2003 Hawaii Bowl

2003 Sheraton Hawaii Bowl
Bowl Game
Houston Cougars Hawaii Warriors (7–5) (8–5) 48 54 Head coach:  Art Briles Head coach:  June Jones
1 2 3 4 OT 2OT 3OT Total Houston 10 10 0 14 7 7 0 48 Hawaii 3 10 14 7 7 7 6 54
Date	December 25, 2003
Season	2003
Stadium	Aloha Stadium
Location	Honolulu, Hawaii
MVP	QB Timmy Chang (Hawaii) RB Jackie Battle (Houston)
Referee	Ken Flaherty (Mtn. West)
Attendance	29,005[1]
Payout	US$750,000 per team[2]
United States TV coverage
Network	ESPN
Announcers	Dave Barnett (Play-by-Play) Rod Gilmore (Analyst)

The 2003 Sheraton Hawaii Bowl matched the hometown Hawaii Warriors with the Houston Cougars.

Houston scored first with a 34-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Kevin Kolb to wide receiver Chad McCullar. David Bell kicked a 21-yard field goal to increase Houston's lead to 10-0. Hawaii got its first points of the game at the end of the first quarter on a 19-yard field goal. In the second quarter, Timmy Chang found wide receiver Clifton Herbert for a 49-yard touchdown pass to make the score 10-10 Houston.

Running back Jackie Battle scored on a 2-yard touchdown run for Houston, as they increased their lead to 17-10. David Bell later kicked a field goal to increase the lead to 20-10. A Hawaii field goal before half time cut the lead to 20-13.

In the third quarter, running back Michael Brewster Jr. ran in for a touchdown tying the game at 20. Timmy Chang then threw a 7-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Jason Rivers, and Hawaii claimed its first lead of the game at 27-20. Jackie Battle scored on a 2-yard touchdown run and the score was 27-27. Jason Rivers caught a 4-yard touchdown pass to give Hawaii a 34-27 lead. In the fourth quarter, wide receiver Vincent Marshall caught an 81-yard touchdown pass to tie the game at 34. The game headed into overtime.

In overtime, Timmy Chang found Britton Komine for an 11-yard touchdown and a 41-34 Hawaii lead. Houston answered with an Anthony Evans touchdown run. After one overtime period the score was 41-41. On Houston's next possession, Jackie Battle got the handoff, and rushed 4 yards for a touchdown. The score was now 48-41 Houston. Jason Rivers tied it for Hawaii, by catching a 19-yard touchdown pass. In the third overtime period, Michael Brewster ran in for an 8-yard touchdown. The two-point conversion attempt failed leaving the score 54-48 Hawaii, and giving Houston a chance to win. Houston couldn't score, and that ended up being the final margin.

The game is also memorable for a fight between both teams that occurred after the game was over. Players from each team got into shouting matches and punches were thrown.

References

1. http://www.sheratonhawaiibowl.com/Archive/Stats/2003.html
2. http://www.collegefootballpoll.com/2003_archive_bowls.html

External links

• USA Today game summary