It matched the Tulane Green Wave and the Washington Huskies of the Pacific-10 Conference.
In their thirteenth season under head coach Don James, the Huskies tied for third in the Pac-10.
This was their tenth bowl game under James and ninth consecutive.
Brown left after this game for North Carolina; Tulane's next bowl appearance was in 1998 the Liberty Bowl, where they capped off a perfect 12–0 season with a 41–27 win over BYU.
In 1989, Washington beat Florida 34–7 in the Freedom Bowl, limiting Emmitt Smith to just 17 yards rushing.