Sun Bowl

The Sun Bowl is a college football bowl game that has been played since 1935 in the southwestern United States at El Paso, Texas. Along with the Sugar Bowl and Orange Bowl, it is the second-oldest bowl game in the country, behind the Rose Bowl. Usually held near the end of December, games are played at the Sun Bowl stadium on the campus of the University of Texas at El Paso. Since 2011, it has featured teams from the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) and the Pac-12 Conference. This arrangement will continue through the 2025 season, with either Pac-12 schools, or Pac-12 "legacy schools" (the 10 schools that have left the conference in 2024 for the Big Ten, Big 12, and ACC) fulfilling previous Pac-12 bowl obligations for the next two seasons.

Since 2019, the game has been officially known as the Tony the Tiger Sun Bowl, after the mascot for Frosted Flakes. Previous sponsors include John Hancock Financial, Norwest Corporation, Wells Fargo, Helen of Troy Limited (using its Vitalis and Brut brands), and Hyundai Motor Company.

History

The first Sun Bowl was the 1935 edition, played on New Year's Day between Texas high school teams; In most of its early history, the game pitted the champion of the Border Conference against an at-large opponent. The first three editions were played at El Paso High School stadium (1935–1937), then switched to Kidd Field until the present stadium was ready in 1963. Through the 1957 season, the game was played on January 1 or January 2; since then, with the exception of the 1976 season, the game has been played in late December, with a majority of games played on or near New Year's Eve and on several occasions played on or about Christmas Day or Christmas Eve. followed by warming temperatures as the sun created a rising steam from the field during the first half, the game was nicknamed the "Fog Bowl."

The 1994 game was voted the greatest Sun Bowl ever played, and included four touchdowns by Priest Holmes, as Texas defeated North Carolina, 35–31. Utah defeated Georgia Tech, 30–27.

On December 26, 2021, the Miami Hurricanes announced they would not be able to play in the 2021 edition due to COVID-19 issues so organizers stated they would try to secure a replacement team to face the Washington State Cougars. The following day, the Central Michigan Chippewas were named as the Sun Bowl replacement team. The Chippewas had originally been scheduled to face the Boise State Broncos in the Arizona Bowl, until Boise State withdrew from that bowl due to COVID-19 issues.

Sponsorship

thumb|right|[[Hyundai Motor Company|Hyundai signage in the foreground in 2014]]

The bowl's first title sponsor was John Hancock Financial, who entered a three-year, $1.5 million partnership in June 1986. This came at a time that corporate sponsorship was not common for bowl games, and followed the Fiesta Bowl entering a sponsorship agreement that had made its January 1986 edition the Sunkist Fiesta Bowl. In March 1989, with Sun Bowl organizers and John Hancock Financial negotiating a renewal of the sponsorship agreement, it was reported that an extension might involve renaming the bowl. That came to pass in June 1989, with the annual game changing its name to John Hancock Bowl. Even after the formal name change, some newspapers continued to refer to it as the Sun Bowl. Five editions of the game were staged as the John Hancock Bowl, from 1989 through 1993. After the 1993 playing, John Hancock Financial reduced its support of the bowl game, to dedicate more of its promotional budget to the 1996 Summer Olympics. The name reverted to Sun Bowl, and to ensure the game would continue, the El Paso city council allocated $600,000 to cover expenses in case of a shortfall.

Subsequent title sponsorship came from Norwest Corporation (1996–1998), which then merged into Wells Fargo (1999–2003), El Pasobased Helen of Troy Limited—using its brand names of Vitalis (2004–2005) and Brut (2006–2009)—and Hyundai Motor Company (2010–2018).

In August 2019, it was announced that Kellogg's had been named the new title sponsor, and that the game would be branded as the Tony the Tiger Sun Bowl—referencing Tony the Tiger, the mascot of the company's cereal brand Frosted Flakes. In 2023, Kellogg's spun-off its cereal business as WK Kellogg Co. In July 2024, the Tony the Tiger sponsorship was renewed "for at least two more years." During 2025, WK Kellogg Co was acquired by Italian confectioner Ferrero International SpA.

Conference tie-ins

Until the demise of the Border Conference in 1962, the Sun Bowl usually featured the champion of that conference, which was considered the "host" team, against an at-large team.

The bowl was later aligned with the Big Ten Conference, then established a longtime partnership with the Pacific-10 Conference, commonly known as the Pac-10 and later renamed the Pac-12. A later six-year contract with the ACC and Pac-12 ran through the 2025 edition—under that contract:

For the ACC, the Sun Bowl was placed in the second group of bowls behind the College Football Playoff (CFP). The first group was the Holiday Bowl, Pop-Tarts Bowl, and Gator Bowl. The Sun Bowl was grouped with the Pinstripe Bowl and Duke's Mayo Bowl in the second group.
For the Pac-12 (including its legacy members after 2023), the Sun Bowl was grouped with five other bowls (Alamo Bowl, Holiday Bowl, Las Vegas Bowl, LA Bowl, and Independence Bowl) behind the CFP.

Game results

Three editions of the bowl ended in a tie—1936, 1940, and 1985—they are denoted by italics in the below table; overtime has been used in bowl games since the 1995–96 bowl season. The inaugural game in 1935 was contested between high school teams. For sponsorship reasons, the 1989 through 1993 editions were known as the John Hancock Bowl.

Rankings are based on the AP poll, prior to game being played.

{| class="wikitable"

! style="background:#004B8E; color:#FFFFFF; border: 2px solid #FDAF17;"|No.

