Year Game Played: | 2006 |
Title Sponsor: | Pioneer PureVision |
Game Name: | Las Vegas Bowl |
Football Season: | 2006 |
Visitor Name Short: | BYU |
Visitor Nickname: | Cougars |
Visitor School: | Brigham Young University |
Home Name Short: | Oregon |
Home Nickname: | Ducks |
Home School: | University of Oregon |
Visitor Record: | 10 - 2 |
Visitor Conference: | Mountain West |
Home Record: | 7 - 5 |
Home Conference: | Pac-10 |
Visitor Coach: | Bronco Mendenhall |
Home Coach: | Mike Bellotti |
Visitor Rank Ap: | 19 |
Visitor Rank Coaches: | 20 |
Visitor Rank Bcs: | 20 |
Visitor 1Q: | 0 |
Visitor 2Q: | 17 |
Visitor 3Q: | 7 |
Visitor 4Q: | 14 |
Home 1Q: | 0 |
Home 2Q: | 0 |
Home 3Q: | 0 |
Home 4Q: | 8 |
Date Game Played: | December 21 |
Stadium: | Sam Boyd Stadium |
City: | Whitney, Nevada |
Mvp: | Jonny Harline (TE, BYU) |
Referee: | Nick Define (MAC) |
Attendance: | 44,615 |
Payout: | 1,000,000 per team[1] |
Us Network: | ESPN2 |
The 2006 Las Vegas Bowl was an NCAA-sanctioned Division I post-season college football bowl game between the Brigham Young University Cougars and the Oregon Ducks. The game was played on December 22, 2006, starting at 5 p.m. PST at 40,000-seat Sam Boyd Stadium in Whitney, Nevada, where the bowl has been played since 1992. It was televised on ESPN.
Starting in 2001, the Las Vegas Bowl featured a matchup of teams from the Mountain West Conference (MWC) and Pacific-10 Conference (Pac-10), with organizers having first choice of bowl-eligible teams from the MWC, and the fourth or fifth choice (alternating annually) of bowl-eligible teams from the Pac-10.
Riding a 9-game winning streak entering the game, a veteran BYU squad led by seniors John Beck, Curtis Brown, Jonny Harline, and Justin Robinson dominated Oregon from the start. Beck had 375 yards passing and accounted for 3 touchdowns, while Brown ran for an additional 120 yards and 2 touchdowns. Harline, an All-American tight end, earned MVP honors with 9 catches for 181 yards and a score. Robinson had 2 interceptions and led a strong effort by the Cougar defense that held the Ducks to just 120 yards through the first three quarters of play. Oregon had attempted to confuse BYU by alternating Dennis Dixon and Brady Leaf at quarterback, but it seemed to backfire, as the Ducks' offense never established any rhythm. Oregon's only touchdown came on a 47-yard pass play in the fourth quarter, after the game's outcome had already been decided. The victory was particularly satisfying for BYU, as Oregon head coach Mike Bellotti had made controversial comments prior to the game indicating that BYU (from the Mountain West conference) was not good enough to compete in the Pac-10.