2011 - 12 Bowl Games Thread

GILDAN NEW MEXICO BOWL
TEMPLE (8-4) vs. WYOMING (8-4)

Temple Leaders
Passing: Stewart - 54-83, 743 yds, 2 tds

Rushing: Pierce - 248 car, 1381 yds, 25 tds

Receiving: Rodriguez - 33 rec, 427 yds, 2 tds

Wyoming Leaders
Passing: Smith - 233-385, 2495 yds, 18 tds

Rushing: Alexander - 145 car, 678 yds, 6 tds

Receiving: McNeill - 42 rec, 504 yds, 4 tds


Temple-Wyoming Preview

Despite posting the second of what is now a school-record three straight seasons of at least eight victories, Temple was the nation's only winning team not to receive a bowl bid in 2010 after concluding that year in disappointing fashion.

The Owls ensured that it wouldn't happen again this time.

Looking to extend its longest win streak of the season, Temple faces Wyoming in the New Mexico Bowl on Saturday.

Temple was snubbed by bowl organizers after losing its final two games last season and finishing 8-4 -- identical to its record this year. The Owls, however, closed this regular season with a season-best three straight victories, making another exclusion all but impossible.

Now, a win Saturday is what coach Steve Addazio covets most.

"You always feel better when you win your bowl game, it's the last game, it's our ninth win, we wanna get that ninth win, it's really important to us," he said. "It just leaves a great taste in your mouth. ... that's what you're striving for.

"I think there's a tremendous buzz around Philadelphia and around Temple right now -- people want to see us play -- and that's evident. So we gotta make sure we go play at a high level."

The Owls, who finished second in the East Division of the Mid-American Conference, are led by elusive tailback Bernard Pierce. The junior finished third in the FBS with a single-season school record 25 TDs and 13th with 1,381 rushing yards.

Six days after running for 157 yards and three touchdowns during a 42-14 win over Army, Pierce had a season-best 189 rushing yards and another three scores in a 34-16 win over Kent State on Nov. 25.

Pierce, who could be playing in his final game before going pro, seems likely to find plenty of running room against a Cowboys defense that's surrendering 230.1 rushing yards per game -- sixth worst in the nation.

While Temple's ground game has been rolling, questions surround its quarterback situation. Sophomore Chris Coyer, who started the last four games, suffered a sprained shoulder in the regular-season finale and is uncertain for the bowl game.

Coyer was replaced by fifth-year senior Chester Stewart, who completed all six of his passes for 94 yards.

Not only will Wyoming have to contain Temple's running game, it will have to contend with the Owls' stifling defense. Temple ranks third in the nation with 13.8 points allowed per game.

"They run the ball really well ... they have a huge offensive line that will be a challenge for our guys to make sure we are gap-sound and don't get washed away," Mountain West coach of the year Dave Christensen said. "Defensively, they are in the top five in the country ... it will be a great challenge for our offense."

Wyoming (8-4) finished third in the conference behind TCU and Boise State, beating Colorado State 22-19 on Dec. 3 to close out the regular season. The Cowboys rank fourth in the country in turnover margin at 1.25 and allowed 11 sacks -- tied for 11th.

"They're a wide-open team, they're a quality team, an exciting team, and I think it'll be a heck of a football game," Addazio said.

Wyoming is headed back to the New Mexico Bowl for the second time in three seasons thanks in large part to Mountain West freshman of the year Brett Smith. He finished third in the conference with a 126.2 rating, throwing for 2,495 yards along with 18 TDs and eight interceptions.

The Cowboys defeated Fresno State 35-28 in a double-overtime thriller Dec. 19, 2009 in Albuquerque.

"We had such a tremendous time down here last time and we were really looking forward to the opportunity to come back again," Christensen said. "We were hoping that this was the bowl we were going to get to. I think it is the perfect location for where we are located for our fan base to get to."

The Owls are participating in the fourth bowl game in school history. They most recently fell 30-21 to UCLA in the 2009 EagleBank Bowl, a game that snapped their 29-year bowl drought.