! style="background:#004B8E; color:#FFFFFF; border: 2px solid #FDAF17;"|Date played

! style="background:#004B8E; color:#FFFFFF; border: 2px solid #FDAF17;" colspan="2" | Winning team

! style="background:#004B8E; color:#FFFFFF; border: 2px solid #FDAF17;" colspan="2" | Losing team

! style="background:#004B8E; color:#FFFFFF; border: 2px solid #FDAF17;"|Attnd.

! style="background:#004B8E; color:#FFFFFF; border: 2px solid #FDAF17;"|Notes

|1|| align=right|January 1, 1935 || El Paso All-Stars || 25 || Ranger (Texas) || 21 || 3,000 || notes

|2|| align=right|January 1, 1936 || Hardin–Simmons || 14 || New Mexico A&M || 14 || 12,000 || notes

|3|| align=right|January 1, 1937 || Hardin–Simmons || 34 || Texas Mines || 6 || 8,000 || notes

|4|| align=right|January 1, 1938 || West Virginia || 7 || Texas Tech || 6 || 12,000 || notes

|5|| align=right|January 2, 1939 || Utah || 26 || New Mexico || 0 || 13,000 || notes

|6|| align=right|January 1, 1940 || Arizona State || 0 || Catholic || 0 || 13,000 || notes

|7|| align=right|January 1, 1941 || Western Reserve || 26 || Arizona State || 13 || 14,000 || notes

|8|| align=right|January 1, 1942 || Tulsa || 6 || Texas Tech || 0 || 14,000 || notes

|9|| align=right|January 1, 1943 || Second Air Force || 13 || Hardin–Simmons || 7 || 18,000 || notes

|10|| align=right|January 1, 1944 || Southwestern || 7 || New Mexico || 0 || 18,000 || notes

|11|| align=right|January 1, 1945 || Southwestern || 35 || || 0 || 13,000 || notes

|12|| align=right|January 1, 1946 || New Mexico || 34 || Denver || 24 || 15,000 || notes

|13|| align=right|January 1, 1947 || Cincinnati || 18 || Virginia Tech || 6 || 10,000 || notes

|14|| align=right|January 1, 1948 || Miami (Ohio) || 13 || Texas Tech || 12 || 18,000 || notes

|15|| align=right|January 1, 1949 || West Virginia || 21 || Texas Mines || 12 || 13,000 || notes

|16|| align=right|January 2, 1950 || Texas Western || 33 || Georgetown || 20 || 15,000 || notes

|17|| align=right|January 1, 1951 || West Texas State || 14 || Cincinnati || 13 || 16,000 || notes

|18|| align=right|January 1, 1952 || Texas Tech || 25 || Pacific || 14 || 17,000 || notes

|19|| align=right|January 1, 1953 || Pacific || 26 || Mississippi Southern || 7 || 11,000 || notes

|20|| align=right|January 1, 1954 || Texas Western || 37 || Mississippi Southern || 14 || 9,500 || notes

|21|| align=right|January 1, 1955 || Texas Western || 47 || Florida State || 20 || 14,000 || notes

|22|| align=right|January 2, 1956 || Wyoming || 21 || Texas Tech || 14 || 14,500 || notes

|23|| align=right|January 1, 1957 || No. 17 George Washington || 13 || Texas Western || 0 || 13,500 || notes

|24|| align=right|January 1, 1958 || Louisville || 34 || Drake || 20 || 13,000 || notes

|25|| December 31, 1958 || Wyoming || 14 || Hardin–Simmons || 6 || 12,000–13,000

|| notes

|26|| December 31, 1959 || New Mexico A&M || 28 || North Texas State || 8 || 14,000 || notes

|27|| December 31, 1960 || No. 17 New Mexico State || 20 || Utah State || 13 || 16,000–16,200 || notes

|28|| December 30, 1961 || Villanova || 17 || Wichita || 9 || 15,000 || notes

|29|| December 31, 1962 || West Texas State || 15 || Ohio || 14 || 13,000–16,000

|| notes

|30|| December 31, 1963 || Oregon || 21 || SMU || 14 || 18,646|| notes

|31|| December 26, 1964 || Georgia || 7 || Texas Tech || 0 || 23,292 || notes

|32|| December 31, 1965 || Texas Western || 13 || TCU || 12 || 24,598 || notes

|33|| December 24, 1966 || Wyoming || 28 || Florida State || 20 || 17,965 || notes

|34|| December 30, 1967 || UTEP || 14 || Ole Miss || 7 || 28,630 || notes

|35|| December 28, 1968 || Auburn || 34 || Arizona || 10 || 27,062 || notes

|36|| December 20, 1969 || No. 14 Nebraska || 45 || Georgia || 6 || 26,668 || notes

|37|| December 19, 1970 || No. 13 Georgia Tech || 17 || No. 19 Texas Tech || 9 || 26,188 || notes

|38|| December 18, 1971 || No. 10 LSU || 33 || No. 17 Iowa State || 15 || 29,377 || notes

|39|| December 30, 1972 || No. 16 North Carolina || 32 || Texas Tech || 28 || 27,877 || notes

|40|| December 29, 1973 || Missouri || 34 || Auburn || 17 || 26,108 || notes

|41|| December 28, 1974 || Mississippi State || 26 || North Carolina || 24 || 26,035 || notes

|42|| December 26, 1975 || No. 20 Pittsburgh || 33 || No. 19 Kansas || 19 || 30,272 || notes

|43|| align=right|January 2, 1977 || No. 10 Texas A&M || 37 || Florida || 14 || 31,896 || notes

