PROVO -- The NCAA today announced the organizers of the Pacific Life Holiday Bowl have been granted permission to create a second bowl game in San Diego.
"This is great news for the San Diego region," said Holiday Bowl President Stephen P. Cushman. "This second game alone will bring thousands of fans to town and will pump millions of dollars into our economy. The addition of this second game will only enhance the considerable contributions the bowl effort is providing our community."
The game will feature a team from the Mountain West Conference against an at-large opponent.
"This is a fantastic post-season opportunity for another member of the Mountain West Conference to prove their ability against quality opponent," BYU head football coach Bronco Mendenhall said. "It's great for our conference and it's great for Brigham Young University. We look forward to the addition of this new game."
Holiday Bowl officials said that the official name of the game, the title sponsor, logo and bowl game beneficiary will be announced at a press conference in San Diego on Wednesday, April 27.
"This bowl game is just one more tie to the great tradition BYU has, and hopefully the renewal of a long-standing relationship between the University and the Holiday Bowl organization," Mendenhall added.
The Mountain West Conference is currently slated to send teams to three bowl games following the 2005 regular season. The league will be represented at the Las Vegas Bowl, the Emerald Bowl in San Francisco and the bowl game to be held in San Diego. MWC Commissioner Craig Thompson is also in discussion with the Liberty Bowl, which would create the opportunity for an additional bowl game. The league will determine team placement once all bowl negotiations have been finalized.
The new San Diego bowl game will be played at Qualcomm Stadium on Thursday, Dec. 22. The evening game will be broadcast live on ESPN2. The 28th annual Pacific Life Holiday Bowl will be played on Thursday, Dec. 29 at 5 p.m.