UH fans get first shot at new bowl

Advertiser Staff

University of Hawai'i football season ticket holders are being given first shot at securing seats for the inaugural ConAgra Foods Hawai'i Bowl.

UH season ticket holders should receive order forms this week and have until Sept. 20 to reserve their same seat locations or seek upgrades from their present spots for the Christmas Day game, a bowl spokesman said.

Pete Derzis, vice president of ESPN Regional Television, which owns and operates the bowl, said it is the first time season ticket holders from one school have been able to reserve their same seats for an NCAA post-season bowl game.

Seats remaining after Sept. 20 will be sold to the general public and allocated for corporate sponsors, a bowl official said.

Tickets are priced from $15 to $40 for the 3 p.m. game that will match teams from the Western Athletic Conference and Conference USA.

ESPN officials said UH will be guaranteed a berth in at least the first two years of the bowl provided it wins seven or more games each season, the NCAA minimum for bowl eligibility in a 12- or 13-game season.