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Ute fans wished for the Rose Bowl, but more than 10,000 of them will still attend the Holiday Bowl

The thread of text messages among eight siblings started soon after Jonas Johnsen and two of his brothers returned home from the Pac-12 championship game: How about the Holiday Bowl?

University of Utah athletic administrators successfully persuaded Holiday Bowl organizers that Ute fans would respond to the opportunity to watch their team play in one of the Pac-12′s top-tier bowls. They’re being rewarded with a projected strong turnout, after roughly 10,000 fans invested financially and emotionally in the conference title game and were disappointed about missing the Rose Bowl.

The Johnsens (the siblings are cousins of former Ute basketball players Jeff and Britton Johnsen) certainly are doing their part.