Sun Bowl The Sun Bowl is an annual U . S . college football bowl game that is usually played at the end of December in El Paso , Texas . The Sun Bowl , along with the Sugar Bowl and the Orange Bowl are the second - oldest bowl games in the country , behind the Rose Bowl ( first played 1902 , played annually since 1916 ) . In most of its early history , the game pitted the champion of the Border Conference against an at - large opponent . Games are now played at Sun Bowl Stadium on the campus of the University of Texas at El Paso . The first three were played at El Paso High School Stadium ( 1935 – 1937 ) , then switched to Kidd Field until the present stadium was ready in 1963 . For its first 24 years of existence the game was played on January 1 ( New Year ' s Day ) or January 2 ; since then , with the exception of a January 2 game in 1977 , the game has been played in December with the last 15 games played on or near December 31 . The game ' s current full title is the Hyundai Sun Bowl , which became the name after Hyundai Motor Company ' s American subsidiary bought naming rights to the bowl from Helen of Troy Limited on June 24 , 2010 . Hyundai becomes the fourth title sponsor of the Sun Bowl , after Helen of Troy ( through its Vitalis and Brut brands ) , Norwest / Wells Fargo , and John Hancock Insurance ; the bowl was known as the John Hancock Bowl for the last five years of the firm ' s contract with the bowl . Hyundai signed a four year contract with the Sun Bowl committee , which runs through the 2013 game . Beginning in 2010 , the Sun Bowl matches the Pac - 12 Conference against the ACC . The Sun Bowl will have the third selection after the BCS from the Pac - 12 and either the ACC Championship Game runner - up or the third pick after the BCS from the ACC . The current agreements with the Pac - 12 and ACC run from 2010 through 2013 . With this most recent agreement with the Sun Bowl the ACC keeps its Sun Bowl ties for at least four more years ; the most recent prior Sun Bowl agreement was done in conjunction with the Gator Bowl , where the ACC , Big East , and Big XII conferences ( as well as Notre Dame ) had a rotating arrangement with the two bowls . Its contract with CBS Sports is the longest continuous relationship with one network , spanning since 1968 . It is one of only two college football games on CBS that does not involve the Southeastern Conference ( the other being the Army – Navy Game ) and one of only two bowl games that is not aired on one of the ESPN family of networks ( ESPN , ESPN2 , ESPNU , and ABC all air bowls ; the AT & T Cotton Bowl Classic , which airs on Fox , is the other ) . In January 2010 , the Sun Bowl Association extended its agreement with CBS through the 2013 Hyundai Sun Bowl . The game traditionally kicks off at " High Noon " MST , or 2 p . m . EST . Helen of Troy has also sponsored the halftime show , which has recently featured such artists as Los Lonely Boys , The Village People , Baby Bash , David Archuleta , Rihanna , and Diamond Rio . The 1992 game was the final head coaching appearance of College Football Hall of Famer ( and future AFCA Executive Director ) Grant Teaff of Baylor . Teaff ' s Bears won over Arizona . The 2008 Sun Bowl set the record for fewest points scored , when the Oregon State Beavers beat the Pittsburgh Panthers by a score of 3 – 0 .