College Football Bowl Schedule: Intense Matchups Sure to Produce Great Games

With so many BCS and non-BCS games to watch this bowl season, it's integral that the college football fan be able to determine which ones will be worth the time, and which ones will be duds.

Unfortunately, not all of the matchups are worthy of a watch, especially if they are pinning together two teams that barely made the bowl cut.

Simply put, there are far more potentially bad matchups out there than there are thrillers, so the easiest way to avoid the bad ones is to focus on the great matchups.

Here are a few really good matchups that should lead to great bowl games:

Fiesta Bowl: Oklahoma State vs. Stanford

Other than the BCS national championship, which is a given, the Fiesta Bowl should be the best matchup of this bowl season.

The game matches No. 3 Oklahoma State and No. 4 Stanford and two of this season's best quarterbacks, in Stanford's Andrew Luck and Oklahoma State's Brandon Weeden.

The Cardinal are fifth in the nation with an average of 43.6 points per game, but they will have to really be on their game against a Cowboys' team that is second in the nation with 49.3.

This game will feature two incredible offenses, and should come down to the wire.

All in all, it's the perfect bowl game not named the BCS championship.

Holiday Bowl: California vs. Texas

It may not seem like the most glamorous game on the schedule, but this matchup should be a good one.

The Longhorns finished the season at 7-5 and 4-5 in the Big 12, but they have one of the better running games in the nation, running for 210.4 yards per game.

Cal, on the other hand, hung with Arizona State and Stanford in close losses, so they should be able to make this game very interesting.

If you're not doing anything on Wednesday, Dec. 28th, I think this will be a game worth watching.

2011-2012 Bowl Schedule

Date	When	Where	Bowl	Matchup	Network
12/17	2 p.m. EST	University Stadium: Albuquerque, New Mexico	Gildan New Mexico	Temple vs. Wyoming	ESPN
12/17	5:30 p.m. EST	Bronco Stadium: Boise, Idaho	Famous Idaho Potato Bowl	Ohio vs. Utah State	ESPN
12/17	9 p.m. EST	Mercedes-Benz Superdome: New Orleans Louisiana	R+L Carriers New Orleans	San Diego State vs. Louisiana-Lafeyette	ESPN
12/20	8 p.m. EST	Tropicana Field: St. Petersburg, Florida	Beef "O" Brady's St. Petersburg	Florida International vs. Marshall	ESPN
12/21	8 p.m. EST	Qualcomm Stadium: San Diego, California	S.D. County Credit Union Poinsettia	TCU vs. Louisiana Tech	ESPN
12/22	8 p.m. EST	Sam Boyd Stadium: Las Vegas, Nevada	MAACO Las Vegas	Arizona State vs. Boise State	ESPN
12/24	8 p.m. EST	Aloha Stadium: Honolulu, Hawaii	Sheraton Hawaii	Nevada vs. Southern Miss	ESPN
12/26	5 p.m. EST	Independence Stadium: Shreveport, Louisiana	AdvoCare V100 Independence	Missouri vs. North Carolina	ESPN2
12/27	4:30 p.m. EST	Ford Field: Detroit Michigan	Little Caesars	Western Michigan vs. Purdue	ESPN
12/27	8 p.m. EST	Bank of America Stadium: Charlotte, North Carolina	Belk	Louisville vs. NC State	ESPN
12/28	4:30 p.m. EST	RFK Stadium: Washington D.C.	Military Bowl Presented By Northrop Grumman	Toledo vs. Air Force	ESPN
12/28	8 p.m. EST	Qualcomm Stadium: San Diego, California	Bridgepoint Education Holiday	California vs. Texas	ESPN
12/29	5:30 p.m. EST	Florida Citrus Bowl: Orlando, Florida	Champs Sports	Florida State vs. Notre Dame	ESPN
12/29	9 p.m. EST	Alamodome: San Antonio, Texas	Valero Alamo	Washington vs. Baylor	ESPN
12/30	noon EST	Gerald J. Ford Stadium: Dallas, Texas	Bell Helicopter Armed Forces	BYU vs. Tulsa	ESPN
12/30	3:20 p.m. EST	Yankee Stadium: Bronx, New York	New Era Pinstripe	Rutgers vs. Iowa State	ESPN
12/30	6:40 p.m. EST	LP Field: Nashville, Tennessee	Franklin American Mortgage Music City	Mississippi State vs. Wake Forest	ESPN
12/30	10 p.m. EST	Sun Devil Stadium: Tempe, Arizona	Insight	Iowa vs. Oklahoma	ESPN
12/31	noon EST	Reliant Stadium: Houston, Texas	Meineke Car Care of Texas	Texas A&M vs. Northwestern	ESPN
12/31	2 p.m. EST	Sun Bowl: El Paso, Texas	Hyundai Sun	Georgia Tech vs. Utah	CBS
12/31	3:30 p.m. EST	Liberty Bowl: Memphis, Tennessee	AutoZone Liberty	Cincinnati vs. Vanderbilt	ABC
12/31	3:30 p.m. EST	AT&T Park: San Francisco, California	Kraft Fight Hunger	Illinois vs. UCLA	ESPN
12/31	7:30 p.m. EST	Georgia Dome: Atlanta, Georgia	Chick-fil-A	Virginia vs. Auburn	ESPN
2/1	noon EST	Cotton Bowl: Dallas, Texas	TicketCity	Houston vs. Penn State	ESPNU
2/1	1 p.m. EST	Raymond James Stadium: Tampa, Florida	Outback	Michigan State vs. Georgia	ABC
2/1	1 p.m. EST	Florida Citrus Bowl: Orlando Florida	Capital One	Nebraska vs. South Carolina	ESPN
2/1	1 p.m. EST	EverBank Field: Jacksonville, Florida	Taxlayer.com Gator Bowl	Ohio State vs. Florida	ESPN2
2/1	5 p.m. EST	Rose Bowl: Pasadena, California	Rose Bowl presented by Vizio	Wisconsin vs. Oregon	ESPN
2/1	8:30 p.m. EST	University of Phoenix Stadium: Glendale, Arizona	Tostitos Fiesta	Stanford vs. Oklahoma State	ESPN
3/1	8:30 p.m. EST	Louisiana Superdome: New Orleans Louisiana	Allstate Sugar	Michigan vs. Virginia Tech	ESPN
4/1	8:30 p.m. EST	Sun Life Stadium: Miami, Florida	Discover Orange	West Virginia vs. Clemson	ESPN
6/1	8 p.m. EST	Cowboys Stadium: Arlington, Texas	AT&T Cotton	Kansas State vs. Arkansas	FOX
7/1	1 p.m. EST	Legion Field: Birmingham, Alabama	BBVA Compass Bowl	SMU vs. Pittsburgh	ESPN
8/1	9 p.m. EST	Ladd-Peebles Stadium: Mobile, Alabama	GoDaddy.com	Arkansas State vs. Northern Illinois	ESPN
9/1	8:30 p.m. EST	Louisiana Superdome: New Orleans, Louisiana	Allstate BCS National Championship Game	LSU vs. Alabama	ESPN