20 Best Performances of 2015-16 College Football Bowl Season
With just the College Football Playoff National Championship Game left next Monday, this bowl season is officially in the books.
It was the biggest bowl season ever for college football in terms of games, and it was also one of the biggest for statistical dominance.
From highly touted gunslingers and big-play rushers to do-it-all defensive menaces, plenty of star players stuffed the stat sheets like holiday stockings during these last few weeks. Some entire units won themselves acclaim with their ridiculous performances, and a few lesser-known names became stars in the national spotlight.
After scouring all the stat sheets from this postseason's action, here are the 20 best performances of bowl season. These picks were based mostly on statistics, with a few bonuses thrown to players who helped their teams pull out dramatic victories.
Of course, plenty of great players from bowl season didn't make the cut this time around, and there are sure to be some names you may feel were unjustly robbed. Shout them out in the comments below.
Honorable Mention
1 of 21
Before breaking down the top 20 performances from this year's bowl season, here are a dozen more playmakers who were considered—but narrowly missed the cut.
Akron LB Jatavis Brown
Arizona State WR Tim White
Indiana RB Devine Redding
Clemson QB Deshaun Watson
Louisville LB Devonte Fields
Ohio State RB Ezekiel Elliott
Southern Miss WR Michael Thomas
Stanford DE Aziz Shittu
Utah S Tevin Carter
Washington RB Myles Gaskin
Western Michigan RB Jamauri Bogan
Wisconsin LB Jack Cichy
Alabama Defense
2 of 21
239 total yards and zero points allowed
Alabama's defense was one of the best in college football all season long, and the Tide seemed to improve upon their regular-season performance where it mattered the most—the College Football Playoff.
One year after surrendering 537 yards to Ohio State in a national semifinal, Alabama shut down Big Ten champion Michigan State in a 38-0 victory at the Cotton Bowl on New Year's Eve. The Spartans only recorded 239 yards of total offense, their lowest amount since 2012.
Michigan State went three-and-out on almost half of its 13 drives and only reached the Alabama red zone once, when quarterback Connor Cook threw an interception to cornerback Cyrus Jones just outside the goal line late in the second quarter. As the Alabama offense came alive in the third quarter, the defense held on for a dominant shutout.
"We just did what we've done all year," Alabama defensive lineman Jonathan Allen said, per Matt Zenitz of AL.com. "We did things the Bama way. We do things the right way, and that's why we have success."
Arizona LB Scooby Wright III
3 of 21
15 tackles (3.5 for loss) and two sacks
Injuries robbed Scooby Wright III from getting to follow up his award-winning 2014 campaign, but his college finale at the New Mexico Bowl on Dec. 19 was one of the best games of his career.
Although it was just the third game he played in 2015, Wright III led Arizona in tackles and tackles for loss in the Wildcats' 45-37 victory over option-running New Mexico Lobos. The 3.5 tackles for loss made for Wright's fourth-best Arizona performance in that category.
"We thought he was going to be a great player when we signed him," Arizona head coach Rich Rodriguez said, per Ed Johnson of the Albuquerque Journal. "I don’t know how many other people did. We thought he not only was that, but he’s done everything he can to make himself better every year."
After his 15-tackle game, Wright announced he would forgo his senior season at Arizona and enter the 2016 NFL draft, per Kyle Bonagura of ESPN.com. One of college football's most dominant defenders in recent memory got to go out on top.
.jpg?w=256 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
Baylor RB Johnny Jefferson
4 of 21
23 carries for 299 yards and three TDs
Baylor didn't have its two best quarterbacks (Seth Russell and Jarrett Stidham), best running back (Shock Linwood) or best wide receiver (Corey Coleman) for the Russell Athletic Bowl against North Carolina.
But behind a run-heavy attack, the Bears set the all-time record for rushing yards in a single bowl game by the end of the third quarter of their 49-38 victory. Backup running back Johnny Jefferson was the star of the evening, putting up 299 of Baylor's 645 rushing yards on coordinator Gene Chizik's Tar Heel defense.
"It just says we're tough. Baylor's whole identity is 'physicality travels.' That's all we preach. That's all we teach," Jefferson said, per the Associated Press (via USA Today). "So being physical today, we won the game."
Jefferson found the end zone twice in the second quarter to stretch Baylor's lead to three possessions, and he made it an 18-point game again in the third with an 80-yard sprint to the end zone. To make his night even better, Jefferson's bowl output gave him exactly 1,000 rushing yards for the season on just 136 carries.
