There will be no bowl game for Saint Louis this year.

The Crusaders were invited to participate in the Geico State Champions Bowl Series in Phoenix on Dec. 22, but after much discussion among the school’s educators, decided that there is too much else going on at that time of year to commit.

Saint Louis (11-0) wrapped up their third straight top-tier state championship on Saturday at Aloha Stadium, defeating Mililani 38-17. The Crusaders have won 26 games in a row. In the most recent national rankings, they are No. 7 in the MaxPreps Xcellent 25 and No. 15 in the USA Today Super 25.

But the timing was not right for a bowl game, according to Glenn Medeiros, the school’s president.

In a prepared statement, Medeiros wrote, “(We) spent the last few days considering if this trip would be in the best interest of our students. Although traveling is a wonderful way to educate students about the world around them, providing more exposure for our athletes, this particular game takes place during finals week. For this reason, students attending would have to miss their final exams. Additionally, not all players would be able to make the trip, given certain limitations which include the number of hotel rooms available and the cost associated with travel that the school would subsidize and with families being responsible for assisting financially.

“Moreover, several families have already made plans to travel or make visits to colleges or simply take family vacations during this time. Furthermore, this game does not represent a playoff game, where a national champion is crowned. It is simply an exhibition game against a nationally ranked opponent, similar to those of which we play each year at the beginning of the season, when academics is not adversely affected. Finally, participating in this game would mean that athletes already committed to other sports would have to abandon those teams during the month of December.”

Head coach Cal Lee said, “It would have been a great opportunity. I wish we could have made it work for the kids’ sake.”

Chris Chun, the Hawaii High School Athletic Association executive director, has been working closely with the Bowl Series for the last few months trying to get Hawaii’s state champion into the game.

“We wanted to give our state champion the opportunity to participate in this event,” Chun said in a statement. “The HHSAA respects Saint Louis School’s decision to decline the invitation for the reasons mentioned.”

Four state champions will be chosen from among six states — Arizona, Utah, Florida, Washington, Maryland and Georgia — for the Bowl Series doubleheader.