Whether they're playing in their third bowl game or their first, having Notre Dame coming to town has spiced the holiday season for the Hawaii football team.

“;I've been thinking about it every second,”; senior linebacker Solomon Elimimian said during UH's Sheraton Hawaii Bowl press conference yesterday.

“;Besides finals, I'm thinking about Notre Dame and how great an opportunity it is to play them.”;

Having rebounded from a 1-3 start, the Warriors (7-6) meet the Fighting Irish (6-6) at Aloha Stadium in the Sheraton Hawaii Bowl on Christmas Eve.

While much of UH's junior and senior classes have been to postseason games the last two years—the Hawaii Bowl in 2007 and the Sugar Bowl last New Year's Day—the Warriors newcomers are looking forward to their first taste of the postseason.

“;It's been a dream to play D-I and definitely play in a bowl game,”; said quarterback Greg Alexander, who was playing junior-college ball a year ago. “;To be able to play a team like Notre Dame, that has such great tradition it should be a lot of fun.”;

While seeing the shine of the golden helmets across the line of scrimmage is enticing to the Warriors, “;at the end of the day it's still another football team,”; Alexander said.

“;Coach Mack says it all the time—it's just guys in a different colored jersey. All the hype and all that, you still have to go out and play the game.”;