The 2009 San Diego County Credit Union Poinsettia Bowl was the fifth edition of the college football bowl game and was played at Qualcomm Stadium in San Diego, California. The game started at 5 PM US PST on Wednesday, December 23, 2009 on ESPN. The Utah Utes defeated the California Golden Bears by a score of 37–27 to win their ninth straight bowl game. The Bears lost their first bowl game since 2004, snapping a winning streak of four post-season victories.

The Utes from the Mountain West Conference had won eight straight bowl appearances, including the last season's Sugar Bowl against Alabama. The Utes also faced their former offensive coordinator, Andy Ludwig, who had helped guide them the previous year to a 13–0 record and #2 ranking.

Cal played its third bowl game in San Diego in six years, having made two previous trips to the Holiday Bowl in 2004 and 2006. The Bears had not lost a bowl game since 2004. It was the seventh straight year that Cal head coach Jeff Tedford had guided Cal to a bowl appearance, the longest streak in school history. The game was Cal's first appearance in the Poinsettia Bowl, while Utah was playing in its second. The Utes defeated Navy by a score of 35–32 in the 2007 game. It was the seventh overall meeting between the two schools and their first in post-season. Cal held a 4–2 advantage in the series, the first game of which took place in 1920. The last matchup between them was in 2003, a game won by Utah 31–24.

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