San Diego State University accepted an invitation from the Poinsettia Bowl today to take on longtime rival BYU at Qualcomm Stadium.
It will be the second time in three years that SDSU has played in the hometown bowl. In 2010, the Aztecs downed Navy 35-14 on a waterlogged field flooded by the San Diego River during a rainstorm just days earlier. The Aztecs appeared in the New Orleans Bowl last year.
"The Poinsettia Bowl is one of the best events I have ever been involved with, and it will be a tremendous experience for our student-athletes,'' Aztecs head coach Rocky Long said. "Best of all, we will have the opportunity to play in front of our fans, and that will make for a great atmosphere on Dec. 20.''
San Diego State and BYU met annually as part of the Western Athletic and Mountain West conferences until last year, when the Cougars went independent.
The Cougars won the last meeting, 24-21, in 2010 in Provo, in a game marked by a disputed video review by a replay crew that included a BYU employee.
This year, San Diego State completed the regular season with a 9-3 record overall. Its 7-1 Mountain West mark tied for first place with Fresno State. Boise State can complete a tri-championship with a victory at Nevada next weekend.
BYU was 7-5, and was contractually bound to the San Diego contest when the team became bowl-eligible.