|44|| December 31, 1977 || Stanford || 24 || LSU || 14 || 30,621 || notes

|45|| December 23, 1978 || No. 14 Texas || 42 || No. 13 Maryland || 0 || 30,604 || notes

|46|| December 22, 1979 || No. 13 Washington || 14 || No. 11 Texas || 7 || 30,124 || notes

|47|| December 27, 1980 || No. 8 Nebraska || 31 || No. 17 Mississippi State || 17 || 31,332 || notes

|48|| December 26, 1981 || Oklahoma || 40 || Houston || 14 || 29,985 || notes

|49|| December 25, 1982 || North Carolina || 26 || No. 8 Texas || 10 || 29,055 || notes

|50|| December 24, 1983 || Alabama || 28 || No. 6 SMU || 7 || 41,412 || notes

|51|| December 22, 1984 || No. 12 Maryland || 28 || Tennessee || 27 || 50,126 || notes

|52|| December 28, 1985 || Arizona || 13 || Georgia || 13 || 50,203 || notes

|53|| December 25, 1986 || No. 13 Alabama || 28 || No. 12 Washington || 6 || 48,722 || notes

|54|| December 25, 1987 || No. 11 Oklahoma State || 35 || West Virginia || 33 || 43,240 || notes

|55|| December 24, 1988 || No. 20 Alabama || 29 || Army || 28 || 43,661 || notes

|56|| December 30, 1989 || No. 24 Pittsburgh || 31 || No. 16 Texas A&M || 28 || 44,887 || notes

|57|| December 31, 1990 || No. 22 Michigan State || 17 || No. 21 USC || 16 || 50,562 || notes

|58|| December 31, 1991 || No. 22 UCLA || 6 || Illinois || 3 || 42,281 || notes

|59|| December 31, 1992 || Baylor || 20 || No. 22 Arizona || 15 || 41,622 || notes

|60|| December 24, 1993 || No. 19 Oklahoma || 41 || Texas Tech || 10 || 43,684 || notes

|61|| December 30, 1994 || Texas || 35 || No. 19 North Carolina || 31 || 50,612 || notes

|62|| December 29, 1995 || Iowa || 38 || No. 20 Washington || 18 || 49,116 || notes

|63|| December 31, 1996 || Stanford || 38 || Michigan State || 0 || 42,721 || notes

|64|| December 31, 1997 || No. 16 Arizona State || 17 || Iowa || 7 || 49,104 || notes

|65|| December 31, 1998 || TCU || 28 || USC || 19 || 46,612 || notes

|66|| December 31, 1999 || Oregon || 24 || No. 12 Minnesota || 20 || 48,757 || notes

|67|| December 29, 2000 || Wisconsin || 21 || UCLA || 20 || 49,093 || notes

|68|| December 31, 2001 || No. 13 Washington State || 33 || Purdue || 27 || 47,812 || notes

|69|| December 31, 2002 || Purdue || 34 || Washington || 24 || 48,917 || notes

|70|| December 31, 2003 || No. 24 Minnesota || 31 || Oregon || 30 || 49,864 || notes

|71|| December 31, 2004 || No. 21 Arizona State || 27 || Purdue || 23 || 51,288 || notes

|72|| December 30, 2005 || No. 17 UCLA || 50 || Northwestern || 38 || 50,426 || notes

|73|| December 29, 2006 || No. 24 Oregon State || 39 || Missouri || 38 || 48,732 || notes

|74|| December 31, 2007 || Oregon || 56 || No. 23 South Florida || 21 || 49,867 || notes

|75|| December 31, 2008 || No. 24 Oregon State || 3 || No. 18 Pittsburgh || 0 || 49,037 || notes

|76|| December 31, 2009 || Oklahoma || 31 || No. 19 Stanford || 27 || 53,713 || notes

|77|| December 31, 2010 || Notre Dame || 33 || Miami (FL) || 17 || 54,021 || notes

|78|| December 31, 2011 || Utah || 30 || Georgia Tech || 27 (OT) || 48,123 || notes

|79|| December 31, 2012 || Georgia Tech || 21 || USC || 7 || 47,922 || notes

|-|-

|80|| December 31, 2013 || No. 17 UCLA || 42 || Virginia Tech || 12 || 47,912 || notes

|-|-

|81|| December 27, 2014 || No. 15 Arizona State || 36 || Duke || 31 || 47,809 || notes

|-|-

|82|| December 26, 2015 || Washington State|| 20 || Miami (FL) || 14 || 41,180 || notes

|-

|83|| December 30, 2016 || No. 16 Stanford|| 25 || North Carolina || 23 || 42,166 || notes

|-

|84|| December 29, 2017 || NC State || 52 || Arizona State || 31 || 39,897 || notes

|85|| December 31, 2018 || Stanford || 14 || Pittsburgh || 13 || 40,680 || notes

|86|| December 31, 2019 || Arizona State || 20 || Florida State || 14 || 42,212 || notes

| 87 || December 31, 2020 || colspan=4 style="text-align:center"|Canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic || align=center| ||

| 88 || December 31, 2021 || Central Michigan || 24 || Washington State || 21 || 34,540 || notes

|-

| 89 || December 30, 2022 || Pittsburgh ||37||No. 18 UCLA || 35 || 41,104 || notes

|-

| 90 || December 29, 2023 || No. 15 Notre Dame || 40 || No. 21 Oregon State || 8 || 48,223 || notes

|-

| 91 || December 31, 2024 || Louisville || 35 || Washington || 34 || 40,826 || notes

| 92 || December 31, 2025 || Duke || 42 || Arizona State || 39 || 44,975 || notes

Note: the bowl's game programs indicate that organizers consider the unplayed 2020 game to have been the 87th edition, as the 2021 game is referred to as the 88th edition, the 2022 game as the 89th edition, etc.