Boise State Defense
5 of 21
33 total yards and zero points allowed
Boise State didn't just blow out Northern Illinois in the Poinsettia Bowl on Dec. 23. By allowing just 33 total yards, the Broncos defense paved the way for the third-biggest yardage differential in a game featuring an FBS team since 2000, per Jason Kirk of SB Nation. (That includes FBS vs. FCS games!)
"Northern Illinois gained 42 yards on its opening drive and negative-9 for its other 13," Kirk wrote. "NIU averaged negative-.69 yards per drive after the first drive of the game. NIU would've been better off punting on first down every single time it touched the ball after the first time."
And, as Kirk pointed out, Northern Illinois wasn't an average bowl team—it was the MAC West Division champion that almost beat Ohio State in the regular season. But a Boise State defense that allowed at least 400 yards in its previous four games slammed the door on the Huskies and then some.
Boise State was the only defense to hold an opponent to double digits in total yardage during bowl season, and the second-best team in that category allowed 164 more yards. If it wasn't for a 96-yard kickoff return touchdown from NIU in the second quarter, this would have been the most impressive bowl shutout in quite some time.
Cal QB Jared Goff
6 of 21
25-of-37 passing for 467 yards, six TDs and zero INTs
Jared Goff is one of the top prospects in the 2016 NFL draft, and he should have left one incredible impression on scouts who watched him in the Armed Forces Bowl last Tuesday.
Goff threw for 467 yards and six touchdowns—the latter tops among all quarterbacks this bowl season—in Cal's 55-36 victory over Air Force. What's even more impressive is that Goff put up those ridiculous numbers while finishing outside the top 20 in pass attempts among bowl signal-callers.
The Golden Bears quarterback completed passes to nine different receivers and had a dozen passes go for more than 15 yards. According to Chantel Jennings of ESPN.com, Goff's six touchdowns against Air Force gave him 43 career scores, which broke former Oregon Duck Marcus Mariota's Pac-12 record.
Two days after leading Cal to its first bowl victory since the 2008 season, Goff announced he would enter the NFL draft. He couldn't have had a much better bowl performance to raise his stock.
Clemson LB Ben Boulware
7 of 21
Eight tackles (one for loss), one sack, one INT and one pass breakup
Clemson's entire defense made play after play throughout the Tigers' 37-17 victory over favored No. 4 seed Oklahoma in the Orange Bowl playoff semifinal, but linebacker Ben Boulware stood out among the rest.
Boulware had the third-most tackles on the team and put a tally in nearly every statistical category on defense en route to winning the defensive Most Outstanding Player Award. He had two half-sacks of Oklahoma quarterback Baker Mayfield that came late in drives, and his acrobatic interception in the fourth quarter took away the Sooners' best chance of scoring in the second half:
"Highlights: Ben Boulware with the pick in the red zone - https://t.co/Tzbsdva56j #Clemson
— Orange and White (@orangeandwhite) January 1, 2016"
As Boulware shouted after the game, per Bruce Feldman of Fox Sports, you can't doubt the 14-0 record of the Clemson Tigers. And on New Year's Eve, you couldn't doubt the impact of one of the nation's most talented linebackers.
Duke K Ross Martin
8 of 21
3-of-3 on field goals (long of 52), 5-of-5 on extra points
Let's give the special teams game some love in this year's list of top bowl performers. Duke kicker Ross Martin had the most impressive—and most important—stat line of all specialists in the postseason, helping the Blue Devils win their first bowl game since 1961.
Martin was perfect on field goals and extra points in Duke's 44-41 overtime victory over Indiana in the Pinstripe Bowl. His 52-yarder in the first quarter was the longest of bowl season, and he also hit a 36-yarder in overtime that served as the game-winner when Indiana's tying attempt was controversially ruled no good.
"It couldn't have happened in a better way, overtime," Martin said, per the Associated Press (via ESPN.com). "I think we're four-for-four for the most exciting bowl games every year. So it's finally good to jump around the locker room and celebrate up on stage. That's incredible for the entire program."
Duke needed every single point it could get out of its senior kicker in one of the most exciting games of bowl season, and Martin delivered in a big way for the Blue Devils at Yankee Stadium.
Georgia Southern QB Favian Upshaw
9 of 21
12 carries for 199 yards and four TDs
Favian Upshaw didn't start in the GoDaddy Bowl for Georgia Southern. But by the end of the night, he was celebrating a 58-27 victory over MAC champion Bowling Green as the game's Most Valuable Player.
