The matchup will mark Temple's fourth bowl appearance in the school's history. And it is hard to imagine the Owls having a better pre-bowl gathering than this.
They were joined by the Temple band, university administrators, cheerleaders, family members, friends, and fans.
After the band and cheerleaders entertained the crowd for an hour, Owls athletic director Bill Bradshaw announced where the team was going. Then Addazio thanked the fans for this season's support. And before the event concluded, the Owls sang the school's fight song.
The New Mexico Bowl, which pays out $912,000 per team, was supposed to pit a Mountain West Conference opponent against a Pac-12 member. Instead, the bowl went for the Owls, who finished second in the Mid-American East Division, after the Pac-12 didn't have enough bowl-eligible teams.
The Cowboys (8-4) finished third behind Texas Christian and Boise State in the Mountain West.
Last season, despite finishing 8-4, Temple wasn't invited to a bowl. At the time, there were 72 bowl-eligible teams for the 35 games. The Owls were one of the two teams that didn't receive an invitation.
Like Temple, Wyoming will make its second bowl appearance in three seasons. The Cowboys posted a 35-28 double overtime victory over Fresno State in 2009. That season, UCLA defeated Temple, 30-21, in the EagleBank Bowl, which later changed its name to the Military Bowl.
In what was their first bowl appearance since 1979, the Owls drew 20,000 fans to the game in Washington. That turnout was a major reason why Temple's athletic department wanted to return to the Military. It is highly unlikely the Owls will draw a lot of fans to New Mexico.
However, ESPN wanted Temple to play in the game to boost national television ratings.
"Personally, I'm just happy to be in a bowl game," linebacker Tahir Whitehead said. "Obviously, if we had an opportunity to play in the Military Bowl, it would have been an honor as well, being able to have the fans come down and support us.
"Hopefully, we can still get the support of our fans. But we are just honored to be in a bowl game after last year."
Under Addazio, the Owls capped the regular season with three consecutive victories. His eight victories are the most by a first-year coach in school history.
The Owls are tentatively scheduled to travel to New Mexico on Dec. 14.
Contact staff writer Keith Pompey at 215-854-2939, kpompey@phillynews.com,
or @pompeysgridlock on Twitter. Read his blog, "Owls Inq,"
at www.philly.com/owlsinq