Source:

Awards

C. M. Hendricks Most Valuable Player Trophy

Awarded since 1950; named after the first Sun Bowl Association president, Dr. C. M. Hendricks.

Two players have been two-time MVPs; Charley Johnson (1959, 1960) || Texas Western || QB

|1956 || Jim Crawford || Wyoming || HB

|1957 || Claude Austin || George Washington || RB

|1958 (Jan.) || Ken Porco || Louisville || RB

|1958 (Dec.) || Leonard Kucewski || Wyoming || G

|1959 || Charley Johnson || New Mexico A&M || QB

|1960 || Charley Johnson || Texas Western || QB

|1966 || Jim Kiick || Wyoming || TB

|1967 || Billy Stevens || Texas A&M || K

|1977 (Dec.) || Charles Alexander || LSU || TB

|1978 || Johnny "Lam" Jones || Texas || RB

|1979 || Paul Skansi || Washington || WR

|1980 || Jeff Quinn || Nebraska || QB

|1981 || Darrell Shepard || Oklahoma || QB

|rowspan=3 | 1982 || Rob Rogers || North Carolina || TB

| Ethan Horton || North Carolina || TB

| Brooks Barwick || North Carolina || TB

|1983 || Walter Lewis || Alabama || QB

|1984 || Rick Badanjek || Maryland || FB

|1985 || Max Zendejas || Arizona || K

|1986 || Cornelius Bennett || Alabama || DE

{|class="wikitable" style="text-align:center; font-size: 95%;"

!style="background:#004B8E; color:#FFFFFF; border: 2px solid #FDAF17;"|Game

!style="background:#004B8E; color:#FFFFFF; border: 2px solid #FDAF17;"|MVP(s)

!style="background:#004B8E; color:#FFFFFF; border: 2px solid #FDAF17;"|Team

!style="background:#004B8E; color:#FFFFFF; border: 2px solid #FDAF17;"|Position

|1987 || Thurman Thomas || Oklahoma State || RB

|1988 || David Smith || Alabama || QB

|1989 || Alex Van Pelt || Pittsburgh || QB

|1990 || Courtney Hawkins || Michigan State || WR

|1991 || Arnold Ale || UCLA || LB

|1992 || Melvin Bonner || Baylor || WR

|1993 || Cale Gundy || Oklahoma || RB

|1994 || Priest Holmes || Texas || RB

|1995 || Sedrick Shaw || Iowa || RB

|1996 || Chad Hutchinson || Stanford || QB

|1997 || Mike Martin || Arizona State || RB

|1998 || Basil Mitchell || TCU || TB

|1999 || Billy Cockerham || Minnesota || QB

|2000 || Freddie Mitchell || UCLA || WR

|2001 || Lamont Thompson || Washington State || S

|2002 || Kyle Orton || Purdue || QB

|2003 || Samie Parker || Oregon || WR

|2004 || Sam Keller || Arizona State || QB

|rowspan = "2" | 2005 || Kahlil Bell || UCLA || RB

|Chris Markey || UCLA || RB

|2006 || Matt Moore || Oregon State || QB

|2007 || Jonathan Stewart ||Oregon||RB

|2008 || Victor Butler || Oregon State || DE

|2009 || Ryan Broyles || Oklahoma || WR

|2010 || Michael Floyd || Notre Dame || WR

|2011 || John White IV || Utah || RB

|2012 || Rod Sweeting || Georgia Tech || CB

|rowspan=2 | 2013 || Brett Hundley || UCLA || QB

| Jordan Zumwalt || UCLA || LB

|2014 || Demario Richard || Arizona State || RB

|2015 || Luke Falk || Washington State || QB

|2016 || Solomon Thomas || Stanford || DE

|2017 || Nyheim Hines || NC State || RB

|2018 || Cameron Scarlett || Stanford || RB

|2019 || Jayden Daniels || Arizona State || QB

|2021 || Lew Nichols III || Central Michigan || RB

|2022 || Rodney Hammond Jr. || Pittsburgh || RB

|2023 || Jordan Faison || Notre Dame || WR

|2024 || Harrison Bailey || Louisville || QB

|2025 || || ||

Source:

Jimmy Rogers Jr. Most Valuable Lineman Trophy

Awarded since 1961; named after former Sun Bowl president Jimmy Rogers Jr.

{|class="wikitable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" style="text-align:center; font-size: 95%;"

