Gator Bowl Selection Committee Voting on Nebraska Invite Tonight!

The Cornhuskers could be getting an invitation to the Gator Bowl, as early as tonight at 5 p.m. Eastern!

More details from the Savannah Morning News:

The Gator Bowl’s preference hasn’t changed: Officials want to match Florida State and Nebraska (both teams are 8-4), a rivalry that was one of the best in college football in the late 1980s and early 1990s when they met four times in bowl games: twice in the Fiesta Bowl and twice in the Orange Bowl.

The Gator Bowl could select Nebraska as early as today, if president Rick Catlett can reach an agreement with directors of the Cotton Bowl and Holiday Bowl. If the Big 12 sends two teams to the BCS, the Gator picks its Big 12 team after the Cotton (speculation is that the Cotton will take the odd team out of the BCS among Texas, Oklahoma and Texas Tech), and the Holiday (which covets Oklahoma State).

According to two sources who requested anonymity, the Gator Bowl selection committee could vote on inviting Nebraska in a meeting at 5 p.m. today.

The last game in that series was in 1994, when the Seminoles beat Nebraska, 18-16, to win their first national championship. FSU also won the other three bowl meetings.

There is the added novelty of Nebraska having never played in the Gator Bowl, plus the Cornhuskers won five of their last six games, losing only to Texas Tech in overtime.

However, if the Chick-fil-A Bowl in Atlanta—which picks an ACC team ahead of the Gator Bowl—plucks FSU, the Gator Bowl would be more than happy to settle for Clemson (7-5, and winner of four of its last five games), Georgia Tech (9-3 under first-year coach Paul Johnson) or Virginia Tech (8-4, and headed for the ACC title game against Boston College).

A less likely possibility is North Carolina (8-4), which is among the ACC teams being considered by the Chick-fil-A.