Air Force to play Houston in rematch of Armed Forces Bowl
Posted : Dec 6, 2009 5:37 PM
Fort Worth, Texas - The 2009 Bell Helicopter Armed Forces Bowl will pit the top passing team in the country against the school with the best defense against the pass as this year's New Year's Eve game will feature a rematch between the University of Houston and the United States Air Force Academy at Amon G. Carter Stadium.
For only the seventh-time in the history of collegiate football bowl competition, two schools will face each other in back-to-back post-season games as the "pass first" 10-3 Cougars of Houston (ranked 25th in the USA Today poll this week and 27th in the AP rankings) meet the 7-5 "pass defensive first" Falcons of Air Force in the seventh annual Bell Helicopter Armed Forces Bowl here December 31 for the 11 a.m. (CST) game at Amon G. Carter Stadium to be aired live on ESPN.
Previous bowl games with back-to-back match-ups were the Cotton (1970-1971, Notre Dame and Texas; 1993-1994, Notre Dame and Texas A&M), Rose (1973-1974-1995, USC and Ohio State), Orange (1990-1991, Notre Dame and Colorado; 1993-1994, Florida State and Nebraska) and the Outback (2001-2002, South Carolina and Ohio State). Three of the previous six match-ups featured splits with Notre Dame (Texas A&M), Florida State and South Carolina completing two-game sweeps.
"We are excited about our match up that brings the nation's top passing team in Houston to Amon G. Carter Stadium to play an Air Force team that has the country's best pass defense," said Brant B. Ringler, the executive director of the Bell Helicopter Armed Forces Bowl. "The game also presents two contrasting styles of offensive football as Air Force continues to feature one of the best rushing attacks in the country. It will be a very attractive matchup for the fans."
