2011 Bowl Predictions: 5 Bowls with the Best Storylines to Follow

The college football bowl season kicks off in less than a week. And while majority of the matchups will be great on the field, there are also quite a few games with intriguing storylines. Those make the games even more interesting to watch. 

With coaching changes, scandals and players playing their last game, there are a lot of other reasons to watch the games, other than just the players on the field.

As we get closer to kickoff, here are five games with great storylines and why each game is a must-watch this bowl season.

Outback Bowl: Michigan State vs. Georgia

Both of these football teams are loaded with talent; they were just inconsistent at times during the season.

With Michigan State, you have a team that feel just short in the Big Ten Championship but proved they could play with anybody. And then you have the Georgia Bulldogs who played well enough to beat LSU, but a couple of miscues ended up costing them the game.

Georgia will also be going up against a great defense in the Spartans. Hopefully the offense shows up better than it did against the Tigers.

Champs Sports Bowl: Notre Dame vs. Florida State

It's always fun when you get two historic programs going at it. Both of these teams have had down seasons, but they still have loads of talent on both sides of the ball.

Critics were claiming that this was the season that both of these teams are 'back,' but they failed to live up to expectations. When will these programs rise back to the top of the college football world? I do know that the winner of this game can have some momentum heading into next year.

You may also get a good game as well, as both of these teams are great when the right team gets off the bus.

TicketCity Bowl: Penn State vs. Houston

We all know what's going on at Penn State, but this game isn't about that. I'm interested to know how these programs will look moving forward.

Houston just lost their head coach Kevin Sumlin to Texas A&M, and he won't coach in the bowl game. Penn State is without a permanent coach, and nobody know who is going to take over. How will these programs look heading into next year?

The matchup isn't that bad either with a high-scoring Houston offense and a shut-down Nittany Lions defense. This will also be Case Keenum's last game as a collegiate athlete.

BCS National Championship: Alabama vs. LSU

Of course this game had to be on here. After all, it is the national championship.

Many fans don't agree with the matchup for many reasons, but it does have some interesting stuff heading into it. How many points will be scored this time, and what did these teams learn from their matchup earlier in the season? It's also nice seeing a chess match between two great coaches in Nick Saban and Les Miles.

Pretty much all of the storylines the 'Game of the Century' had, just times two.

It's also expected to be a fantastic game, regardless if the fans agree with the rematch or not.

Gator Bowl: Florida vs. Ohio State

The last time these two teams met, the Florida Gators were celebrating a national championship. And the Gators had the Buckeyes current head coach.

Now, Meyer is with Ohio State, and you can say what you want, but some Florida fans aren't happy. Sure, Meyer helped them win two national championships, but he also said he wasn't going to leave Florida just to coach a different school. That's exactly what he did.

You can call this the Meyer Bowl, and Gators players and fans would like nothing more than to stick it to their former coach.

Randy Chambers is a B/R Featured Columnist that covers College Football and the NFL. You can contact him @Randy_Chambers or [e-mail]