2010-11 Bowl Schedule: Ranking the Most Compelling Matchups
The 2010 bowl season is here and college football fans should be more excited than a kid on Christmas morning.
OK, maybe not. But they should be pleased with the games at the very least.
This year's bowl schedule has a ton of interesting matchups, from the opening New Mexico Bowl to the Tostitos BCS National Championship.
Of course, there will be some certified stinkers sprinkled here and there, but the majority of the games will be appealing to even casual football fans.
But what games are the most compelling of the 2010-11 bowl season?
Let's take a look at the top 20 games that college football fans should tune into.
20. Independence Bowl: Air Force Vs. Georgia Tech
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This game won't be everyone's cup of tea, that's for sure.
It's a battle between option teams that just so happen to have the nation's top-two rushing attacks.
Some might grab the remote. But others will love this.
How Compelling Is It: 3/10. More people will hate this matchup than enjoy it.
19. Sheraton Hawaii Bowl: Hawaii Vs. Tulsa
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I know it seems like Hawaii plays in the Hawaii Bowl every year, but I'm more intrigued by this one than I have been in a while.
Hawaii has the nation's No. 9 scoring offense and No. 1 passing offense while Tulsa has the nation's No. 16 passing attack, No. 15 rushing attack and No. 10 scoring offense.
Anyone think this is gonna be a high-scoring game?
How Compelling Is It: 3.5/10. It's still Hawaii and Tulsa.
18. Music City Bowl: North Carolina Vs. Tennessee
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North Carolina has dealt with suspensions to a boatload of players and the school even dismissed Marvin Austin, who was projected as a first-round draft pick.
The Tar Heels still managed to win seven games despite the controversy surrounding the program and they earned the right to face Tennessee in the Music City Bowl.
Head coach Derek Dooley's tenure in Knoxville got off to a rough 2-6 start, but the Volunteers have won four straight games and Dooley has done that while playing more freshmen than any other team in the country.
How Compelling Is It: 4/10. Tennessee is a program on the rise and everyone loves a little drama involving recruiting, which UNC brings to the table.
.jpg?w=256 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
17. Champs Sports Bowl: West Virginia Vs. NC State
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NC State has looked like a pretty good football team at times and West Virginia is probably the most well-known team in the Big East.
Yeah, even more so than UConn, which is playing in the Tostitos Fiesta Bowl.
The Mountaineers have the nation's No. 2 scoring defense while the Wolfpack has the No. 19 passing attack and a two-sport athlete in quarterback Russell Wilson.
How Compelling Is It: 4.5/10. West Virginia is 9-3 and nearly made it to a BCS bowl game.
16. Holiday Bowl: Nebraska Vs. Washington
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Nebraska was three points away from playing in a BCS game.
Washington was a Jake Locker away from not playing in a bowl game at all.
Seriously, a 6-6 Huskies team probably doesn't deserve to be here and the Cornhuskers could easily be playing Connecticut instead.
That's precisely why this bowl game is intriguing though.
How Compelling Is It: 4.5/10. Taylor Martinez versus Locker should provide a nice quarterback battle.
15. Outback Bowl: Florida Vs. Penn State
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You see those two schools and you think that this game is probably a BCS matchup.
Well, it's really nothing more than a consolation prize for two schools that have been very disappointing so far this season.
Still, this game will get a ton of publicity because Joe Paterno refuses to retire and an Urban Meyer team struggled for the first time in forever.
How Compelling Is It: 5/10. The game itself leaves a lot to be desired.
14. Insight Bowl: Missouri Vs. Iowa
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Missouri was once a top contender in the Big 12 before suffering two disappointing losses, but the Tigers have rebounded nicely and won three straight games.
They'll take on Iowa, which has lost three straight games and scored just 19 points per game over its last four contests.
This is a battle of two teams whose bandwagons were filled midway through the season, but have since emptied considerably.
How Compelling Is It: 5.5/10. Blaine Gabbert and Ricky Stanzi are two quarterbacks worth watching.
13. Kraft Fight Hunger Bowl: Nevada Vs. Boston College
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Nevada is coming off the biggest upset in school history, an overtime win over WAC powerhouse Boise State.
Boston College isn't a great football team, as it went 7-5 and allowed more points than it scored, but Mark Herzlich will be on the field for the Golden Eagles after coming back from cancer.
It's a meeting of two storybook tales.
How Compelling Is It: 6/10. The stage itself doesn't provide for a memorable game, but the storylines do.
12. Valero Alamo Bowl: Oklahoma State Vs. Arizona
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Arizona was once a top-15 team, but the Wildcats have limped to the finish, losing four straight games to fall to 7-5.
The Wildcats will take on Oklahoma State, which narrowly missed a BCS bid with the nation's No. 3 scoring offense.
It'll be interesting to see if Arizona has a chance at slowing down Kendall Hunter, Justin Blackmon and that Cowboys offense.
How Compelling Is It: 6.5/10. As messed up as it sounds, people love to watch others fail miserably. And Arizona could write a book on that right now.
11. Hyundai Sun Bowl: Notre Dame Vs. Miami
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Neither of these teams finished anywhere near where they thought they would.