Wyoming has split its 12 previous bowl appearances, winning two in a row following six consecutive defeats.

The Cowboys took the only meeting in this series 38-23 on Sept. 1, 1990.

 

FAMOUS IDAHO POTATO BOWL
OHIO (9-4) vs. UTAH STATE (7-5)

Ohio Leaders
Passing: Tettleton - 246-387, 3086 yds, 26 tds

Rushing: Harden - 172 car, 939 yds, 2 tds

Receiving: Brazill - 64 rec, 1042 yds, 10 tds

Utah St Leaders
Passing: Keeton - 106-174, 1200 yds, 11 tds

Rushing: Turbin - 229 car, 1416 yds, 19 tds

Receiving: Austin - 34 rec, 465 yds, 6 tds


Ohio-Utah St. Preview

Neither Utah State nor Ohio has a rich tradition in bowl games, going a combined 1-11.

Either the Aggies or the Bobcats can start changing that poor postseason history when they meet in the Famous Idaho Potato Bowl on Saturday.

Utah State (7-5) heads to Boise for its first postseason appearance since losing 35-19 to Cincinnati at the 1997 Humanitarian Bowl -- also played at Bronco Stadium. The Aggies fell to 1-5 all-time in bowl games, with the only win coming over Ball State in the 1993 Las Vegas Bowl.

Ohio (9-4) is appearing in a bowl for a third straight year for the first time in school history but has yet to win one. The Bobcats' 0-5 mark in postseason play includes three defeats under Frank Solich, who took over as coach in 2005.

Solich's team lost to Southern Mississippi 28-7 in the 2007 GMAC Bowl in the school's first bowl appearance in 38 years, then fell 21-17 to Marshall in the 2009 Little Caesars Bowl and 48-21 to Troy in last year's New Orleans Bowl.

"The Ohio University football program is extremely excited for this wonderful opportunity in Boise," Solich said. "For the past two years, this has been one of the premier bowl games for the Mid-American Conference. I couldn't be happier for our team and our 17 seniors, who have given so much to this program."

The Bobcats posted five straight victories to win the MAC's East Division before falling 23-20 to Northern Illinois in the conference championship game Dec. 2. Ohio squandered a 20-0 halftime lead and lost on a field goal as time expired, ending the Bobcats' hopes of winning their first MAC title since 1968.

Still, third-year Utah State coach Gary Andersen is well aware of the challenge his squad will face.

"I have tremendous respect for coach Frank Solich as a head coach and his program," Andersen said. "They are very well-coached, and we will be facing a big, fast, physical football team."

Utah State, which finished second in the WAC and is riding a five-game winning streak, will counter with its speed and a rushing attack which averages 277.5 yards to rank sixth in the FBS. Robert Turbin is 10th in the nation with 118.0 rushing yards per game, including seven 100-yard efforts, and was named the WAC offensive player of the year.

Turbin, though, was held to 159 yards on 43 carries over the last two games and didn't score a touchdown in either one after totaling 19 through the first 10 contests.

"There are games I don't necessarily wish I had back, but could have done things better," Turbin told the school's official website.

He'll face an Ohio run defense which ranked third in the MAC, allowing 126.4 yards per game, and kept two of its last four opponents under 70.

The Bobcats' offense, however, was held below 400 yards for the first time in eight games in the loss to Northern Illinois and had only 130 on the ground.

Sophomore Tyler Tettleton threw a career-high three interceptions and failed to throw a TD pass for the first time all season. Still, he finished with 3,082 yards and 26 touchdowns through the air, and he's also a threat on the ground after rushing for 627 yards and nine scores.

Utah State features the WAC's top-ranked defense, having allowed 368.0 yards per game. The Aggies, though, have given up an average of 429.6 during their winning streak, including 500 yards in a 21-17 win over Nevada on Nov. 26.

The only meeting between these teams came Sept. 17, 1994, when Utah State won 5-0 at Ohio.

