What's at stake in the Hawai'i bowl between San Jose State and USF

The Hawai’i Bowl won’t just give us some breathtakingly scenic views — we should be in for some pretty fun football, too.

San Jose State and USF are squaring off in the Hawai’i Bowl this year, with plenty at stake for two head coaches trying to establish their programs in the college sports zeitgeist.

This isn’t a college football playoff game, obviously. The stakes aren’t quite the biggest in the sport. But there’s still plenty that these two sides are playing for.

COLLEGE FOOTBALL TURNOVER:

• 2024 college football coach firings and changes
• A running list of college football players skipping 2024-25 bowl games
• Tracking the biggest names to enter the college football transfer portal after the 2024 season

This is USF’s second-straight bowl appearance under second-year head coach Alex Golesh. Golesh is looking for a second-straight winning season to start his career with USF and a win in the Hawai’i Bowl would deliver it to him.

For San Jose State, Ken Niumatalolo is looking to establish this program as a winner. It’s his first year as the Spartans’ head coach — he previously spent 16 years from 2007 to 2022 coaching at Navy. He amassed a 6-5 bowl record during his tenure there. He’s looking to start 1-0 here with SJSU.