The fifteenth edition of the Hawaii Bowl featured the Hawaii Rainbow Warriors from the Mountain West Conference against the Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders from Conference USA.
It was one of the 2016–17 bowl games that concluded the 2016 FBS football season.
The game featured the Hawaii Rainbow Warriors with a record of 6–7 against the Middle Tennessee.
The Rainbow Warriors, led by head coach Nick Rolovich, won the most league games since joining the MW in 2012, and had the most wins in a season since 2011.
The Blue Raiders also boasted the 12th best passing offense in the country, scoring 40.5 points a game.Hawaii won their first bowl game since the 2006 Hawaii Bowl, exactly 10 years prior.