Outback Bowl: Latest News, Notes and Analysis for Michigan St. vs. Georgia

Jan. 2 will be a feast for college football fans, as some of the best teams in the country will square off in the biggest bowl games of the season.

One of the more compelling games will be when Georgia takes on Michigan State in the Outback Bowl at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Fla.

Both teams have good quarterbacks and both teams know how to play defense.

With a game like this, either one teams blows the other team out, or the game will come down to who blinks first.

Here's some news and notes coming out of Tampa just hours away from kickoff.

John Jenkins Will Be Back

After thinking about going to the NFL or not, NT John Jenkins will be back for his senior year. Jenkins asked for a NFL draft evaluation in early December and was really considering making the jump to the pros.

But after taking some time to think things through, Jenkins will play one more year for the Dawgs and the Bulldog nation could not be any happier.

Running Back U in Tampa

One of the things to watch for in the Outback Bowl is who will get the most carries for the Bulldogs at the running back position.

At the start of the week Ken Malcome was listed as the No. 1 running back, but that has likely changed because Carlton Thomas, Isaiah Crowell and Richard Samuel are healthy and ready to put up big numbers against the Spartans.

This will be the first time since the beginning of the season all four backs will be ready to go. It will be real interesting to see how Mark Richt rotates the four guys.

Not the Final Game

Kirk Cousins had a great career at Michigan State and will savor the time he has in Tampa because the Outback Bowl will be is final game as a Spartan.

However, he does not want this to be his final football game ever because he wants to play in the NFL.

That is a very high possibility, because scouts are saying that he will be one of the first five quarterbacks drafted in April.

Also, Cousins was invited to play in the Senior Bowl where NFL coaches and scouts will be looking at the top senior players to see if they have what it takes to play in the pros.

Take It to the Max

One Cousins is no longer the starting quarterback at Michigan State, it will be Andrew Maxwell's team, but don't surprised if he sees some action at the Outback Bowl on Monday.

Maxwell is in his second season as a backup and is ready to take over as the starting QB. If he does play on Monday, he hopes to have a better performance than last year's Capital One Bowl where he completed 2 of 6 passes for 43 yards against Auburn.

Maxwell has appeared in four games this season, completing 18 of 26 passes for 171 yards and one touchdown.

Taking a Break

It's not always about the game when teams take part in the bowl.

This is a time to take a break and enjoy the activities that go on during the week.

Both Georgia and Michigan State had their share of fun as they had a welcome dinner at Outback Steakhouse, did some bowling, went to Busch Gardens and had some fun at Clearwater Beach.

Both teams have worked hard to get to where they are now and deserve some rest and relaxation before the big game on Monday.