Miami fired Randy Shannon after going 7-5 and doesn't have another permanent coach lined up, while Notre Dame's Brian Kelly also went 7-5 in his first season with the Fighting Irish.
Can Kelly turn the program around? Will Miami even show up?
Ah, the intrigue is everywhere.
How Compelling Is It: 7/10. It's compelling, alright, but more because of the coaching situations than the actual game.
10. Tostitos Fiesta Bowl: Connecticut Vs. Oklahoma
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Oklahoma is a familiar face on the BCS scene, but Connecticut is making its first-ever BCS appearance.
Plenty of people are questioning whether a Big East team even deserves an automatic bid this year because the conference had such a down season.
It's up to the Huskies to prove it does.
How Compelling Is It: 7.5/10. The Fiesta Bowl is a big game and Randy Edsall's team has overcome a lot of adversity to get there. But I'm not sure many people know much about UConn.
9. Gator Bowl: Mississippi State Vs. Michigan
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Dan Mullen has taken Mississippi State from the SEC cellar to a New Year's Day bowl game.
Rich Rodriguez is probably out at Michigan if he loses this game.
These are two teams going in opposite directions, I'd say.
How Compelling Is It: 7.5/10. Rodriguez's job status, the growth of the Bulldogs and the play of Denard Robinson will make fans tune in.
8. AT&T Cotton Bowl: Texas A&M Vs. LSU
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Texas A&M beat both teams that played in the Big 12 championship, but the Aggies didn't appear in the game themselves thanks to the screwed-up BCS system.
The new-look Aggies, which have won six straight games, will take on the LSU Tigers.
And even though LSU's quarterback play has been pretty awful all season, you have to wonder if this game will come down to Les Miles pulling another crazy one out of the playbook.
How Compelling Is It: 8/10. Anything involving the "Mad Hatter" has the ability to create something compelling.
7. Chick-Fil-A Bowl: South Carolina Vs. Florida State
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Both of these teams got beat down in their conference championship games.
South Carolina's still trying to stop Cam Newton and Florida State's still in shock over Tyrod Taylor's performance.
So this is a rebound game, for sure, and it's also another opportunity for Steve Spurrier to take down Florida State, a team he has historically struggled against.
How Compelling Is It: 8/10. This tends to be one of the better matchups outside of the BCS and Spurrier's history with the Seminoles makes it even bigger this time around.
6. Capital One Bowl: Alabama Vs. Michigan State
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Michigan State would be in the BCS if it wasn't for the ridiculous rule that prohibits three teams from the same conference from going to a BCS game.
Defending national champion Alabama has lost three games but is still one of the most talented teams in the nation, with three players likely to go in the first round of the 2011 NFL Draft
I think that pretty much sums this one up.
How Compelling Is It: 8.5/10. If I told a casual fan this was a BCS game, he wouldn't even question it.
5. MAACO Las Vegas Bowl: Boise State Vs. Utah
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Once upon a time, Boise State and Utah were ranked in the top-five, seemingly poised to bust the BCS.
But the Broncos lost to Nevada and the Utes stumbled a couple of times at the end of the season to set up this epic clash.
People will want to see how Boise State responds after having its BCS dreams crushed two weeks ago.
How Compelling Is It: 8.5/10. Boise State is a national darling now and Utah's up there with them.
4. Discover Orange Bowl: Stanford Vs. Virginia Tech
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Stanford's lone loss came against Oregon and Andrew Luck is the nation's top pro prospect at the quarterback position.
The Cardinal will take on Virginia Tech, which has won 10 straight games after being on the wrong side of the upset of the century—a loss to James Madison.
The Hokies have been on fire ever since, but so has the Cardinal.
So what gives?
How Compelling Is It: 9/10. Can Virginia Tech complete a miracle turnaround or will Stanford continue to put up a ton of points? I can't wait to find out.
3. Allstate Sugar Bowl: Ohio State Vs. Arkansas
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Let's get straight to the point: the most interesting thing about this game is the quarterback battle.
It's Arkansas' Ryan Mallett against Ohio State's Terrelle Pryor in a game between two guys who will be playing on Sundays.
That is all.
How Compelling Is It: 9/10. Two teams ranked in the top seven playing in a city that loves to party.
2. Rose Bowl: Wisconsin Vs. TCU
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No. 5 Wisconsin is probably the nation's hottest team right now, having dropped 70 points in two of its last three games.
The Badgers will take on No. 3 TCU, which was about as close to playing for a national title as any non-automatic qualifying team has ever been.
The Horned Frogs rank fourth in the nation in points scored and first in points allowed, but the Badgers will undoubtedly be their toughest test to date.
How Compelling Is It: 9.5/10. This is a matchup between two of the top three teams outside of the national championship game. Needless to say, people will be paying attention.
1. Tostitos BCS National Championship: Auburn Vs. Oregon
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It's Auburn versus Oregon.
It's a battle of two high-octane offenses.
It's Darron Thomas and LaMichael James versus Cam Newton and Nick Fairley.
It's a matchup between two teams that are no strangers to having controversial quarterbacks.
It's the Tostitos BCS National Championship.
How Compelling Is It: It's college football's biggest game by default, but everything surrounding it—the Heisman race, the Cam Newton situation, etc.—has taken this game to an astronomical level.
.jpg?w=480 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