!style="background:#004B8E; color:#FFFFFF; border: 2px solid #FDAF17;"|Game

!style="background:#004B8E; color:#FFFFFF; border: 2px solid #FDAF17;"|Player

!style="background:#004B8E; color:#FFFFFF; border: 2px solid #FDAF17;"|Team

!style="background:#004B8E; color:#FFFFFF; border: 2px solid #FDAF17;"|Position

|1961 || Rich Ross || Villanova || G

|1962 || Don Hoovler || Ohio || G

|1963 || Dun Hughes || SMU || G

|1964 || Jim Wilson || Georgia || T

|1965 || Ronny Nixon || TCU || T

|1966 || Jerry Durling || Wyoming || MG

|1967 || Fred Carr || UTEP || LB

|1968 || David Campbell || Auburn || T

|1969 || Jerry Murtaugh || Nebraska || LB

|1970 || Bill Flowers || Georgia Tech || LB

|1971 || Matt Blair || Iowa State|| LB

|1972 || Ecomet Burley || Texas Tech || DT

|1973 || John Kelsey || Missouri || TE

|1974 || Jimmy Webb || Mississippi State || DT

|1975 || Al Romano || Pittsburgh || MG

|1977 (Jan.) || Edgar Fields || Texas A&M || DT

|1977 (Dec.) || Gordon Ceresino || Stanford || LB

|1978 || Dwight Jefferson || Texas || DT

|1979 || Doug Martin || Washington || DT

|1980 || Jimmy Williams || Nebraska || DE

|1981 || Rick Bryan || Oklahoma || DT

|1982 || Ronnie Mullins || Texas || DB

|1983 || Wes Neighbors || Alabama || C

|1984 || Carl Zander || Tennessee || LB

|1985 || Peter Anderson || Georgia || C

|1986 || Steve Alvord || Washington || MG

|1987 || Darren Warren || West Virginia || LB

|1988 || Derrick Thomas || Alabama || LB

|1989 || Anthony Williams || Texas A&M || LB

|1990 || Craig Hartsuyker || USC || LB

|1991 || Mike Ploskey || Illinois || DT

|1992 || Rob Waldrop || Arizona || NT

|1993 || Shawn Jackson || Texas Tech || DE

|1994 || Blake Brockermeyer || Texas|| OT

|1995 || Jared DeVries || Iowa || DL

|1996 || Kailee Wong || Stanford || DE

|1997 || Jeremy Staat || Arizona State || DT

|1998 || London Dunlap || TCU || DE

|1999 || Dyron Russ || Minnesota || DT

|2000 || Oscar Cabrera || UCLA || OG

|2001 || Akin Ayodele || Purdue || DE

|2002 || Shaun Phillips || Purdue || DE

|2003 || Junior Siavaii || Oregon || DT

|2004 || Brandon Villareal || Purdue || DT

|2005 || Kevin Mims || Northwestern || DT

|2006 || Xzavie Jackson || Missouri || DE

|2007 || Fenuki Tupou || Oregon || OT

|2008 || Greg Romeus || Pittsburgh || DE

|2009 || Gerald McCoy || Oklahoma || DE

|2010 || Zach Martin || Notre Dame || OT

|2011 || Star Lotulelei || Utah || DT

|2012 || Jay Finch || Georgia Tech || C

|2013 || Kenny Clark || UCLA || DT

|2014 || Marcus Hardison || Arizona State || DE

|2015 || Hercules Mata'afa || Washington State || DE

|2016 || Nazair Jones || North Carolina || DT

|2017 || Kentavius Street || NC State || DE

|2018 || Thomas Booker || Stanford || DE

|2019 || Robert Cooper || Florida State || DT

|2021 || Ron Stone Jr. || Washington State || DE

|2022 || Jay Toia || UCLA || DL

|2023 || Jordan Botelho || Notre Dame || DL

|2024 || Jordan Guerad || Louisville || DL

|2025 || || ||

Source:

John Folmer Most Valuable Special Teams Player Trophy

Awarded since 1994; named after former Sun Bowl president John Folmer. Positions: P=Punter, K=Kicker, PR=Punt returner, KR=Kickoff returner

{|class="wikitable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" style="text-align:center; font-size: 95%;"

!style="background:#004B8E; color:#FFFFFF; border: 2px solid #FDAF17;"|Game

!style="background:#004B8E; color:#FFFFFF; border: 2px solid #FDAF17;"|Player

!style="background:#004B8E; color:#FFFFFF; border: 2px solid #FDAF17;"|Team

!style="background:#004B8E; color:#FFFFFF; border: 2px solid #FDAF17;"|Position

!style="background:#004B8E; color:#FFFFFF; border: 2px solid #FDAF17;"|Statistics

!style="background:#004B8E; color:#FFFFFF; border: 2px solid #FDAF17;"|Ref.

