The 2007 Sheraton Hawaii Bowl was a post-season college football bowl game between the Boise State University Broncos from the Western Athletic Conference (WAC) and the East Carolina University Pirates from Conference USA (C-USA). This sixth edition of the Hawaii Bowl, sponsored by Sheraton Hotels and Resorts, was played at Aloha Stadium in Honolulu on December 23, 2007. The game was the final competition of the 2007 football season for each team and resulted in a 41–38 East Carolina victory, even though sportsbooks favored Boise State to win by points. Many experts believed East Carolina to be big underdogs to Boise State, which had defeated the Oklahoma Sooners in the 2007 Fiesta Bowl. The 2007 Hawaii Bowl paid $750,000 to each team's conference in exchange for their participation.
The game was expected to be an offensive shootout. Boise State averaged 42.4 points during the 2007 season, while East Carolina averaged 31. That expectation turned out to be justified as East Carolina took a 31–14 lead in the first half. The Broncos fought back in the second half, however, tying the score at 38 late in the fourth quarter after East Carolina's Chris Johnson fumbled the ball, allowing Bronco defender Marty Tadman to recover the ball and return it 47 yards for a touchdown. The game remained tied until the final moments as East Carolina's Ben Hartman made a 34–yard game-winning field goal as time expired. The attendance of 30,467 was the largest crowd to attend a Hawaii Bowl game that did not feature the host school. Boise State's loss dropped them to a final 2007 record of 10–3, while East Carolina's final-game win earned them a record of 8–5.
Selection process The Hawaii football team normally receives an automatic bid to the game unless the team is selected to participate in a BCS game or is not bowl eligible. If either of those events happen, the WAC selects its next-highest ranked team to compete in the game. In 2007, Hawaii was selected to play on January 1, 2008, in the Sugar Bowl against Georgia, marking just the second time since the creation of the Hawaii Bowl that Hawaii would not participate. The only previous time that Hawaii failed to make an appearance was in 2005, when the Warriors finished their season with a 5–7 record and were not eligible for a bowl game.
Conference USA fields the other team in the Hawaii Bowl. The Liberty Bowl has the first selection of C-USA teams, and GMAC Bowl picks second. After those two are picked, the conference provides a team for the Hawaii Bowl and three other bowls. In 2007, the University of Central Florida accepted the bid to compete in the Liberty Bowl, Tulsa accepted the bid to compete in the GMAC Bowl, leaving East Carolina to be selected by the Hawaii Bowl on December 1, 2007.
Boise State was undefeated in conference play going into the final game of the regular season, and suffered just one out-of-conference loss. In that final game, BSU lost 39–27 to undefeated Hawaii. Following the game, the Broncos decided to travel to Hawaii, rather than play at home in the Humanitarian Bowl, which is located at Boise's home stadium in Boise, Idaho and features a matchup between a WAC team and one from the Atlantic Coast Conference. Boise ended its regular season 10–2 overall and 7–1 in conference play.
East Carolina, meanwhile, had been in first place in the C-USA's East Division with just two games remaining. A loss to Marshall University in that second-to-last game, however, put ECU into second place in its division, and thus out of competition for the Conference USA Championship. After winning against conference foe Tulane in the final game of the season, the Pirates decided to travel to the Hawaii Bowl. East Carolina ended the regular season 7–5 overall, and 6–2 in conference play.
Pre-game buildup
On December 1, 2007, Hawaii Bowl representatives announced East Carolina and Boise State as the competitors in the 2007 edition of the game. It would be the first time in history that the two teams had ever met. Two weeks after the announcement, Boise State's top wide receiver Jeremy Childs, cornerback Keith McGowen, and linebacker Ben Chandler were declared out for the game after violating team rules. In an online contest held by ESPN.com in the weeks leading up to the game, 98% of the participants voted that Boise State would beat East Carolina. Participants also gave 32 out of 32 "confidence points" on average,In the contest, confidence points were used as a standard of how confident bettors were on a given outcome. More points indicated higher confidence. indicating the highest possible confidence in the predicted outcome.
Boise State offense versus East Carolina defense
Boise State came into the game averaging 42.75 points and 475.67 yards per game, the fourth and twelfth highest totals in college football. Senior quarterback Taylor Tharp led the offense by more than 3,000 yards and 28 touchdowns, headed into the 2007 Hawaii Bowl. On the ground, the Broncos were led by junior running back Ian Johnson, who had 17 touchdowns and 1,030 yards in the regular season. Wide receiver Jeremy Childs also was a potent threat on offense, averaging 87.08 receiving yards per game, and backup running back D.J. Harper rushed for 41.44 yards per game on average. Johnson and Childs both earned First Team All-WAC honors, and Tharp was named to Second Team All-WAC. Offensive tackle Ryan Clady was the team's only All-American, and promised to do a good job protecting Taylor Tharp on the offensive line.
East Carolina had been shaky on defense. ECU ranked 98th in total defense and 115th in passing defense, giving up an average of 436.42 yards per game. Despite that fact, the Pirates did well in the turnover battle, gaining 27 turnovers while losing just 13–a margin of +14–good enough for ninth in the country. In addition, the ECU defense ranked eleventh nationally in tackles for loss. Defensive linemen Zack Slate and C.J. Wilson and defensive back Van Eskridge took C–USA All–Conference second team honors.