Upshaw came in off the bench to rip apart the Falcons defense in Georgia Southern's famed option offense. He was a master of the read-option, taking just a dozen carries for 199 yards and four touchdowns in the tremendous second-half surge from the Eagles.
"Favian, he had the hot hand," Georgia Southern interim head coach Dell McGee said afterward, per Mark Inabinett of AL.com. "He was reading the read-option real well. I thought we would go with him."
That turned out to be a great call for the first-time head coach. Upshaw either scored or moved the chains on his final eight carries of the game, and his average of 16.6 yards per carry was by far the best among bowl rushers with at least 10 carries.
Houston CB William Jackson III
10 of 21
10 tackles, two INTs and two pass breakups
Knocking off Florida State in the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl was a complete team effort for Houston, and top cornerback William Jackson III did more than his fair share of stopping the Seminoles inside the Georgia Dome.
Jackson picked off Florida State quarterback Sean Maguire inside Houston territory twice and tied for the team high in tackles with 10—eight of them were solo stops. The senior was named the game's Defensive MVP, and he did wonders for his high-rising NFL draft stock.
"For any NFL scouts that doubt the skills of Houston CB William Jackson III, film of the Peach Bowl could be in order," Chase Goodbread of NFL.com wrote. "[His performance] gave him 23 breakups and five picks on the year for an FBS-leading 28 passes defensed...now all he needs is a strong performance at the NFL Scouting Combine to cement himself among the top cornerbacks in the 2016 NFL draft."
Jackson was one of the best defensive backs in college football this season, and he proved it when the national spotlight was the brightest for him and the red-hot Cougars.
Louisiana Tech RB Kenneth Dixon
11 of 21
21 carries for 102 yards and two TDs; six receptions for 113 yards and two TDs
Running back Kenneth Dixon wasn't able to hold on to the all-time career total touchdown mark he set in Louisiana Tech's New Orleans Bowl victory over Arkansas State thanks to quarterback Keenan Reynolds' Military Bowl performance. But on the first night of bowl season, the Red Wolves and his own jersey numbers had a hard time keeping up with him:
"Still my favorite image from bowl season (Kenneth Dixon of LA Tech scoring w/o a jersey number) pic.twitter.com/EGF1TckDQZ
— David LeBlanc (@David_LeBlanc20) January 1, 2016"
Dixon put up 215 yards of total offense and four touchdowns in the 47-28 bowl victory for the Bulldogs, who won back-to-back postseason games for the first time in school history. He finished his career with 87 total touchdowns, and the senior back gave props to Reynolds after his performance.
"If he gets the record it's good," Dixon said, per Sean Isabella of the News Star. "Just to have two people chasing that record at the same thing is remarkable. Everybody will talk about it forever. If he wins it, I feel great for him and I'll be real happy for him."
Louisville QB Lamar Jackson
12 of 21
12-of-26 passing for 227 yards, two TDs and zero INTs; 22 carries for 226 yards and two TDs
In his freshman season as Louisville's top quarterback, Lamar Jackson usually either had a big day throwing the ball or running it for the Cardinals. But in his season finale, Jackson excelled at both in a 27-21 Music City Bowl win over Texas A&M.
The freshman had more than 200 yards of interception-free passing and broke the 200-yard mark on the ground for the first time in his promising career. He scored all four of Louisville's touchdowns in Nashville, Tennessee, and became the first FBS quarterback with a 200-200 game since Johnny Manziel did it in 2012.
According to SB Nation, Jackson finished with five 100-100 games this season as Louisville's quarterback, and the record-breaking rushing performance in the Music City Bowl put him past some elite company as far as dual threats go:
"Michael Vick had three games of at least 100 yards passing and rushing in his collegiate career. Lamar Jackson has five this year.
— SB✯Nation CFB (@SBNationCFB) December 31, 2015"
LSU RB Leonard Fournette
13 of 21
29 carries for 212 yards and four TDs; one reception for 44 yards and one TD
It only took two offensive snaps for LSU running back Leonard Fournette to wreak havoc on Texas Tech's defense, one of the worst in the country in stopping the run.
On the second offensive play of the game for LSU in the Texas Bowl, Fournette broke a 35-yard run. A few plays later, he scored his first of four touchdowns against the Red Raiders to go along with his 212-yard day. He later ran for either a touchdown or a first down on five straight carries in the second half.