|1994 || Marcus Wall || North Carolina || KR/PR || 3 returns, long 82 ||

|1995 || Brion Hurley || Iowa || K/P || 3/3 FG, 0/0 XP ||

|1996 || Troy Walters || Stanford || PR || 5 returns, long 24 ||

|1997 || Tim Dwight || Iowa || KR/PR || 6 returns, long 26 ||

|1998 || Adam Abrams || USC || K || 2/2 FG, 1/1 XP ||

|1999 || Ryan Rindels || Minnesota || P || 7 punts, avg. 46.1 ||

|2000 || Michael Bennett || Wisconsin || KR || 2 returns, long 54 ||

|2001 || Drew Dunning || Washington State || K || 4/4 FG, 3/3 XP ||

|2002 || Anthony Chambers || Purdue || KR/PR || 3 returns, long 51 ||

|2003 || Jared Siegel || Oregon || K || 3/3 FG, 3/3 XP ||

|2004 || Dave Brytus || Purdue || P || 8 punts, avg. 48.9 ||

|2005 || Brandon Breazell || UCLA || KR || 2 TD returns ||

|2006 || Jeff Wolfert || Missouri || K || 1/1 FG, 5/5 XP ||

|2007 || Matt Evensen || Oregon || K || 2/2 FG, 5/5 XP ||

|2008 || Johnny Hekker || Oregon State || P || 10 punts, avg. 45.0 ||

|2009 || Ryan Broyles || Oklahoma || PR || 4 returns, long 42 ||

|2010 || David Ruffer || Notre Dame || K || 3/4 FG, 3/3 XP ||

|2011 || DeVonte Christopher || Utah || KR || 2 returns, long 68 ||

|2012 || Jamal Golden || Georgia Tech || KR/PR || 3 returns, long 56 ||

|2013 || Kaʻimi Fairbairn || UCLA || K || 0/1 FG 6/6 XP ||

|2014 || Kalen Ballage || Arizona State || KR || 3 returns, long 96 ||

|2015 || Erik Powell || Washington State || K || 2/2 FG, 2/2 XP ||

|2016 || Conrad Ukropina || Stanford || K || 4/5 FG, 1/1 XP ||

|2017 || Kyle Bambard || NC State || K || 1/1 FG, 7/7 XP ||

|2018 || Alex Kessman || Pittsburgh || K || 2/2 FG, 1/1 XP ||

|2019 || Cristian Zendejas || Arizona State || K || 4/4 FG, 0/0 XP ||

|2021 || Marshall Meeder || Central Michigan || K || 3/5 FG, 1/1 XP||

|2022 || Ben Sauls || Pittsburgh || K || 5/5 FG, 2/2 XP ||

|2023 || Spencer Shrader || Notre Dame || K || 1/2 FG, 5/5 XP ||

|2024 || Carter Schwartz || Louisville || P || 6 punts, avg. 43.7 ||

|2025 || || || || ||

Most appearances

Updated through the December 2025 edition (91 games, 182 total appearances), excluding the unplayed 87th edition of December 2020.

;Teams with multiple appearances

{|class = "wikitable"

! class="unsortable" style="background:#004B8E; color:#FFFFFF; border: 2px solid #FDAF17;"|Rank

! style="background:#004B8E; color:#FFFFFF; border: 2px solid #FDAF17;"|Team

! style="background:#004B8E; color:#FFFFFF; border: 2px solid #FDAF17;"|Appearances

! style="background:#004B8E; color:#FFFFFF; border: 2px solid #FDAF17;"|Record

! style="background:#004B8E; color:#FFFFFF; border: 2px solid #FDAF17;"|Win pct.

| 1 || Texas Tech || 9 || 1–8 ||

| T2 || UTEP || 8 || 5–3 ||

| T2 || Arizona State || 8 || 4–3–1 ||

| T4 || Stanford || 5 || 4–1 ||

| T4 || UCLA || 5 || 3–2 ||

| T4|| Pittsburgh || 5 || 3–2 ||

| T4 || North Carolina || 5 || 2–3 ||

| T4 || Washington || 5 || 1–4 ||

| T9 || Oregon || 4 || 3–1 ||

| T9 || Texas || 4 || 2–2 ||

| T9 || Hardin–Simmons || 4 || 1–2–1 ||

| T12 || Alabama || 3 || 3–0 ||

| T12 || Oklahoma || 3 || 3–0 ||

| T12 || Wyoming || 3 || 3–0 ||

| T12 || New Mexico State || 3 || 2–0–1 ||

| T12 || Georgia Tech || 3 || 2–1 ||

| T12 || Washington State || 3 || 2–1 ||

| T12 || West Virginia || 3 || 2–1 ||

| T12 || Oregon State || 3 || 2–1 ||

| T12 || Georgia || 3 || 1–1–1 ||

| T12 || New Mexico || 3 || 1–2 ||

| T12 || Purdue || 3 || 1–2 ||

| T12 || Arizona || 3 || 0–2–1 ||

| T12 || Florida State || 3 || 0–3 ||

| T12 || USC || 3 || 0–3 ||

{|class = "wikitable"

! class="unsortable" style="background:#004B8E; color:#FFFFFF; border: 2px solid #FDAF17;"|Rank

! style="background:#004B8E; color:#FFFFFF; border: 2px solid #FDAF17;"|Team

! style="background:#004B8E; color:#FFFFFF; border: 2px solid #FDAF17;"|Appearances

! style="background:#004B8E; color:#FFFFFF; border: 2px solid #FDAF17;"|Record

! style="background:#004B8E; color:#FFFFFF; border: 2px solid #FDAF17;"|Win pct.

| T26 || Nebraska || 2 || 2–0 ||

| T26 || Notre Dame || 2 || 2–0 ||

| T26 || Southwestern || 2 || 2–0 ||

| T26 || Utah || 2 || 2–0 ||

| T26 || West Texas State || 2 || 2–0 ||

| T26 || Louisville || 2 || 2–0 ||

| T26 || Auburn || 2 || 1–1 ||

| T26 || Cincinnati || 2 || 1–1 ||

| T26 || High school teams || 2 || 1–1 ||

| T26 || Iowa || 2 || 1–1 ||

| T26 || LSU || 2 || 1–1 ||

| T26 || Maryland || 2 || 1–1 ||

| T26 || Michigan State || 2 || 1–1 ||

| T26 || Minnesota || 2 || 1–1 ||

| T26 || Mississippi State || 2 || 1–1 ||

| T26 || Missouri || 2 || 1–1 ||

| T26 || Pacific || 2 || 1–1 ||

| T26 || TCU || 2 || 1–1 ||

| T26 || Texas A&M || 2 || 1–1 ||

| T26 || Duke || 2 || 1–1 ||

| T26 || Miami (Florida) || 2 || 0–2 ||

| T26 || Mississippi Southern || 2 || 0–2 ||

| T26 || SMU || 2 || 0–2 ||

| T26 || Virginia Tech || 2 || 0–2 ||

;Teams with a single appearance

Won (11): Baylor, Central Michigan, George Washington, Miami (Ohio), NC State, Oklahoma State, Second Air Force, Tulsa, Villanova, Western Reserve, Wisconsin

Lost (18): Army, Denver, Drake, Florida, Georgetown, Houston, Illinois, Iowa State, Kansas, North Texas State, Northwestern, Ohio, Ole Miss, South Florida, Tennessee, UNAM, Utah State, Wichita

Tied (1): Catholic

;Notes

UTEP's record includes appearances when it was known as Texas Mines and Texas Western.
New Mexico State's record includes appearances when it was known as New Mexico A&M.
California and Colorado are the only legacy Pac-12 members that have not appeared in the Sun Bowl.
Northern Arizona (now in the FCS) is the only former member of the Border Conference that has not appeared in the Sun Bowl.