 

R+L CARRIERS NEW ORLEANS BOWL

SAN DIEGO STATE (8-4) vs. LA-LAFAYETTE (8-4)

San Diego St Leaders
Passing: Lindley - 209-398, 2740 yds, 20 tds

Rushing: Hillman - 287 car, 1656 yds, 19 tds

Receiving: Lockett - 52 rec, 885 yds, 5 tds


LA-Lafayette Leaders
Passing: Gautier - 192-304, 2488 yds, 20 tds

Rushing: Harris - 149 car, 638 yds, 8 tds

Receiving: Lawson - 54 rec, 899 yds, 6 tds


San Diego St.-Louisiana-Lafayette Preview

San Diego State's Ronnie Hillman may not receive as much recognition as the nation's other premier running backs, but he'll receive plenty of attention from Louisiana-Lafayette's defense.

Hillman and the Aztecs take on the Ragin' Cajuns, who are making their first postseason appearance in 41 years, on Saturday night in the New Orleans Bowl at the Superdome.

Hillman finished third this season in the FBS with 138.0 rushing yards per game, amassing 370 yards in San Diego State's final two contests. The sophomore had four touchdowns in a 35-28 win over Fresno State on Dec. 3 despite playing with a high ankle sprain.

"He's a force," quarterback Ryan Lindley said. "He does some amazing things when you put the ball in his hands. I think he is just a guy that is plain dangerous."

Hillman, who has 19 rushing touchdowns this season, has run for 3,188 yards with the Aztecs (8-4). The sophomore's 1,656 yards this season surpassed Marshall Faulk for second place in school history in a single season, and Hillman is 187 yards shy of George Jones' school record set in 1995.

His impact on San Diego State is clear. The Aztecs are 12-2 when Hillman rushes for at least 110 yards. He ran for 228 and totaled four touchdowns in San Diego State's 35-14 win over Navy in last year's Poinsettia Bowl.

"They've got one of the most talented backs that we'll face this year," Louisiana-Lafayette coach Mark Hudspeth said. "Our goal is to stop the run first. That to me is what they do the best. ... We'll have to play well up front and be physical because he's a guy that has hurt a lot of teams so far."

He isn't the only threat San Diego State has, though. While not the most accurate passer, Lindley is not afraid to throw the ball. He has 398 passing attempts -- 33rd in the FBS -- including 120 in the last three games.

The senior quarterback is a 55.4-percent career passer and completed a career-low 52.5 percent this season. However, he did throw for 2,740 yards and 20 touchdowns with just eight interceptions.

Lindley has set school records in career yards (12,277), passing touchdowns (87) and completions (933).

Lindley was also instrumental in San Diego State's first bowl victory since 1969 last season, completing 18 of 23 passes for 276 yards and two touchdowns versus the Midshipmen.

Hillman and Lindley have helped lead the Aztecs to back-to-back bowl games for the first time in the program's FBS history. In 1966 and '67, they competed in the Camellia Bowl as part of the College Division.

While San Diego State may not have much fan support, playing just a few hours outside of the Ragin' Cajuns' campus, that may be the only advantage Louisiana-Lafayette (8-4) has.

The Ragin' Cajuns are giving up 29.8 points and 393.2 yards per game. The extra preparation time may help, however, as some of the team's worst defensive performances came in the second half of the season. The Ragin' Cajuns surrendered 34.4 points and 453.8 yards of offense in the final five games, including 494 yards in a 45-37 loss at Arizona on Nov. 26.

While Louisiana-Lafayette may be an underdog, the team has good reason to consider this season a success. After going 3-9 in 2010, the Ragin' Cajuns made an impressive turnaround in Hudspeth's first season, starting 8-2 before season-ending back-to-back losses.

Hudspeth was linked to the coaching vacancy at Mississippi, but said earlier this month he would remain with Louisiana-Lafayette after guiding the program to its first bowl appearance since losing to Tennessee State in the Grantland Rice Bowl in 1970.

