Viva Las Vegas — but for how long?

Historical elements shared by the Holiday Bowl and Las Vegas Bowl seem strikingly similar for Wasatch Front football programs.

And the Las Vegas Bowl's potential for growth possibly could follow the Holiday Bowl, leaving BYU and Utah and their fans again on the outside looking in.

Both bowls were created as economic boosts to tourist meccas during lackluster pre-Christmas periods — the Holiday Bowl in San Diego and the city-namesake Las Vegas Bowl — as well as a postseason destination for mid-major conference football champions.

Christened in 1978, the Holiday Bowl welcomed the Western Athletic Conference champ as its host team — facing an at-large opponent — after Arizona and Arizona State bolted the WAC and the Phoenix-based Fiesta Bowl ended its seven-year affiliation.

After the California Bowl's demise in Fresno, the Las Vegas Bowl emerged in 1992, pairing champions from the Big West and Mid-American.

Both originally among the first bowls played annually, the Vegas Bowl took pride in being the postseason opener before trying Christmas Day and Christmas Eve slots, eventually returning to its pre-Christmas spot.

However, getting an early jump means becoming all but forgotten by the time the January bowls roll around.

In their early years, the bowls served as the promised land for local teams. BYU, Utah and the WAC gunned for the Holiday Bowl. The Cougars made good 11 times in the two-decade affiliation, while the Utes never reached Holiday paydirt. Meanwhile, then-Big West member Utah State eyed the Las Vegas Bowl annually, earning the 1993 berth.

Both bowls provided welcome winter-destination alternatives — within driving distance — to local fans, and both regions boast large LDS Church populations linked to the Utah schools and teams.

The Holiday Bowl and WAC maintained ties from 1978 to 1997, with BYU playing the first seven years in what was dubbed "the BYU Bowl." But the familiarity bred contempt — the Cougars tiring of the annual aircraft-carrier tours and San Diego business types quipping that spendthrift BYU fans arrived with a clean shirt and a $20 bill, changing neither during their stay.

Despite the bowl being recognized for thrilling outcomes, the seventh year (1984) frustrated both the Holiday Bowl and BYU. As a national-championship contender, the undefeated Cougars preferred a higher-profile venue and more worthy foe than 6-5 Michigan, while Holiday Bowl officials were anxious to test the non-BYU waters.