Appearances by conference

Updated through the December 2025 edition (91 games, 182 total appearances), excluding the unplayed 87th edition of December 2020.

{| class="wikitable sortable" style="font-size: 95%;"

! style="background:#004B8E; color:#FFFFFF; border: 2px solid #FDAF17;" rowspan=2|Conference

! style="background:#004B8E; color:#FFFFFF; border: 2px solid #FDAF17;" colspan=5|Record

! style="background:#004B8E; color:#FFFFFF; border: 2px solid #FDAF17;" colspan=3|Appearances by season

! style="border: 2px solid #FDAF17;" |Games

! style="border: 2px solid #FDAF17;" |W

! style="border: 2px solid #FDAF17;" |L

! style="border: 2px solid #FDAF17;" |T

! style="border: 2px solid #FDAF17;" |Win pct.

! style="border: 2px solid #FDAF17;" class=unsortable|Won

! style="border: 2px solid #FDAF17;" class=unsortable|Lost

! style="border: 2px solid #FDAF17;" class=unsortable|Tied

| Pac-12 || 34 ||

| 1977, 1979, 1991, 1996, 1997, 1999, 2001, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2011, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2018, 2019

| 1986, 1990, 1992, 1995, 1998, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2009, 2012, 2017, 2021, 2022, 2023

| 1985

| Independents || 31 ||

| 1936*, 1937*, 1942*, 1946*, 1947*, 1948*, 1952*, 1957*, 1961, 1962, 1963, 1965, 1967, 1970, 1975, 1989, 2010, 2023

| 1943*, 1944*, 1949*, 1951*, 1952*, 1953*, 1954*, 1957*, 1966, 1987, 1988

| 1935*, 1939*

| bgcolor=lightgrey|Border || 21 ||

| 1945*, 1949*, 1950*, 1951*, 1953*, 1954*, 1959, 1960

| 1936*, 1937*, 1938*, 1940*, 1941*, 1942*, 1947*, 1948*, 1955*, 1956*, 1958

| 1935*, 1939*

| ACC || 19 ||

| 1972, 1982, 1984, 2012, 2017, 2022, 2024, 2025

| 1974, 1978, 1994, 2010, 2011, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2018, 2019

| bgcolor=lightgrey| 

| SEC || 15 ||

| 1964, 1968, 1971, 1974, 1983, 1986, 1988

| 1967, 1969, 1973, 1976*, 1977, 1980, 1984

| 1985

| bgcolor=lightgrey|SWC || 15 ||

| 1976*, 1978, 1992, 1994

| 1963, 1964, 1965, 1970, 1972, 1979, 1981, 1982, 1983, 1989, 1993

| bgcolor=lightgrey| 

| Big Ten || 13 ||

| 1990, 1995, 2000, 2002, 2003

| 1991, 1996, 1997, 1999, 2001, 2004, 2005, 2024

| bgcolor=lightgrey| 

| bgcolor=lightgrey|Big Eight || 8 ||

| 1969, 1973, 1980, 1981, 1987, 1993

| 1971, 1975

| bgcolor=lightgrey| 

| bgcolor=lightgrey|Mountain States || 5 ||

| 1938*, 1955*, 1958

| 1945*, 1960

| bgcolor=lightgrey| 

| bgcolor=lightgrey|WAC || 3 ||

| 1966, 1998

| 1968

| bgcolor=lightgrey| 

| Big 12 || 3 ||

| 2009

| 2006, 2025

| bgcolor=lightgrey| 

| bgcolor=lightgrey|MVC || 3 ||

| 1941*

| 1959, 1961

| bgcolor=lightgrey| 

| MAC || 3 ||

| 2021

| 1950*, 1962

| bgcolor=lightgrey| 

| bgcolor=lightgrey|Texas Conference || 2 ||

| 1943*, 1944*

|

| bgcolor=lightgrey| 

| bgcolor=lightgrey|SoCon || 2 ||

| 1956*

| 1946*

| bgcolor=lightgrey| 

| bgcolor=lightgrey| || 2 ||

| 1934*

| 1934*

| bgcolor=lightgrey| 

| Big East || 2 ||

|

| 2007, 2008

| bgcolor=lightgrey| 

| bgcolor=lightgrey|Big Four (Ohio) || 1 ||

| 1940*

|

| bgcolor=lightgrey| 

Games marked with an asterisk (*) were played in January of the following calendar year.
The first edition of the game, played in January 1935, was contested between high school teams.
Records are based on teams' conferences at the time each game was played.
Conferences that are defunct or not currently active in FBS are marked in italics.
The American Conference retains the conference charter of the Big East following the 2013 split of the original Big East along football lines. Big East appearances: South Florida (2007) and Pittsburgh (2008).
The Pac-12's record includes appearances by teams when the conference was the Pac-8 and Pac-10.
The Mountain States Conferences was popularly known as the Skyline Conference from 1947 through 1962.
Independent appearances (30): Army (1988), Catholic (1939*), Cincinnati (1946*), Drake (1957*), Florida State (1954*, 1966), Georgetown (1949*), Georgia Tech (1970), Hardin–Simmons (1935*, 1936*), Louisville (1957*), Miami (OH) (1947*), New Mexico (1943*), Notre Dame (2010, 2023), Oregon (1963), Pacific (1951*, 1952*), Pittsburgh (1975, 1989), Second Air Force (1942*), Southern Miss (1952*, 1953*), UNAM (1944*), UTEP (1965, 1967), Villanova (1961), West Texas State (1962), and West Virginia (1937*, 1948*, 1987).

