[Congressional Record Volume 155, Number 7 (Tuesday, January 13, 2009)]
[House]
[Pages H184-H185]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                    75TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE SUN BOWL

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentleman from Texas (Mr. Reyes) is recognized for 5 minutes.
  Mr. REYES. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize a special occasion 
in the American university athletics, the 75th anniversary of the Sun 
Bowl, a proud tradition in college football that has been hosted in my 
district of El Paso, Texas.
  The Sun Bowl is the second oldest bowl game in the United States and 
a major national attraction that brings together thousands of loyal 
college football fans each year to watch teams from the Pac-10, Big 12 
and Big East Conferences.
  As we celebrate the 75th anniversary of the Sun Bowl, I want to 
recognize the Sun Bowl Association, the sponsors, and all of the fans 
from El Paso and throughout the Nation who have made this annual event 
a tremendous success. In particular, I would like to acknowledge Bernie 
Olivas, Executive Director of the Sun Bowl Association, and Gerald 
Rubin, CEO of Helen of Troy, for sponsoring this great event, as well 
as Joe Valenzuela, Frank Bates and Linda East, current, incoming and 
past presidents of the Sun Bowl Association Board of Directors.
  At its humble beginnings, the Sun Bowl was put together as a fund-
raiser by the Kiwanis Club in 1935. The event originated as a small 
high school matchup and grew into a major nationally televised bowl 
game in Division I football. As you can see by this first picture, this 
captured some of the flavor of the history in El Paso that was known 
then as ``the Sun Bowl City.''
  The first game featured the El Paso High School All-Stars versus the 
Ranger High School Bulldogs and was played at the El Paso High School 
stadium, where the All-Star team came from behind to garner a 25-21 
victory over the Bulldogs.
  The Sun Bowl Association was formed immediately after that successful 
first game, and a coalition of local El Paso area service clubs, 
including the Rotary, Lions, Optimist, and the 20-30 Club, joined 
together to coordinate events around the bowl game every year.
  After gathering input from the community, the event was named the Sun 
Bowl, and the first collegiate game was played in 1936. This game was a 
match between New Mexico A&M--which is now New Mexico State--and 
Hardin-Simmons College, and the Sun Bowl has grown from there. In its 
inception, it was played at the 15,000-seat Kidd Field in 1938 on the 
campus of what is now the University of Texas at El Paso. The game was 
moved again in 1963 to our new 30,000-seat Sun Bowl Stadium. And in 
1982, the Sun Bowl game took place in the newly expanded Sun Bowl 
Stadium, with a seating capacity of over 50,000 people. This is a 
picture of our Sun Bowl Stadium.

[[Page H185]]

  Last month, over 49,000 fans attended the 75th Annual Brut Sun Bowl 
to watch the Oregon State Beavers defeat the Pittsburgh Panthers to 
become this year's Sun Bowl champion.
  The television network, CBS, has been broadcasting the Sun Bowl since 
1968, making it the longest continuous broadcast of a post-season 
football game. The crowd itself of this year's Sun Bowl game also has 
made history, not so much by the attendance, but for being the largest 
crowd, according to the Guinness Book of Record, to dance to the 
Village People's 1978 disco anthem, ``YMCA.'' Here you have a picture 
of part of the crowd that captures some of the energy and excitement of 
the 75th Sun Bowl on that day.
  To commemorate the 75th anniversary, the Sun Bowl Association added 
two more names to its ``Legends of the Sun Bowl'' list. The ``Legends 
of the Sun Bowl'' include coaches, players, broadcasters, and longtime 
volunteers of the Sun Bowl. This year's recipients were Priest Holmes, 
a 1994 player for the University of Texas, and Craig Silver, a CBS 
sports commentator from 1983 to 2005. Among other notable ``Legends of 
the Sun Bowl'' are the late Pat Tillman, Thurman Thomas, Pat Summerall, 
and Tony Dorsett, seen here in this final picture showing Tony Dorsett 
in action in the Sun Bowl Stadium.

                              {time}  1930

  Along with my remarks, I would like to submit a copy of the names of 
the previous legends of the Sun Bowl for inclusion in the Record.

                        Legends of the Sun Bowl

       2008--Priest Holmes--Player, Texas (1994), Craig Silver--
     CBS Sports (1983-2005)
       2007--Cornelius Bennett--Player, Alabama (1983 & 1986), Don 
     James--Coach, Washington (1979 & 1986)
       2006--Tony Franklin--Player, Texas A&M (1977), Grant 
     Teaff--Coach, Baylor (1992)
       2005--Terry Donahue--Coach, UCLA (1991); CBS Sports (1995), 
     Verne Lundquist--CBS Sports (1988, 1992, 2000-05)
       2004--Pat Tillman (Posthumously)--Player, Arizona State 
     (1997), Alex Van Pelt--Player, Pittsburgh (1989)
       2003--Ken Heineman--Player, El Paso All-Stars (1935),
       2002--Thurman Thomas--Player, Oklahoma State (1987)
       2001--John H. Folmer--Administrator, Barry Switzer--Coach, 
     Oklahoma (1981)
       2000--Vince Dooley--Coach, Georgia (1964, 1969 & 1985), 
     Derrick Thomas (Posthumously)--Player, Alabama (1986 & 1988)
       1999--Hayden Fry--Coach, SMU (1963) and Iowa (1995 & 1997), 
     Jimmy Rogers, Jr.--Administrator
       1998--Jesse Whittenton--UTEP (1954 & 1955)
       1997--Tom Brookshier--CBS Sports (1973, 1977-1981), Pat 
     Summerall--CBS Sports (1971, 1977-80)
       1996--Tony Dorsett--Player, Pittsburgh (1975),
       1995--Johnny Majors--Coach, Iowa State (1971), Pittsburgh 
     (1975) and Tennessee (1984)
       1994--Harrison Kohl--Administrator, Bill Stevens--Player, 
     UTEP (1965 & 1967), Charley Johnson--Player, New Mexico State 
     (1959 & 1960)

  Mr. Speaker, I am proud to highlight this very special event in El 
Paso, one that is very important and very much a part of the city's 
history and folklore. The Sun Bowl is a wonderful opportunity to 
showcase the natural geographic beauty and the friendly atmosphere that 
make our community very special. The success of the Sun Bowl is a 
testament to the hard work of the Sun Bowl Association as well as the 
numerous community partners and sponsors, and I look forward to many 
more successful years of this wonderful tradition.
  I want to congratulate all the Sun Bowl Association members and our 
great community for putting on a great show every year.

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