Nov. 21, 2006

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - The Purdue football team today accepted an invitation to play in the Champs Sports Bowl in Orlando, Fla., on Dec. 29.

The Boilermakers (8-4, 5-3 Big Ten), who wrap up the regular season at No. 25 Hawaii on Saturday, will face a yet-to-be-determined opponent from the Atlantic Coast Conference. The Champs Sports Bowl has the fourth pick from the ACC, following the Orange (BCS), Chick-fil-A and Gator bowls. Those picks will be made following the ACC Championship Game on Dec. 2 in Jacksonville, Fla.

"We appreciate the opportunity to go the Champs Sports Bowl and play an outstanding team from the ACC," said head coach Joe Tiller, who will take his ninth Purdue team to postseason play in 10 seasons. "I am pleased for our players that they get this reward. We have a young team that has worked hard, gotten better over the course of the season and put itself in position to play in this game."

Kickoff for the Champs Sports Bowl is scheduled for 8 p.m. EST at Florida Citrus Bowl Stadium, and the game will be televised by ESPN.

Purdue will play in its 14th bowl game in school history. The Boilermakers played in the Capital One Bowl in Orlando on Jan. 1, 2004.

"We're very excited about going to the Champs Sports Bowl," junior linebacker Dan Bick said. "Orlando is a beautiful place. I know the team went down there for the Capital One Bowl the year before I got to Purdue, and I have heard great things about that trip."

Said sophomore wide receiver Greg Orton: "Florida will be a great place to go to celebrate our bowl game. As a team, we have worked hard all season, and this is a great opportunity for us."

The Champs Sports Bowl previously was known as the Blockbuster Bowl (1990-93), Carquest Bowl (1994-97), Micronpc Bowl (1998-2000) and Tangerine Bowl (2001-03). The Champs Sports Bowl is in its first year as a Big Ten tie-in; Illinois and Minnesota represented the conference in the Micronpc Bowl in Miami in 1999 and 2000.

"Purdue has a chance to be a nine-win team and boasts one of the most exciting offenses in all of college football," Florida Citrus Sports executive director Steve Hogan said. "The Boilermakers have one of the more passionate fan bases and will follow their team to Orlando to see what should be a top bowl matchup against a very good ACC opponent."

Tickets are priced at $60 each and can be ordered through the Purdue Athletic Ticket Office by phone (494-3194 or 800-49-SPORT) or on-line here.

For information on tickets, tour packages, apparel and merchandise, plus other information about the Champs Sports Bowl, fans can call (765) 496-6300 or (800) 927-4177 or click here.

Purdue Bowl History
1967 Rose Bowl           USC                    W 14-13
1978 Peach Bowl          Georgia Tech           W 41-21
1979 Bluebonnet Bowl     Tennessee              W 27-22
1980 Liberty Bowl        Missouri               W 28-25
1984 Peach Bowl          Virginia               L 24-27
1997 Alamo Bowl          #24 Oklahoma State     W 33-20
1998 Alamo Bowl          #4 Kansas State	W 37-34
2000 Outback Bowl        #21 Georgia            L 25-28 (OT)
2001 Rose Bowl           #4 Washington          L 24-34
2001 Sun Bowl            #13 Washington State   L 27-33
2002 Sun Bowl            Washington             W 34-24
2004 Capital One Bowl    #11 Georgia            L 27-34 (OT)
2004 Sun Bowl            #21 Arizona State      L 23-27
Champs Sports Bowl History
12/28/1990  Florida State 24, Penn State 17      Blockbuster Bowl - Miami, Fla.
12/28/1991  Alabama 30, Colorado 25              Blockbuster Bowl - Miami, Fla.
1/01/1993   Stanford 24, Penn State 3            Blockbuster Bowl - Miami, Fla.
1/01/1994   Boston College 31, Virginia 13       Carquest Bowl - Miami, Fla.
1/02/1995   South Carolina 24, West Virginia 21  Carquest Bowl - Miami, Fla.
12/30/1995  North Carolina 20, Arkansas 10       Carquest Bowl - Miami, Fla.
12/27/1996  Miami 31, Virginia 21                Carquest Bowl - Miami, Fla.
12/29/1997  Georgia Tech 35, West Virginia 30    Carquest Bowl - Miami, Fla.
12/29/1998  Miami 46, N.C. State 23              Micronpc Bowl - Miami, Fla.
12/30/1999  Illinois 63, Virginia 21             Micronpc Bowl - Miami, Fla.
12/28/2000  N.C. State 38, Minnesota 30          Micronpc.com Bowl - Miami, Fla.
12/20/2001  Pittsburgh 34, N.C. State 19         Visit Florida Tangerine Bowl - Orlando, Fla.
12/23/2002  Texas Tech 55, Clemson 15            Mazda Tangerine Bowl - Orlando, Fla.
12/22/2003  N.C. State 56, Kansas 26             Mazda Tangerine Bowl - Orlando, Fla.
12/21/2004  Georgia Tech 51, Syracuse 14         Champs Sports Bowl - Orlando, Fla.
12/27/2005  Clemson 19, Colorado 10              Champs Sports Bowl - Orlando, Fla.

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