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2003 Hula Bowl Maui Player Rosters
2003 North Roster - 2003 South Roster
Over the past 56 years, the Hula Bowl All-Star Football Classic has proven to be one of the most exciting of all the post-season all-star games—a tradition of great players and coaches, Heisman Trophy winners, exciting football with exceptional fan and corporate support. In just the last six years alone, the Hula Bowl has seen dynamic changes; the Heisman Trophy Committee and other key partners have joined with official sponsorships such as "Street & Smith" publications; the American Football Coaches Association formed an alliance with the Bowl; the game moved to Maui and War Memorial Stadium after 51 years on the island of Oahu; and added a unique local flavoring to the naming of its all-star teams.
FORMATS
The names of the teams have also changed through the years. The North and South all-stars were re-named to Hawaiian names Kai (ocean) and Aina (land) for the 2000 game, highlighting the game's Hawaiian theme. When the inaugural Hula Bowl All-Star Football Classic was played on January 5, 1947, the teams were comprised of mainland college players pitted against a local team of graduates of Leiehua, a high school in Wahiawa. The teams would play a two-game series every January until 1951, when the format was changed to allow NFL players to join Hawaiian all-stars in an effort to create a more competitive environment. In the 1960's the Hula Bowl changed formats again, limiting play to only collegiate athletes. With this change and the increasing popularity of college football, the Hula Bowl made its way to the top of the post-season bowl games. In 1994 the game matched local all-stars against top collegiate players from the mainland. This format was a hit for the local community but didn't attract national attention. In stepped the current management in 1995, and the improvements in subsequent years have again stamped the Hula Bowl game as the premier all-star event.
MOVING TO MAUI
Moving the Hula Bowl game to Maui broke the longest standing tradition of the Hula Bowl's location. After 50 years in Honolulu, an agreement was signed in April of 1997 by Bowl Games of Hawaii and County of Maui and the game was moved to Maui and War Memorial Stadium in a move that pumped more than $10 million in new money to the island and reinforced the tourism economy. The past two years, games were played before a sellout crowd of 23,000 fans.
THE PLAYERS/GAMES
The inaugural games in 1947 were split, the mainland team winning 34-7 in game one, the Leilehua copping the second encounter, 26-20. With two great games, the Hula Bowl was an immediate hit with fans, a tradition that lasts to this day. In 1952, the late Doak Walker, a former Heisman Trophy winner and Detroit Lions star, played in the Hula Bowl after leading the Lions to the NFL championship. College and pro football Hall of Famer Otto Graham did the same in 1955 after leading the Cleveland Browns to the NFL title. Beginning In the 1960's, the game attracted Heisman Trophy winners like Mike Garrett, Steve Owens, Jim Plunkett, Tony Dorsett, Billy Sims, Rashaan Salaam, Danny Wuerffel, Ricky Williams and Ron Dayne. In 1969, the game's first sellout crowd watched USC's Heisman Trophy winning tailback O.J. Simpson set a Hula Bowl record with an 88-yard kickoff return for a touchdown. Kordell Stewart was the star the Most Valuable Player of the 1994 Hula Bowl game. He had a 72-yard run in leading his West team to a 20-9 victory over the East and his performance elevated Stewart to the 27th pick in the second round of the NFL draft, higher than predicted before his appearance in the game. In the Golden Anniversary game in 1996, Winslow Oliver (later with the Carolina Panthers), was a major attraction with 88 yards rushing and two touchdowns, including a 53-yard TD romp that helped secure MVP honors. Doak Walker, Otto Graham, Paul Hornung, Larry Csonka, John Mackey, Charles White, Johnny Rodgers, Anthony Davis and Billy Sims, to name a few, appeared for the Golden Anniversary celebration and a time capsule was buried at Aloha Stadium honoring the game's first 50 years. The capsule is to remain undisturbed until 2021. In 1997, Mississippi State punter/kicker set a Hula Bowl record with 4 field goals (14 total points) and also punted for a Hula Bowl record 52-yard average. In 1998 the first game in Maui's War Memorial Stadium produced a thrilling 21-20 win by the South.
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