Five With Local Interest 1 Chick-fil-A Bowl (Virginia vs. Auburn) » Virginia Tech was destined for Atlanta, but the Cavaliers took the spot when the Hokies got the surprise call from the Sugar Bowl. Virginia will be anxious to make amends for its 38-0 loss to Virginia Tech in its season finale.
2 Orange Bowl (No. 14 Clemson vs. No. 23 West Virginia) » The ACC and Big East champs meet in the Orange for the second time in four years. This one matches the aerial combos of Tajh Boyd and Sammy Watkins (Clemson) vs. Geno Smith and Stedman Bailey (WVU).
Recommended Stories
3 Military Bowl (Air Force vs. Toledo) » An ACC team such as North Carolina would have been a more locally relevant opponent for Air Force. But why complain? Getting Air Force was a coup considering the desirable bowl destinations the Falcons usually land.
4 Belk Bowl (Louisville vs. N.C. State) » Local products quarterback bowl teams on consecutive nights. Mike Glennon (Westfield) guides N.C. State against Louisville the day after Bryn Renner (West Springfield) and UNC take on Missouri in the Independence.
5 Liberty Bowl (Vanderbilt vs. Cincinnati) » The Liberty is an appropriate destination for Vanderbilt coach James Franklin. Last year at this time, Maryland liberated Franklin from his head-coach-in-waiting deal. One interested observer: Maryland quarterback Danny O’Brien.
Five With Star Power
1 Alamo Bowl (No. 15 Baylor vs. Washington) » Can Heisman winner Robert Griffin III provide a reason to remember the Alamo? Too bad the foe isn’t more compelling than Washington (7-5), which at least has a fun quarterback in Keith Price.
2 Las Vegas Bowl (No. 8 Boise State vs. Arizona State) » This is the final game in the brilliant career of Boise State quarterback Kellen Moore, who was ignored in the Heisman voting and never got a chance to slay a giant in a bowl game.
3 Champs Sports Bowl (Notre Dame vs. No. 25 Florida State) » The stars are the high-profile programs. Both finished on upticks under second-year coaches as their recruiting prowess is finally paying off. Both figure to be ranked in the top 10 next preseason.
4 Gator Bowl (Ohio State vs. Florida) » In a matchup of 6-6 teams, coaches Will Muschamp (Florida) and Luke Fickell (Ohio State) try to dodge questions about the real star of this game, Urban Meyer, formerly of Florida and now of Ohio State.
5 Ticket City Bowl (No. 20 Houston vs. No. 24 Penn State) » Poor Houston. From a BCS bowl to Dallas. Houston quarterback Case Keenum, the FBS all-time leader in total offense and touchdown passes, faces the nation’s No. 5 scoring defense.
Five Don’t Miss Games
1 BCS national championship (No. 1 LSU vs. No. 2 Alabama) » If LSU had beaten Alabama 39-36 instead of 9-6, the nation would be excited about a rematch. Isn’t it time to embrace these two for what they are — two of the best defensive teams in NCAA history?
2 Rose Bowl (No. 9 Wisconsin vs. No. 6 Oregon) » There is no better bowl setting than dreamy Pasadena or a better bowl game than the Rose, which has remained distinctive. This year it’s another throwback matchup: Big Ten power against Pac-12 finesse.
3 Fiesta Bowl (No. 3 Oklahoma State vs. No. 4 Stanford) » This feels like a consolation bowl, pitting one-loss teams that were passed over. Still, it has quarterbacks Brandon Weeden (OSU) and Andrew Luck (Stanford) and will decide the best team outside the SEC.
4 Sugar Bowl (No. 13 Michigan vs. No. 17 Virginia Tech) » Neither is deserving, but this still is an intriguing matchup. The teams have tradition, rabid fans and 2012 Heisman candidates in quarterbacks Logan Thomas (Virginia Tech) and Denard Robinson (Michigan).
5 Cotton Bowl (No. 7 Arkansas vs. No. 11 Kansas State) » The non-BCS game with the highest-ranked teams matches overlooked quarterbacks Tyler Wilson (Arkansas) and Collin Klein (KSU). Arkansas lost to LSU and Alabama. KSU fell to Oklahoma and Oklahoma State.
Five to Skip
1 Kraft Fight Hunger (Illinois vs. UCLA) » The poor man’s Rose Bowl. Illinois (6-6) fired coach Ron Zook after it lost its last six. After firing Rick Neuheisel and losing in the Pac-12 title game, UCLA (6-7) needed a waiver to get a bowl big with a losing record.
2 Compass Bowl (SMU vs. Pittsburgh) » Is there anything worse than a bowl game between underachieving teams from weak conferences? In addition, both SMU (7-5) and Pitt (6-6) will be without injured running backs Zach Line and Ray Graham, respectively.
3 Famous Idaho Potato Bowl (Ohio vs. Utah State) » The only possible reason to watch MAC runner-up Ohio play WAC also-ran Utah State is to see how much Bobcats quarterback Tyler Tettleton resembles his father, former Orioles catcher Mickey Tettleton.
4 New Mexico Bowl (Temple vs. Wyoming) » There is no better evidence of what the inflated bowl season has become than the three games that kick it off on Saturday: Temple vs. Wyoming, Ohio vs. Utah State and San Diego State vs. Louisiana-Lafayette.
5 St. Petersburg Bowl (Florida International vs. Marshall) » When a 6-6 team from Conference USA gets into a bowl game, isn’t it time to eliminate a few? Here’s a sampling of the work of Marshall: Losses to Ohio (44-7), Houston (63-28) and Tulsa (59-17).