Its only other postseason appearance was a 24-7 victory over Arkansas A&M in the 1944 Oil Bowl.

The Ragin' Cajuns may not be as deep as the Aztecs, but they have a credible threat in quarterback Blaine Gautier, who has thrown for 2,488 yards, 20 touchdowns and five interceptions. He completed a career-best 63.2 percent of his passes this season.

Gautier's favorite target is junior receiver Javone Lawson, who had 899 yards receiving and six touchdowns. Senior tight end Ladarius Green had 485 yards and seven touchdowns.

"They are very skilled," San Diego State coach Rocky Long said. "They've got really good speed, they're very physical and it's going to be a great football game."

This is the first meeting between the two programs.




San Diego St. RB Ronnie Hillman

 

BEEF 'O' BRADY'S BOWL ST. PETERSBURG
Florida International (8-4)
vs.
Marshall (6-6)

Florida Int Leaders
Passing: Carroll - 181-303, 2224 yds, 14 tds

Rushing: Rhodes - 224 car, 1121 yds, 8 tds

Receiving: Hilton - 64 rec, 950 yds, 7 tds

Marshall Leaders
Passing: Cato - 155-265, 1833 yds, 13 tds

Rushing: Martinez - 144 car, 591 yds, 3 tds

Receiving: Dobson - 42 rec, 587 yds, 10 tds

FIU-Marshall Preview

Florida International is trying to cap its best season with just its second bowl victory.

Only a dramatic touchdown in the regular-season finale allowed Marshall to even qualify.

The Golden Panthers look to continue increasing their visibility as a program on the rise when they face the Thundering Herd for the first time in the Beef O'Brady's Bowl in St. Petersburg, Fla. on Tuesday night.

FIU (8-4) already has its highest single-season win total since the start of its football program in 2002, getting one more than last year when the team beat Toledo 34-32 in the Little Caesars Pizza Bowl.

The Golden Panthers were considered a doormat when coach Mario Cristobal arrived in 2007, going 1-11 after losing all 12 games a year earlier.

Now, back-to-back winning seasons have them gaining confidence with the program headed in the right direction.

"At 8-4, we don't only have the best record in FIU history, we have the best record in the state of Florida," athletic director Pete Garcia said while taking a jab at traditional powers Florida, Florida State and Miami. "It's a natural step for this football team to go back to a second straight bowl game."

FIU enters the Beef O'Brady's Bowl averaging 33.3 points during a three-game win streak, nearly 10.0 more points than its first nine games of the season.

A balanced offensive scheme has been key to the Golden Panthers' success.

Wesley Carroll has thrown 14 touchdowns with just four interceptions, and has five with no picks over the last two games.

He'll attempt to cap his collegiate career with another bowl victory after coming up with a clutch performance last year. He completed 16 of 27 passes for 140 yards before leading the Golden Panthers down the field to set up Jack Griffin's game-winning 34-yard field goal as time expired.

Carroll also converted a 4th-and-17 during the final drive, hitting Jacob Younger, who flipped the ball to T.Y. Hilton for the first down.

Hilton is FIU's top receiver, and holds the school career records for catches (221), receiving yards (3,443), touchdowns (24) and overall scores (36).

The senior hauled in 64 passes for 950 yards with seven TDs this season, ranking among Sun Belt Conference leaders in each category.

On the ground, the Golden Panthers rely on Kedrick Rhodes, who became their first 1,000-yard rusher since they moved to the FBS in 2005. The sophomore had 1,121 rushing yards with eight touchdowns.

While FIU put together a strong season from the start, Marshall (6-6) is trying to cap an impressive turnaround.

The Thundering Herd won four of their final six to become bowl eligible for the first time under second-year coach Doc Holliday.

In fact, they didn't gain that status until Tron Martinez's 1-yard run in overtime clinched a 34-27 win over East Carolina in the regular-season finale Nov. 26.

