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Washington (6-6) will battle (9-4) Southern Mississippi Dec. 26 in the Heart of Dallas Bowl at the Cotton Bowl. UW will be making its 36th overall bowl appearance.
Chris Petersen’s Huskies play Southern Mississippi in the Cotton Bowl the day after Christmas. / Drew Sellers, Sportspress Northwest
The University of Washington football team (6-6) makes its 36th bowl appearance Dec. 26 (11:20 a.m., ESPN) when it takes on Southern Mississippi (9-4) of Conference USA in the Zaxby’s Heart of Dallas Bowl at the Cotton Bowl — the first meeting between the schools.
Washington, which became bowl eligible by winning its final two regular-season games, including a 45-10 rout of Washington State in the Apple Cup, plays in the storied Cotton Bowl (opened in 1930) for the first time in program history against a Golden Eagles team that finished 7-2 in conference play but lost to Western Kentucky in the league’s title game.
The Golden Eagles played only one Power 5 conference opponent this season, losing to Nebraska 36-28 in Lincoln.
Owned and operated by ESPN Events, the bowl has had five previous editions. Conference USA teams have played in four, including Louisiana Tech last year, which defeated Illinois 35-18.
The Huskies are in a bowl for a sixth consecutive season — Holiday (2010), Alamo (2011), Las Vegas (2012), Fight Hunger (2013), Cactus (2014) — and will be seeking their first postseason win since Dec. 27, 2013 when they knocked off Brigham Young in the Fight Hunger Bowl in San Francisco. Among Pac-12 programs, only Stanford and Oregon can claim longer active streaks.
Washington’s players and coaches depart for Dallas Dec. 21.
Tickets for the game can be purchased at gohuskies.com.
Pac-12 Conference Bowl Schedule
| Date | Bowl | Site | Matchup | *Payout |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dec. 19 | New Mexico | Albuquerque, NM | Arizona vs. N. Mexico | $456,250 |
| Dec. 19 | Royal Purple | Las Vegas, NV. | Utah vs. BYU | $1,350,000 |
| Dec. 26 | Foster Farms | Santa Clara, CA. | UCLA vs. Nebraska | $2,212,500 |
| Dec. 26 | Dallas | Dallas | Washington vs. So. Miss | $1,100,000 |
| Dec. 26 | Sun | El Paso, TX. | Washington St. vs. Miami | $2,150,000 |
| Dec. 29 | Armed Forces | Fort Worth, TX. | California vs. Air Force | $675,000 |
| Dec. 30 | Holiday | San Diego | USC vs. Wisconsin | $2,825,000 |
| Jan. 1 | Rose | Pasadena | Stanford vs. Iowa | $18,000,000 |
| Jan. 2 | Cactus | Phoenix | ASU vs. W. Virginia | $3,325,000 |
| Jan. 2 | Alamo | San Antonio | Oregon vs. TCU | $3,825,000 |
*=Amount each school will receive
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