over Utah State. Charley Johnson won his second MVP Award, and set a Sun Bowl record for passing accuracy (18 of 26 for .692).  For the second straight year, the Aggies boasted the NCAA rushing champion (Bob Gaiters).  Pro Football Hall of Fame member Merlin Olsen was a member of the Utah State Aggies.

1961 – With the disbanding of the Border Conference, the Sun Bowl Association looked outside for its matchup. The game featured Missouri Valley Conference champion Wichita State against independent Villanova. ’Nova’s stingy nationally-ranked defense proved to be the difference as the Wildcats stymied the Shockers, 17-9. College Football Hall of Famer Billy Joe of Villanova was named the C.M. Hendricks MVP. The Shockers featured linebacker Bill Parcells, who would later coach in the NFL with the Giants, Jets, Patriots and Cowboys. After 26 years, the Sun Bowl Traveling Trophy made its final trip, when it made it longest journey – 3,642 miles round trip – from El Paso to Villanova, Pa. This was also the first game to be nationally televised to a 70-station independent network.

1962 – West Texas State (now West Texas A&M) used a two-point conversion in the fourth quarter to upend Ohio University, 15-14. This was the last game ever played at Kidd Field.

1963 – The first Sun Bowl game was played in the present Sun Bowl Stadium on Dec. 31, as Oregon beat Southwest Conference foe SMU, 21-14. There were 18,646 fans on hand for that first game in the 30,000-seat Sun Bowl Stadium.

1964 – The first national network telecast of a Sun Bowl game was carried by NBC between Georgia and Texas Tech. The game marked Vince Dooley’s first bowl appearance as the Georgia head coach.

1965 – UTEP quarterback Bill Stevens won the first of his two MVP awards, as the Miners beat TCU 13-12.  Stevens also won MVP honors in 1967, and joined Charley Johnson as the only players to be honored twice.

1966 – No. 15 Wyoming used a strong ground attack to knock off Florida State, 28-20. Wyoming was led by the hard-running of Jim Kiick, while Florida State was paced by College Football Hall of Fame receiver Ron Sellers. The game was televised nationally by CBS for the second time.

1967 – The first sellout crowd of a Sun Bowl game in the new stadium saw UTEP defeat Mississippi, 14-7. It was the Miners last appearance in the game. The game was televised regionally in the South.

1968 – This was the first CBS network telecast of the Sun Bowl (Auburn vs. Arizona). CBS sent its top broadcasting team to cover the game – Lindsey Nelson and Frank Gifford.  The Sun Bowl has been telecast nationally by CBS ever since. Arizona set an NCAA bowl game record by throwing eight interceptions and committing nine turnovers in the game.

1969 – Georgia had no answer for No. 14 Nebraska, as the Cornhuskers rolled to a 45-6 win in the earliest Sun Bowl ever played to date – Dec. 20. Nebraska placekicker Paul Rogers set an NCAA bowl record with four field goals and 15 kicking points. The game featured a pair of College Football Hall of Fame coaches in Vince Dooley (Georgia) and Bob Devaney (Nebraska). This game also marked the first of 34 straight bowl appearances by the Cornhuskers, an NCAA record.

1970 – For the first time in Sun Bowl history, a pair of ranked teams faced off in El Paso. No. 13 Georgia Tech edged No. 19 Texas Tech, 17-9. Six turnovers doomed the Red Raiders as they lost their sixth Sun Bowl in seven tries.

1971 – Bert Jones led LSU to a 33-15 win over Iowa State en route to C.M. Hendricks MVP honors. It was Iowa State’s first-ever bowl appearance. The game also featured coaching legends Johnny Majors (Iowa State) and Charles McClendon (LSU). This also marked the earliest the Sun Bowl has ever been played – Dec. 18.

1972 – No. 12 North Carolina and Texas Tech put on a show, as the two teams traded the lead back and forth before the Tar Heels took the lead for good late in the fourth quarter. Despite the loss, Texas Tech’s George Smith was named the game’s MVP after setting a Sun Bowl record with 172 yards rushing and three touchdowns. This marked the first time in the bowl’s history that each team received a $100,000 payment for participating in the game.