"This is a night that Leonard Fournette would have again and again and again," LSU head coach Les Miles said, per the Associated Press (via ESPN.com). "I wouldn't call it routine because he is not a routine runner; he's a special back. But we would expect him to have nights like this. He's fast and strong and capable."
Fournette's four rushing touchdowns were tied for the most in bowl season, and he had the fifth-most yards of any rusher during the postseason. He finished 47 yards shy of a 2,000-yard campaign and will be a strong candidate for the 2016 Heisman Trophy.
Mississippi State QB Dak Prescott
14 of 21
25-of-42 passing for 380 yards, four TDs and one INT; 12 carries for 47 yards
Dak Prescott finished his prolific Mississippi State career with 427 all-purpose yards, four touchdowns and a personal standing ovation in the Bulldogs' 51-28 Belk Bowl win over NC State.
"It’s probably not going to really set in until March when we walk out to the practice field and he won’t be there," Mississippi State head coach Dan Mullen said, per Joel Coleman of the Starkville Daily News. "The great thing is I know it’s not going to be the last time I see him play because I’m going to make sure I get to see him play in the future."
Prescott shook off a rocky start in the second half to fire a pair of touchdown passes to running back Brandon Holloway and seal the victory for Mississippi State. He was also the Bulldogs' leading rusher against the Wolfpack, moving the chains on five of his 12 carries.
Prescott's 380 yards through the air were his third-best single-game mark, and the Belk Bowl was also the third time in his final five games in which he scored four touchdowns through the air. He went out in style.
North Carolina A&T RB Tarik Cohen
15 of 21
22 carries for 295 yards and three TDs
The first star of 2015 bowl season came from the HBCU ranks as North Carolina A&T running back Tarik Cohen completely took over the inaugural Celebration Bowl.
Cohen averaged 13.4 yards per carry in North Carolina A&T's victory in the Georgia Dome over Alcorn State—one that gave the Aggies the HBCU national title. His touchdown runs went for 73, 74 and 83 yards, and he chipped in a 52-yard reception to give him well over 300 all-purpose yards.
"The play action fools everyone, even the cameraman! #CelebrationBowl pic.twitter.com/phDYlEij1J
— RedditCFB (@RedditCFB) December 19, 2015"
But this wasn't the first time Cohen has impressed the country with his athleticism. Earlier in 2015, a video of him catching two footballs while doing a backflip went viral. He definitely knows how to grab plenty of attention when the cameras are rolling.
Ole Miss WR Laquon Treadwell
16 of 21
Six receptions for 71 yards and three TDs; 1-of-1 passing for 45 yards
Laquon Treadwell—who announced his decision to enter the 2016 draft on Monday in a statement on Ole Miss' official athletics site—ended his Ole Miss career in spectacular fashion.
Treadwell came down with three touchdown catches and set up another touchdown with a trick-play pass in Ole Miss' 48-20 throttling of Oklahoma State in the Sugar Bowl. As Jeff Gray of SB Nation's Red Cup Rebellion noted, the performance was arguably Treadwell's best as a Rebel.
"Laquon Treadwell can throw, too, because of course he can. https://t.co/v2aMEHkGLR
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) January 2, 2016"
"In a three-year span that's seen Laquon catch 21 touchdowns, [the Sugar Bowl] was the first time he's ever pulled off a hat trick," Gray wrote. "He was absolutely unstoppable, pulling in six grabs for 71 yards and blowing past All-Big 12 cornerback Kevin Peterson with ease."
Treadwell overcame an awful leg injury last season to return as one of the nation's best wide receivers in 2015. He has serious first-round potential as a game-changing wide receiver, and he showcased his skill set to the highest degree against Oklahoma State.
SDSU DE Kyle Kelley
17 of 21
Nine tackles (3.5 for loss) and 3.5 sacks
One of the biggest beatdowns of bowl season came on Christmas Eve, when San Diego State flattened Cincinnati by a score of 42-7 in the Hawaii Bowl.
SDSU defensive end Kyle Kelley definitely enjoyed his time in paradise, leading in tackles, tackles for loss and sacks for an Aztecs defense that held the Bearcats' prolific attack to its worst performance of 2015. Kelley set the tone for the blowout by recording 2.5 of his sacks in the first quarter.
The former Arizona defensive lineman set a Hawaii Bowl record with his 3.5 sacks and provided plenty of pressure on Cincinnati quarterback Hayden Moore, who finished with three interceptions.
