Bowl Predictions 2012: Underrated Players Who Will Become Household Names

Bowl season isn't just about the teams—it's also about individual players.

This year's bowl games feature a handful of underrated players. One game is all that some of these players get to impress a national audience, so they'll bring their A-game to college football's version of the postseason.

Just because you don't know a player's name doesn't mean that he isn't an excellent player. Several players fly under the radar all year, only to burst onto the scene at their first opportunity.

Let's take a look at three players who will be household names by the time this year's bowl games are over.

Ka'Deem Carey, RB, Arizona

Carey is only a sophomore, so you'll have plenty of time to get familiar with his dynamite running ability.

With over 1,700 yards and 20 rushing touchdowns this season, Carey has excelled in Rich Rodriguez's spread offense. Assuming that Nevada's below-average doesn't slow him down, viewers will get plenty of chances to watch Carey work on December 15.

Averaging over six yards per carry is nothing but a good thing. It shows how hard Carey works, but it also shows how shifty he can be in the open field.

Matt Scott throws the ball quite a bit for the Wildcats, but Carey is the main attraction. If Arizona had won more games, he would be in the Heisman Trophy conversation. He's only had three sub-100 yard games, and he's racked up 742 yards in his last three games.

Nevada and Arizona may not sound appetizing to you, but Carey is reason enough to tune in. He's got it all, and he's only going to get better as he gains experience.

Kyle Van Noy, LB, BYU

I'm not the Heisman Trophy, so I better give attention to a defensive player. Brigham Young's defense is the fifth-ranked scoring unit in the nation, and Van Noy leads the way along with Ezekiel Ansah.

But Van Noy is the prize here. He's a junior, so you should have one more year to enjoy him, but make sure you take advantage of it.

Van Noy is a physical specimen. He uses his size/speed combination to overwhelm offensive linemen consistently, and his 11.5 sacks go a long way toward proving that.

He's primarily a threat in the box, but he does have an interception this season. That shows how versatile he can be when needed, making him a more dangerous player in the process.

The Cougars will be tested by San Diego State's offense, but Van Noy will ensure that his team stays strong at the point of attack. He may not have your attention yet, but his energy and nonstop motor will grab it soon enough.

Dri Archer, RB, Kent State

Blink, and you will miss him. That's not just because Archer is exceptionally quick, but he's only 5'8''.

Players like this are slowly finding a valuable place into many offenses. Archer is difficult to see for everyone, including the defenders who are attempting to bring him down. He hides behind blockers, popping out at the opportune time.

Archer only has 150 carries this season, but he has nearly 1,400 yards and 15 touchdowns. He also has over 500 yards receiving and four touchdowns.

This kid is just a weapon. Fellow Kent State running back Trayion Durham is also extremely productive, but he's more of a traditional ball-carrier. Archer is anything but, using his skills to terrorize defenses from every possible direction.

Archer's name doesn't turn heads like Oregon's De'Anthony Thomas or Kenjon Barner or the NFL's Darren Sproles, but he's similar. He's extremely fun to watch, and he will have a field day versus Arkansas State's porous defense.

Bowl Schedule

Note: All times are ET and p.m. unless noted otherwise. All games (except for the Sun Bowl and Cotton Bowl) can be streamed live at WatchESPN. 

Bowl	Team 1	Team 2	Stadium: Location	Date: Time	TV
New Mexico	Nevada	Arizona	University Stadium: Albuquerque, NM	12/15: 1:00	ESPN
Famous Idaho Potato	Toledo	Utah State	Bronco Stadium: Boise, ID	12/15: 4:30	ESPN
Poinsettia	BYU	San Diego State	Qualcomm Stadium: San Diego, CA	12/20: 8:00	ESPN
Beef 'O' Brady's	Ball State	UCF	Tropicana Field: St. Petersburg, FL	12/21: 7:30	ESPN
New Orleans	East Carolina	Louisiana-Lafayette	Superdome: New Orleans, LA	12/22: Noon	ESPN
Las Vegas	Boise State	Washington	Sam Boyd Stadium: Las Vegas, NV	12/22: 3:30	ESPN
Hawaii	SMU	Fresno State	Aloha Stadium: Honolulu, HI	12/24: 8:00	ESPN
Little Caesars	Central Michigan	Western Kentucky	Ford Field: Detroit, MI	12/26: 7:30	ESPN
Military	Bowling Green	San Jose State	RFK Stadium: Washington, DC	12/27: 3:00	ESPN
Belk	Duke	Cincinnati	Bank of America Stadium: Charlotte, NC	12/27: 6:30	ESPN
Holiday	Baylor	UCLA	Qualcomm Stadium: San Diego, CA	12/27: 9:45	ESPN
Independence	Louisiana-Monroe	Ohio	Independence Stadium: Shreveport, LA	12/28: 2:00	ESPN
Russell Athletic	Virginia Tech	Rutgers	Florida Citrus Bowl: Orlando, FL	12/28: 5:30	ESPN
Meineke Car Care	Minnesota	Texas Tech	Reliant Stadium: Houston, TX	12/28: 9:00	ESPN
Armed Forces	Rice	Air Force	Amon G. Carter Stadium: Fort Worth, TX	12/29: 11:45 a.m.	ESPN
Pinstripe	Syracuse	West Virginia	Yankee Stadium: Bronx, NY	12/29: 3:15	ESPN
Kraft	Navy	Arizona State	AT&T Park: San Francisco, CA	12/29: 4:00	ESPN2
Alamo	Texas	Oregon State	Alamodome: San Antonio, TX	12/29: 6:45	ESPN
Buffalo Wild Wings	TCU	Michigan State	Sun Devil Stadium: Tempe, AZ	12/29: 10:15	ESPN
Music City	N.C. State	Vanderbilt	LP Field: Nashville, TN	12/31: Noon	ESPN
Sun	Georgia Tech	USC	Sun Bowl: El Paso, TX	12/31: 2:00	CBS
Liberty	Tulsa	Iowa State	Liberty Bowl: Memphis, TN	12/31: 3:30	ESPN
Chick-fil-A	Clemson	LSU	Georgia Dome: Atlanta, GA	12/31: 7:30	ESPN
Gator	Northwestern	Mississippi State	Everbank Field: Jacksonville, FL	1/1: Noon	ESPN2
Heart of Dallas	Purdue	Oklahoma State	Cotton Bowl: Dallas, TX	1/1: Noon	ESPNU
Outback	Michigan	South Carolina	Raymond James Stadium: Tampa, FL	1/1: 1:00	ESPN
Capital One	Nebraska	Georgia	Florida Citrus Bowl: Orlando, FL	1/1: 1:00	ABC
Rose	Stanford	Wisconsin	Rose Bowl: Pasadena, CA	1/1: 5:00	ESPN
Orange	Northern Illinois	Florida State	Sun Life Stadium: Miami, FL	1/1: 8:30	ESPN
Sugar	Florida	Louisville	Superdome: New Orleans, LA	1/2: 8:30	ESPN
Fiesta	Oregon	Kansas State	U. of Phoenix Stadium: Glendale, AZ	1/3: 8:30	ESPN
Cotton	Oklahoma	Texas A&M	Cowboys Stadium: Arlington, TX	1/4: 8:00	FOX
Compass	Pittsburgh	Ole Miss	Legion Field: Birmingham, AL	1/5: 1:00	ESPN
GoDaddy.com	Kent State	Arkansas State	Ladd-Peebles Stadium: Mobile, AL	1/6: 9:00	ESPN
National Championship	Notre Dame	Alabama	Sun Life Stadium: Miami, FL	1/7: 8:30	ESPN