Watch the Rice Owls make their 3rd consecutive bowl appearance Dec. 24

Rice football fans can tune in to ESPN at 7 p.m. Christmas Eve and watch the Owls take on the Fresno State Bulldogs in the Hawaii Bowl. When the 2014 Owls hit the field at Aloha Stadium, they will become the first football team in school history to play in three consecutive bowls.

“We hope that many of our fans and supporters will be able to make it to the game,” said Joe Karlgaard, director of Athletics. “We know that our kids have fought hard this year and have overcome some obstacles. We’re really happy for them and think they’ll have a great experience. It’s a tough matchup against a team that historically has had some success.”

For fans that can’t make the trip to Hawaii, there will be an official Houston Rice Hawaii Bowl watch party will take place at the Mezzanine Sports Bar and Grill, 2200 Southwest Freeway, starting at 6 p.m. Dec. 24. Other watch parties will be posted at http://alumni.rice.edu/events as they are scheduled.

Rice (7-5) earned the 12th bowl bid in school history by reaching seven wins for the third consecutive season. The Owls have posted a 24-15 record over the past three seasons, their best production over any similar time frame in school history. The Owls’ three-bowl streak is the longest active streak in Conference USA.

The Fresno State Bulldogs (6-7/5-3) will head to Honolulu after dropping a 28-14 decision to Boise State in the Mountain West Championship game. The Bulldogs have also qualified for three consecutive bowls and will be making their second appearance in Honolulu in the last three years.

This will be the seventh meeting between the two schools, with the Bulldogs having won each time. Both schools were members of the Western Athletic Conference during the previous six meetings between 1996 and 2004.

“What a great Christmas present for this football team,” said David Bailiff, head football coach. “We get to play on Dec. 24, and we’ll try to get a win and get home for Christmas.”