SDSU finished the season with the best turnover margin in college football thanks in large part to Kelley and its stingy defense.
Stanford RB Christian McCaffrey
18 of 21
18 carries for 172 yards; four receptions for 105 yards and one TD; one punt return for 63 yards and one TD; one kick return for 28 yards
If Christian McCaffrey was down after coming in second in the Heisman Trophy race, he didn't show it in the Rose Bowl against Iowa.
"Once that announcement happened and Derrick [Henry] won that Heisman, I knew what was going to happen in the Rose Bowl," Stanford lineman Joshua Garnett said, per Bleacher Report's Bryan Fischer. "That is the wrong guy to light a fire underneath. Christian McCaffrey is the best player I’ve been around in my life."
McCaffrey scored on a 75-yard reception on the first offensive play of the game and never looked back, finishing with a Rose Bowl-record 368 all-purpose yards in Stanford's 45-16 victory. His second touchdown in the game came on a 63-yard punt return in the second quarter.
The stat explosion set the tone for an easy Stanford victory and McCaffrey's 2016 Heisman campaign, as he'll return to the Farm next season with plenty of momentum as the nation's most versatile playmaker. What's left to see is how many more records he'll break.
TCU QB Bram Kohlhausen
19 of 21
28-of-45 passing for 351 yards, two TDs and one INT; 11 carries for 45 yards and two TDs
Having to fill in for suspended star quarterback Trevone Boykin was already hard enough for TCU backup Bram Kohlhausen. Coming back from a 31-point halftime deficit to Oregon was even harder.
But Kohlhausen rebounded in the second half in a huge way, leading TCU's huge comeback to force overtime against the Ducks in the Alamo Bowl. In triple overtime, Kohlhausen scored his fourth all-purpose touchdown—an eight-yard game-winner for the 47-41 thriller in San Antonio.
"The stat sheet is sparkly...but this was a performance that was anything but beautiful to watch," Bleacher Report's Ben Kercheval wrote. "Kohlhausen was gloriously gritty and would not be denied. He took several big hits and at one point needed to leave the game because of a hip injury. He returned two plays later and finished the rest of the contest."
Kohlhausen overcame a small amount of pregame preparation, overwhelming odds at the halftime break and the physical toll of the game to lead TCU to one of the biggest comebacks in college football history. This was an all-time performance from a player few knew a week ago.
Virginia Tech WR Isaiah Ford
20 of 21
12 receptions for 227 yards and one TD
The most impressive wide receiver stat line of bowl season has to go to Isaiah Ford, the Virginia Tech wide receiver who continued his hot finish to 2015 with his first career 200-yard game.
The Hokies found themselves in a shootout with Tulsa in the Independence Bowl, but they were able to send legendary head coach Frank Beamer out as a winner thanks in part to Ford's huge day. He led all receivers in yards and receptions during bowl season.
Ford's day broke an Independence Bowl record and put him just 26 yards shy of Virginia Tech's all-time record for single-season receiving yards. The speedy receiver has two more seasons to light up the record books for new head coach Justin Fuente.
"It’s special. It’s a blessing," Ford said, per Jimmy Watson of the Shreveport Times. "But I can’t take all the credit. Michael, the offensive line, and the defensive backs I go up against every day in practice contribute."
West Virginia QB Skyler Howard
21 of 21
28-of-51 passing for 532 yards, five TDs and two INTs
Bowl season saved its most bonkers statistical performance for last—the late-night Cactus Bowl shootout on Saturday between Arizona State and West Virginia.
In that game, West Virginia quarterback Skyler Howard led his team to a 43-42 victory with 532 passing yards on just 28 completions. He had 17 passing plays of 15 or more yards, and he found the end zone five times—including a game-winning 15-yard completion to receiver David Sills with 2:19 remaining.
It was a career performance for Howard, who hadn't thrown for more than 300 yards in a game since the season opener against Georgia Southern. He received plenty of criticism during WVU's midseason slide, but he found a way to silence the critics against Arizona State.
"He is gritty, he doesn't ever give up, he continues to go. It doesn't matter what people think and people say," West Virginia head coach Dana Holgorsen said, per the Associated Press (via ESPN.com). "He just keeps going to work every day and keeps getting better and better. I am really proud of this kid."
Unless otherwise noted, statistics courtesy of cfbstats.com.
Justin Ferguson is a college football writer at Bleacher Report. You can follow him on Twitter @JFergusonBR.
.jpg?w=480 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