1973 – Missouri scored a then-bowl record 28 second quarter points to cruise to a 34-17 win over Auburn. Mizzou’s John Moseley set a Sun Bowl record with an 84-yard kickoff return for a touchdown as time expired in the second quarter.

1974 – A freak winter storm in El Paso the night before the Sun Bowl left a frost on the field.  The warmth of the sun created steam rising from the field during the first half creating a very eerie effect and later the game was affectionately dubbed the “Fog Bowl”. It also marked the first time the game was placed on Astroturf. Mississippi State defeated North Carolina, 26-24, in a game that featured seven lead changes.

1975 – A sellout crowd watched a pair of All-Americans battle it out, as Pittsburgh shot past Kansas, 33-19. Tony Dorsett paced Pitt’s vaunted rushing attack, as three Panthers rushed for over 100 yards on the day – Dorsett (142 yards), Elliott Walker (123) and Robert Haygood (101). It is the only time in NCAA bowl history it has happened. The Jayhawks All-American quarterback Nolan Cromwell rushed for 99 yards and threw for another 60. Haygood was named the game’s most valuable player.

1976 – No game was played during the calendar year 1976; the next Sun Bowl was scheduled for Jan. 2, 1977.  Texas A&M defeated Florida, 37-14, on the Jan. 2 game.  The Aggies Tony Franklin kicked the longest field goal in Sun Bowl and NCAA post-season history, 62 yards. Franklin was inducted into the Legends of the Sun Bowl. The largest crowd in Sun Bowl history was on hand – 31,896.

1977 – The legendary Bill Walsh led Stanford to a 24-14 victory over LSU, despite Tiger running back Charles Alexander rushing for a Sun Bowl record 197 yards. Ironically, the last three out of four times the Sun Bowl rushing record has been broken, the player’s team has lost.

1978 – The University of Texas made its first Sun Bowl appearance, as the “Jones Show” ran past Maryland, 42-0. Texas featured three Johnny Jones on their roster – Ham, Jam and Lam. All three scored in the game. All three had the same name, but were unrelated. The game was billed as a true showdown, as Maryland entered the game No. 13 and Texas came to El Paso as No. 14. This game still stands as the most lopsided Sun Bowl in history.

1979 – Texas returned to El Paso as the No. 11 Longhorns were set to face the No. 13 Washington Huskies. The most dominate thing in the game was a strong swirling wind that truly was the deciding factor in the game. All three scores came in the second quarter, as Washington prevailed, 14-7.

1980 – The University of Texas System Board of Regents and El Paso County completed a complicated land-swap deal in which the Regents agreed to pay for a 20,000 seat expansion to the Sun Bowl Stadium.  Construction began in 1980, but was not completed until 1982. No. 8 Nebraska lived up to their roll as 14-point favorites as the Cornhuskers dropped Mississippi State, 31-17. It was Nebraska head coach Tom Osborne’s second appearance in the Sun Bowl and first as head coach.

1981 – When Jane T. Thornton took over the reins as Sun Bowl Association president, it marked the first time ever that a woman had been named to the top spot not only in the Sun Bowl Association, but in any bowl association in the country.  One of the milestones marking her presidency is the expansion of the Sun Bowl stadium, under construction, to be completed for the 1982 game. Oklahoma scored an NCAA bowl record 30 fourth quarter points to blow out Houston, 40-14.

1982 – This was the first Sun Bowl played in the completed 51,000-seat stadium, the first Sun Bowl played on Christmas Day, and the first time it ever snowed during a Sun Bowl game.  North Carolina rallied to beat Texas, 26-10, behind the running of third string tailback Ethan Horton.

1983 – This game marked the 50th anniversary of the Sun Bowl and the Association and featured the highest ranked team ever to play in El Paso – the No. 6 SMU Mustangs. Their opponent, Alabama, was making its 25th consecutive bowl appearance. It was another brutally cold day that seemed to freeze the Mustangs and their Pony Express in their tracks as the Crimson Tide rolled to a 28-7 win.

