NCAA Division III Hula Bowl News

Bowers named to play in 2001 Hula Bowl

R.J. Bowers, Grove City

GROVE CITY, PA --- When the 2001 Hula Bowl kicks off on Saturday, January 20th, on the Hawaiian island of Maui, Grove City senior fullback R.J. Bowers will be included in college football's showcase of stars. Bowers received his invitation from the American Football Coaches Association, which has served as the Hula Bowl's selection committee since 1997. The game will be televised live on ESPN at 8:00 PM EST. "When Coach (Chris) Smith told me I was headed to Hawaii I was shocked," said Bowers, who was born in Honolulu on February 10, 1974. His dad, a former U.S. Marine, was stationed there in 1973 and '74. "I knew I had a shot at a couple of all-star games, but I wasn't thinking Hula Bowl. It will be awesome to play side-by-side with college football's elite and also return to my birthplace for some fun in one of the most beautiful places in the world." Bowers, 6-1, 238 pounds, is just the 13th NCAA Division III player ever to be named to the Hula Bowl, which celebrates its 55th year in 2001. According to AFCA spokesman Todd Bell, Bowers will be one of two fullbacks on the North squad, directed by Virginia Tech head coach Frank Beamer. Florida State's Bobby Bowden will lead the South squad in a rematch of the coaches who met in last year's Sugar Bowl, which decided the national championship. "It's going to be a thrill," added Bowers. "I look at it as a reward for four years of hard work."

NCAA Division III Players in Hula Bowl

1948	John Daniels	RB	Occidental	1948	Forrest Dillion	T	Whittier
1948	Buck Jarnigan	G	Whittier	1948	John Rhodes	G	Occidental
1973	Robert Macoritti	PK	Wooster	1992	Keith Rucker	DT	Ohio Wesleyan
1994	Danny Figueira	RB	Whitworth	1994	Darryl Ng	OL	Menlo
1996	Burnell Roques	WR	Claremont-Mudd-Scripps	1998	Jeff Shea	PK	Californoa Lutheran
1998	Jeff Shea	P	California Lutheran	2000	Tom Bauer	OC	Mount Union

Beamer vs. Bowden on Hula Bowl sidelines

WACO, TEXAS - The 2001 Rivals.com Hula Bowl Maui Senior All-Star Football Classic will feature a rematch of the head coaches who squared off in the 2000 Nokia Sugar Bowl for the national championship. Virginia Tech's Frank Beamer and Florida State's Bobby Bowden have been named the head coaches for the Kai (North) and Aina (South)squads respectively for the annual all-star game that will be played on Saturday, January 20 at War Memorial Stadium on Maui. Beamer will be assisted by Purdue's Joe Tiller, 2000 AFCA President Bob Ford of the University at Albany and one of the AFCA's 2000 National Coach of the Year winners. Bowden will be joined by Utah's Ron McBride and two of the AFCA's 2000 National Coach of the Year winners. Beamer earned GTE Regional and National Coach of the Year honors in 1999 as he led the Hokies to an 11-1 record and a berth in the national championship game. He has a career record of 130-83-4 in 19 seasons at Virginia Tech and Murray State, including a mark of 88-60-2 in 13 seasons at Virginia Tech. "Earlier this year, I was honored to be named the coach of the year by the AFCA," Beamer said. "Now I'm proud to have the opportunity to represent the AFCA as a coach in the Hula Bowl Maui." Bowden guided the Seminoles to a wire-to-wire No. 1 ranking, the school's second national championship and earned career victory No. 300 in 1999. In 34 seasons as a head coach Bowden has a career record of 304-85-4 and ranks as the No. 2 winningest active coach in Division I-A. In 24 seasons at Florida State he has a record of 231-53-4. "I'm excited about the chance to coach in the Hula Bowl Maui," Bowden said. "I've always enjoyed getting to coach players from different programs and learning how they do different things. Naturally, Maui is a beautiful setting for the game and they do an excellent job of making it a great trip for everyone involved." Tiller led Purdue to a 7-5 record and a third-consecutive bowl appearance in 1999. The back-to-back-to-back bowl appearances mark just the second time in school history that the Boilermakers have played in three consecutive bowl games. He has a nine-year career record of 64-42-1 and a three-year record of 25-12 at Purdue. Ford completed his 27th season as head coach at Albany in 1999,leading the Great Danes to a 7-2 record in their first year of play in Division I-AA. He has a record of 165-102 at Albany and has guided the program from club status in his first season in 1970. He has a career record of 174-124-1 in 29 seasons as a head coach at Albany and St. Lawrence. McBride guided Utah to a 9-3 record, a share of the Mountain West Conference title and a victory in the Las Vegas Bowl in 1999. In ten seasons at Utah he has a career record of 71-46 and is the second-winningest coach in school history. "We are passionate about enhancing the experience for the players and fans and with this coaching staff we have reached our goals," said Leonard Klompus, CEO of the Hula Bowl Maui. The 2001 Rivals.com Hula Bowl Maui will again be televised by ESPN and will kickoff in primetime at 8:00 PM EST on January 20, 2001.

Where are the D-III 20th Century All Stars? Where is the NCAA Division III 20th Century All American Team? As usual, the student/athletes who have played the game for fun have been ignored by everyone who has selected Teams of the Century - but that will be corrected by usafootball.com. See story.....