Game records

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"

! style="background:#004B8E; color:#FFFFFF; border: 2px solid #FDAF17;"|Team

! style="background:#004B8E; color:#FFFFFF; border: 2px solid #FDAF17;"|Record, Team vs. Opponent

! style="background:#004B8E; color:#FFFFFF; border: 2px solid #FDAF17;"|Year

|Most points scored (one team)

|56, Oregon vs. South Florida

|2007

|Most points scored (both teams)

|88, UCLA (50) vs. Northwestern (38)

|2005

|Most points scored (losing team)

|39, Arizona State vs. Duke

| 2025

|Fewest points allowed

|0, most recent: Oregon State vs. Pittsburgh

| 2008

|Largest margin of victory

|42, Texas (42) vs. Maryland (0)

|1978

|Total yards

| 619, Arizona State vs. Duke

| 2025

|Rushing yards

| 455, Mississippi State vs. North Carolina

| 1974

|Passing yards

| 419, Purdue vs. Washington State

| 2001

|First downs

| 33, Northwestern vs. UCLA

| 2005

|Fewest yards allowed

| (-21), Southwestern vs. UNAM

| 1945

|Fewest rushing yards allowed

| (-23), TCU vs. USC

| 1998

|Fewest passing yards allowed

| (-50), Southwestern vs. UNAM

| 1945

! style="background:#004B8E; color:#FFFFFF; border: 2px solid #FDAF17;"|Individual

! style="background:#004B8E; color:#FFFFFF; border: 2px solid #FDAF17;"|Record, Player, Team vs. Opponent

! style="background:#004B8E; color:#FFFFFF; border: 2px solid #FDAF17;"|Year

|All-purpose yards || 282, Jonathan Stewart, Oregon vs. South Florida 253 rush, 29 return || 2007

|Touchdowns (all-purpose) || 4, shared by: Thurman Thomas, Oklahoma State vs. West Virginia Priest Holmes, Texas vs. North Carolina Demario Richard, Arizona State vs. Duke ||   1987 1994 2014

|Rushing yards || 253, Jonathan Stewart, Oregon vs. South Florida || 2007

|Rushing touchdowns || 4, shared by: Thurman Thomas, Oklahoma State vs. West Virginia Priest Holmes, Texas vs. North Carolina ||   1987 1994

|Passing yards || 419, Kyle Orton, Purdue vs. Washington || 2002

|Passing touchdowns || 4, shared by: Matt Moore, Oregon State vs. Missouri Justin Roper, Oregon vs. South Florida Darian Mensah Duke vs. Arizona State||   2006 2007 2025

|Receiving yards || 200, Samie Parker, Oregon vs. Minnesota || 2003

|Receiving touchdowns || 3, Ryan Broyles, Oklahoma vs. Stanford || 2009

|Tackles || 24, Carl Zander, Tennessee vs. Maryland 14 solo, 10 assist || 1984

|Sacks || 4.5, Reggie McKenzie, Tennessee vs. Maryland || 1984

|Interceptions || 3, shared by: Buddy McClinton, Auburn vs. Arizona Harrison Smith, Notre Dame vs. Miami (FL) ||   1968 2010

! style="background:#004B8E; color:#FFFFFF; border: 2px solid #FDAF17;"|Long Plays

! style="background:#004B8E; color:#FFFFFF; border: 2px solid #FDAF17;"|Record, Player, Team vs. Opponent

! style="background:#004B8E; color:#FFFFFF; border: 2px solid #FDAF17;"|Year

|Touchdown run || 94, Hascall Henshaw, Arizona State vs. Western Reserve || 1941

|Touchdown pass || 91, James Blackman to Tamorrion Terry, Florida State vs. Arizona State || 2019

|Kickoff return || 100, Peter Panuska, Tennessee vs. Maryland || 1984

|Punt return || 82, Marcus Wall, North Carolina vs. Texas || 1994

|Interception return || 91, Don "Skip" Hoovler, Ohio vs. West Texas || 1962

|Fumble return || ||

|Punt || 78, Scott Blanton, Oklahoma vs. Texas Tech || 1993

|Field goal || 62, Tony Franklin, Texas A&M vs. Florida || 1977

! style="background:#004B8E; color:#FFFFFF; border: 2px solid #FDAF17;"|Miscellaneous

! style="background:#004B8E; color:#FFFFFF; border: 2px solid #FDAF17;"|Record, Teams

! style="background:#004B8E; color:#FFFFFF; border: 2px solid #FDAF17;"|Year

| Largest attendance || 54,021, Notre Dame vs. Miami (FL) || 2010

Source:

Media coverage

NBC broadcast the Sun Bowl nationally in 1964 and 1966. The Sun Bowl's contract with CBS Sports is the longest continuous relationship between a bowl game and one television network.

History

Sponsorship

Conference tie-ins

Game results

Awards

C. M. Hendricks Most Valuable Player Trophy

Jimmy Rogers Jr. Most Valuable Lineman Trophy

John Folmer Most Valuable Special Teams Player Trophy

Most appearances

Appearances by conference

Game records

Media coverage

Notes

References

External links