1984 – Maryland’s 28-27 win over Tennessee marked the biggest comeback win in Sun Bowl history.   Trailing 21-0 at halftime, the Terrapins scored 28 second half points (21 in the third quarter for a Sun Bowl record) to nip the Volunteers 28-27.  Earlier in the season, the Terrapins have engineered the greatest comeback in college football history.  Trailing defending national champion Miami Hurricanes 31-0 at halftime, Maryland scored 42 second half points to win 42-40.  The 1984 Sun Bowl marked Johnny Majors’ third appearance as a head coach representing three different universities (Iowa State in 1971, Pittsburgh in 1975, and Tennessee), a Sun Bowl first.

1985 – The largest Sun Bowl crowd to date (50,203) saw Arizona and Georgia close out the game with a 13-13 tie. Placekicker Max Zendejas of Arizona was named the game’s MVP despite missing the game-winning field goal with 10 seconds left. It marks only the second tie in Sun Bowl history.

1986 – The Sun Bowl became the first postseason football classic to be sponsored commercially, when John Hancock Financial Services entered into a five-year agreement with the Sun Bowl Association. The Association was later chastised for it move, which is now a mainstay in the bowl business. On the field, No. 111 Alabama crushed No. 12 Washington, 28-7.

1987 – The highest scoring game to date was played as No. 11 Oklahoma State defeated West Virginia 35-33. The OSU backfield featured the tandem of future Pro Football Hall of Famers Thurman Thomas and Barry Sanders. West Virginia would win a national title one year later behind the play of Major Harris.

1988 – The Sun Bowl made its first-ever million-dollar payment to the competing teams, Alabama and Army. Alabama scored nine fourth quarter points to come from behind to beat Army, 29-28.

1989 – Pittsburgh freshman quarterback Alex Van Pelt led the Panthers to a come-from-behind victory over Texas A&M, 31-28. Van Pelt, who would later go on to have an 11-year NFL career, was inducted in to the Legeds of the Sun Bowl in 2003.

1990 – Michigan State became the first-ever Big Ten school to play in the Sun Bowl. Over 50,000 fans packed Sun Bowl Stadium to see the Spartans edge the UCS Trojans, 17-16. This game also marked the highest television rating (7.6) for the Sun Bowl in the last 20 years.

1992 – Baylor’s legendary Grant Teaff concluded his coaching career by leading the Bears to a 20-15 victory over the University of Arizona. Additionally, the Sun Bowl made the largest-ever team payment of $1.1 million per team.

1993 – Oklahoma’s Cale Gundy threw three touchdown passes to be named the C.M. Hendricks Most Valuable Player and Texas Tech’s Shawn Jackson was named the Jimmy Rogers, Jr. Most Valuable Lineman after netting six tackles, three for a loss, and two sacks. But the big story was Tech’s Zach Thomas, who recorded 13 tackles, including an NCAA bowl record seven for a loss of 19 yards.

1994 – At the time, the largest crowd in Sun Bowl history watched as Texas’ Priest Holmes dominated the second half to lead the Longhorns to a 35-31 come-from-behind win over North Carolina. Holmes rushed for 165 yards on 27 carries and four touchdowns, including two in the fourth quarter that helped win the game.

1995 – Iowa stunned No. 20 Washington, 38-18, in front for 49,116 fans. The game marked the second straight year the Sun Bowl did not have a title sponsor.

1996 – Norwest Corporation of Minneapolis, Minn. established a corporate relationship with the Sun Bowl Association and the annual football game was renamed the Norwest Sun Bowl. Stanford quarterback Chad Hutchinson establishes a new Norwest Sun Bowl pass completion percentage record (22/28, .786).

1997 – Arizona State used a strong rushing attack and a stifling defense to knock of Iowa, 17-7. The Sun Devil defense featured Jimmy Rogers, Jr. Most Valuable Lineman Jeremy Staat and All-American linebacker Pat Tillman. Tillman was inducted into the Legends of the Sun Bowl in 2004.