East Carolina offense versus Boise State defense
Boise State faced the nation's top all-purpose yards leader, All-American Chris Johnson. Johnson racked up an average of 212.67 all-purpose yards per game during the 2007 season, making him a potent threat on offense. Taking snaps for the offense were quarterbacks Patrick Pinkney and Rob Kass. Pinkney had a passer rating of 131.58, while Kass had a comparable rating of 122.94. The top receiver for the Pirates was Jamar Bryant, who averaged 3.5 catches for 52.17 yards per game. In addition to Chris Johnson, who was named to the C–USA All–Conference second team, offensive lineman Josh Coffman received C–USA All-Conference second team honors.
The Broncos' defense, meanwhile, was ranked number one in the WAC in total defense, scoring defense, rushing defense, and pass defense. The team's defense ranked number two in the conference in pass efficiency defense, turnover margin, and sacks. Defensive lineman Nick Schlekeway and defensive back Marty Tadman both received All–WAC first team honors and promised to pose difficulties for the Pirates' offensive front.
Game summary The 2007 Hawaii Bowl kicked off on December 23, 2007, at 8:00 p.m EST in front of an estimated crowd of 30,467, which was the largest crowd in Hawaii Bowl history for a game not featuring the Hawai'i football team. The game was nationally televised on ESPN, and was watched by an estimated average of 1.6 million people, good enough for a television rating of 1.47.Poinsettia Bowl Television Ratings Jump 38 Percent Navy Sports Information Department, navysports.cstv.com, January 5, 2008. Retrieved January 11, 2008. East Carolina had to travel one way, making it the longest bowl trip of the season for any team during the 2007 bowl season. Boise State, meanwhile, traveled to Hawaii. Due to the distance involved, East Carolina fans wishing to support their school, but unable to travel to the game, bought 2,709 tickets for troops stationed in Hawaii as a show of support. The weather at kickoff was mostly cloudy with winds from the northeast at 13 miles (21 km). The temperature was . For the officiating crew, the referee was Terry Leyden, umpire was Kevin Matthews, and the linesman was Bob Bahne. The line judge was Bart Longson, the back judge was Joe Johnston and the field judge was Ed Vinzant. The side judge was Craig Falkner.
First quarter East Carolina won the pre-game coin toss and deferred the ball until the second half, allowing Boise State to receive the ball to begin the game. The Broncos received the opening kickoff at their 4–yard line and went three-and-out.1st Quarter ESPN.com Play-by-Play. Retrieved December 24, 2007. Following the Broncos' punt, East Carolina began its first possession of the game on its 43–yard line. The offense marched to the 19–yard line of Boise State, but was stopped on third down. ECU kicker Ben Hartman was sent into the game and made a field goal from 36 yards away.
East Carolina kicked the ball to Boise State's Austin Smith and he returned the kickoff 89 yards for a touchdown. The touchdown and extra point made the score 7–3 and gave Boise State its only lead of the game.
The next two drives for each team ended in punts. On East Carolina's third drive, Chris Johnson rushed on the first play 68 yards for a touchdown. With the point after, East Carolina lead 10–7. The next Boise State drive ended in a three and out, and the Broncos kicked the ball away. The Pirates marched down the field 55 yards, but the quarter ended before ECU had a chance to score.
At the end of the first quarter, East Carolina led Boise State 10–7.
Second quarter ECU began the second quarter on Boise's 30–yard line, and quarterback Patrick Pinkney continued the Pirates' drive with a 14–yard rush. After three more successful plays, Dominique Lindsay rushed 3 yards for a touchdown. Kicker Ben Hartman converted the point after, which made the score 17–7 ECU.2nd Quarter ESPN.com Play-by-Play. Retrieved December 24, 2007.
The Broncos' first drive of the second quarter was halted after a holding penalty and an incomplete pass denied BSU a chance for a first down. Boise was forced to kick the ball away once more. The Pirates' second drive of the quarter began at their 26–yard line. ECU needed just four plays to march 74 yards down the field for a touchdown. On the drive, Chris Johnson rushed for 46 yards and threw an 18–yard pass for a touchdown. After the touchdown and the extra point kick, ECU led 24–7.
Boise State's first play after the post-touchdown kickoff was intercepted by Pirates' defender Travis Williams. Despite the turnover, East Carolina was unable to attain a first down, and went three-and-out before punting. On Boise's second play of the new drive following the punt, the team earned its first first down of the game. The Broncos continued the drive by going 69 yards in eight plays, culminating in a touchdown. The series included five complete passes and two rushes. With the score, The Broncos had closed the gap to ten points: 24–14 East Carolina.
East Carolina started their series on their 41–yard line. A substitution infraction on ECU and an incomplete pass forced ECU to punt the ball away. On the Broncos' fourth drive of the second quarter, the team began with three complete passes for 18 yards. On the fourth play, however, BSU's Titus Young fumbled the ball away. Pirates' defender Jay Ross recovered the fumble, and ECU had another chance on offense before the end of the first half. East Carolina ran five plays for 38 yards. With the clock running down, ECU elected to kick a field goal. The kick was good, and made the score 31–14 ECU. Boise State had one final chance on offense, and Boise Quarterback Taylor Tharp went two-for-four, but ran out of time before coming into field goal range.
At halftime, East Carolina led Boise State 31–14.
Third quarter