The Kraft Fight Hunger Bowl and the Holiday Bowl have announced agreements between the Pac-12 and the Big Ten conferences to meet in their respective bowls during the 2014-19 post seasons.
In a June 24 teleconference, it was announced that the Kraft Fight Hunger Bowl will house teams from the two conferences at the San Francisco 49ers’ new stadium in Santa Clara. The bowl will be fourth in the Pac-12 lineup.
The Holiday Bowl will also host teams from both conferences and will be third in line for the Pac-12.
“Our conferences have a tremendous affinity for one another,” said Larry Scott, Pac-12 commissioner. “We have looked for ways play each other more often.”
One change with the Holiday Bowl will be with the title sponsor. The agreement with the previous sponsor, Bridgepoint Education, has ended.
“We are now in the market for a new title,” said Bruce Binkowski, executive director of the Holiday Bowl. “The agreement officially ended after the game but there was a renewal time several weeks ago and they opted not to renew so now we are moving forward and looking for a new title.”
The agreement for the Holiday Bowl has a stipulation to not allow the same team in the game twice over the six-year agreement.
One of the driving factors in the deal was television. Gary Cavalli, executive director of the Kraft Fight Hunger Bowl said that the television success of the bowl has helped it grow into a more prominent bowl.
“It’s a bowl that has been favored by television,” said Cavalli. “We’ve gotten great television windows, we’ve gotten very good ratings, so that’s everything the bowl had going for it historically.”
With the Rose Bowl pulling top selections for the new playoff structure, the Alamo Bowl will get the second best team from the Pac-12, which they will pit against a Big 12 school, the Holiday Bowl will get the third pick and the Kraft Fight Hunger Bowl will get the fourth.