Southern Miss Football: Golden Eagles To Play Nevada in Sheraton Hawaii Bowl

Honolulu—Sheraton Hawaii Bowl executives announced on Sunday that the University of Southern Mississippi has accepted an invitation to the 10th annual Christmas Eve Bowl on ESPN.

The Conference USA champion Golden Eagles will face the University of Nevada Wolf Pack from the Western Athletic Conference.

“It is with great pleasure that I am able to invite the five-time and current Conference USA champions University of Southern Mississippi Golden Eagles to a well-deserved bowl appearance in the Sheraton Hawaii Bowl,” Executive Director David A. K. Matlin said in a press release.

“The Sheraton Hawaii Bowl has enjoyed great quarterback play over the past nine years and we are especially excited at the opportunity to showcase Southern Miss’ Austin Davis to the nation via ESPN on Christmas Eve. Congratulations to Coach Fedora and the entire Southern Miss community on a championship season.”

After stunning the University of Houston on Saturday 49-28—ruining the Cougars' dreams of an undefeated season and Bowl Championship Series invitation—Southern Miss head coach Larry Fedora said his team deserved the chance to play in a BCS bowl game.

“We’ve got 11 victories and a conference championship. We just beat an undefeated team ranked No. 6 in the BCS standings. This team deserves to be in a BCS bowl game,” Fedora said.

Southern Miss wouldn't be so lucky; but the Sheraton Hawaii Bowl is happy to have them.

The Golden Eagles will be making their first appearance in the Dec. 24 bowl, while the Wolf Pack are making their third.

“We are pleased to reward our football coaches and our student-athletes with a trip to play in the Sheraton Hawaii Bowl” said Southern Miss Director of Athletics Richard Giannini. “I would like to congratulate Coach Fedora, our assistant coaches, and players who made this recording-setting year possible. 

"We are very proud of what we have accomplished this season and we look forward to the Sheraton Hawaii Bowl. It is our hope that we will be able to have a strong contingent of Golden Eagle fans to be able to make the trip and share in the celebration of this truly exceptional year.”

Southern Miss finished the regular season 11-2 and are ranked No. 21 and 22 in the Coaches and AP polls, respectively. They also finished 21st in the final BCS Standings, five spots out of the top 16 which would have led to an automatic BCS bowl bid.

“I am extremely excited for this football team and coaching staff to have this opportunity to make our first trip to the Sheraton Hawaii Bowl,” Fedora said. 

“This is a tremendous trip for this Conference USA championship team that reached new heights this season and we are thrilled about the opportunity to face a very talented Nevada squad.”

Kickoff for the 2011 Sheraton Hawaii Bowl is Saturday, Dec. 24 at 8 p.m. ET/3 p.m. HT, on ESPN from Aloha Stadium in Honolulu. Tickets are available by calling 808-548-BOWL or online at www.sheratonhawaiibowl.com.