1998 – A true underdog prevailed at the 65th annual Norwest Sun Bowl, as TCU upended USC, 28-19. The Horned Frogs were led by Basil Mitchell and LaDainian Tomlinson, while future Heisman Trophy winning quarterback Carson Palmer paced the Trojan offense.

1999 – The name changes officially to Wells Fargo Sun Bowl in April as a result of the Norwest/Wells Fargo Bank merger. Oregon’s Joey Harrington leads the Ducks to a 24-20 comeback victory over Minnesota.

2000 – UCLA’s Freddie Mitchell was named the game’s MVP, but it was Michael Bennett’s fourth quarter touchdown that lifted Wisconsin past the Bruins, 21-20. Mitchell recorded a Sun Bowl record nine catches for 180 yards and a touchdown.

2001 – CBS Sports extends Sun Bowl contract through the 2006 game. UTEP stadium renovations result in a new field surface, AstroPlay, and a permanent big screen (Diamond Vision). Hundreds of seats are removed from the lower corners of the stadium in order to accommodate soccer games, resulting in a new capacity of 50,426. Washington State topped Purdue, 33-27, but Kyle Orton set and NCAA bowl record for pass attempts with 74.

2002 – Purdue overcame a 17-point deficit to topple Washington 34-24. The Sun Bowl made its largest payout ever: $1,350,000 per team. Purdue’s Kyle Orton was named the games MVP.

2003 – The Sun Bowl Association reached agreement with the publicly-traded company Helen of Troy to begin sponsoring the game in 2004. The game officially became the Vitalis Sun Bowl. The last Wells Fargo Sun Bowl saw Minnesota’s Rhys Lloyd kick a 42-yard field goal with 23 seconds left to give the Gophers revenge from the 1999 edition that featured the two teams.

2004 – The first Vitalis Sun Bowl was played, marking the seventh name change in the 71-year history of the game – Sun Bowl (1935-85), John Hancock Sun Bowl (1986-89), John Hancock Bowl (1990-93), Sun Bowl (1994-95), Norwest Sun Bowl (1996-98), Wells Fargo Sun Bowl (1999-03) and Vitalis Sun Bowl (2004-05). The largest crown in Sun Bowl history (51,288) witnessed another photo finish, as Arizona State edged Purdue, 27-23.

2005 – The Sun Bowl Association reached an agreement to align itself with the Big 12 Conference, the Pacific-10 Conference and the Big East Conference/Notre Dame beginning in 2006. The alignment runs through the 2009 season, pitting the Pacific-10 Conference against either the Big 12, Big East/Notre Dame. A sellout crowd (50,426) witnessed the highest scoring Sun Bowl in history, as UCLA came back from a 22-point deficit to defeat Northwestern, 50-38.

2006 – The Sun Bowl was renamed the Brut Sun Bowl for 2006, after securing the game’s title sponsorship through 2009.  The Sun Bowl will make its largest team payout ever: $1.9 million per team. Oregon State used a two-point conversion with 23 seconds left to lift the Beavers pas Missouri, 39-38.

2007 – Jonathan Stewart led the Oregon almost single-handedly, as he rushed for 256 yards to lead the Ducks to a 56-21 win over USF. Both South Florida and Oregon were ranked as high as No. 2 in the nation before coming to El Paso.

2008 – It was the lowest scoring major bowl game since 1959 and the lowest scoring Sun Bowl since 1940, as Oregon State edged Pittsburgh, 3-0, in a game dominated by the wind.

2009 – The Sun Bowl Association agrees to conference affiliations with the Pac-10 and ACC for the 2010 through 2013 seasons. Oklahoma upends nationally-ranked Stanford 31-27 in front of the largest crowd in Sun Bowl Stadium history — 53,717. The Sun Bowl Association agrees to terms with the Atlantic Coast Conference and the Pac-10 Conference for the next four years (2010-2013).

2010 – CBS Television extends its agreement with the Sun Bowl Association through 2013 Sun Bowl, continuing the longest running partnership in college football.