The Hula Bowl is planning on making a comeback in Raleigh, N.C.
The college football all-star game hasn't been played since 2008, and never outside the state of Hawaii, but according to Jennifer Logan, owner of Hula Bowl, LLC the game will be coming back in 2018 and it will be played at N.C. State.
Logan published a release on the official Hula Bowl website on Friday with the announcement that the game, a showcase for college players, would be played at Carter-Finley Stadium in Jan. 2018.
A spokesman for N.C. State said a deal has not been finalized.
"We were contacted by the Hula Bowl about bringing this game to Raleigh and look forward to working with the promoter on finalizing details," said Fred Demarest, an associate athletic director at N.C. State.
The first Hula Bowl was played in 1947 in Honolulu and was staged annually until 2008. Dwindling attendance led to the game's exit from Hawaii. The last game, played at Aloha Stadium in Halawa (the site of the NFL's Pro Bowl) had an estimated attendance of 2,000. The stadium capacity is 50,000.
The Hula Bowl was once a popular stop for the best college football players before the NFL draft. In a 16-year period from the end of the 1960s and into 1980s, 13 Heisman Trophy winners played there.
In recent years, the Mobile, Ala.-based Senior Bowl has become the most popular stop for NFL scouts and personnel to evaluate college talent. There are other college all-star games played in Florida and Texas.