Marshall finished second in Conference USA's East Division, one game back of No. 22 Southern Mississippi. Holliday feels the team is improving, but he's not happy with falling short of the conference title game.

"I can see us growing up defensively and the one thing we had to do was tackle," he said. "There is no doubt in my mind that we've made significant progress.

"We're not where we want to be. Our goal is always to win the Conference (USA) championship. We didn't do it this year, either. We're getting closer, but we won't be satisfied until we get to that game."

The Thundering Herd forced 28 turnovers, ranking second to Memphis' 30 in the conference. The unit is led by defensive end Vinny Curry, the 2011 C-USA Defensive Player of the Year.

Curry leads the team with 11 sacks, six forced fumbles, 21 tackles for loss and three blocked kicks.

He's joined on the All-Conference USA first team by safety Omar Brown, who had four interceptions with one returned 48 yards for a TD in a 59-14 rout of UAB on Oct. 29.

Quarterback Rakeem Cato is trying to conclude his freshman season with another stellar performance after he was 23 of 29 for 341 yards and two touchdowns against East Carolina.

Aaron Dobson has 10 TD passes, doubling his previous career high set last season. The junior had 42 catches for 587 yards after his four receptions in the regular-season finale went for 110 yards and two scores.

Marshall last reached a bowl in 2009, beating Ohio in the Little Caesars Pizza Bowl.

 

T.Y. Goodbye

 

Aaron Dobson is nasty!

 

#18 TCU (10-2)
vs.
Louisiana Tech (8-4)

TCU Leaders
Passing: Pachall - 213-314, 2715 yds, 24 tds

Rushing: James - 107 car, 824 yds, 6 tds

Receiving: Boyce - 56 rec, 932 yds, 9 tds

Louisiana Tech Leaders
Passing: Isham - 155-257, 1457 yds, 8 tds

Rushing: Creer - 198 car, 838 yds, 9 tds

Receiving: Patton - 74 rec, 1135 yds, 10 tds


TCU-Louisiana Tech Preview

TCU would of course prefer to be heading to a third consecutive BCS game, but there's no time to dwell on that with Western Athletic Conference champ Louisiana Tech looking to cap off its season with an eighth straight victory.

Making their seventh consecutive bowl appearance and last before joining the Big 12 on July 1, the No. 16 Horned Frogs make their third Poinsettia Bowl appearance Wednesday when they face the Bulldogs for the first time.

A 50-48 season-opening defeat at Baylor and a 40-33 loss to SMU on Oct. 1 dropped TCU (10-2) out of the Top 25 and doubled their loss total from the previous two years combined. The Horned Frogs were 12-0 in 2009 before losing to Boise State in the Fiesta Bowl, and they completed a 13-0 season last year with a 21-19 victory over Wisconsin in the Rose Bowl.

TCU was seemingly out of contention for a big-money bowl in 2011, but seven consecutive wins -- including a 36-35 victory at then-No. 5 Boise State on Nov. 12 -- brought it back into the BCS conversation.

However, for a team from a non-qualifying conference to earn an at-large BCS bid, it must win its conference, finish ahead of one conference champion from an automatic-qualifying league and be ranked at least 16th in the final BCS poll. The Frogs won the Mountain West and finished ahead of West Virginia from the Big East, but had a final BCS ranking of 18th.

"There's nobody to blame (we didn't get a BCS berth) but TCU because we had two losses," said coach Gary Patterson, one win shy of tying Dutch Meyer as the program's all-time leader with 108. "If we had one loss, we probably wouldn't be in this situation.

"Now we need to go win a ballgame against Louisiana Tech. They're a good football team and they will be fired up since it's been a while since they've been to a bowl game."

The Bulldogs (8-4) make their sixth bowl appearance, their last coming in 2008 when they defeated Northern Illinois in the Independence Bowl. Louisiana Tech arrives in San Diego on the heels of winning its first conference title since 2001.

The team is on its best run since an eight-game winning streak Sept. 11-Nov. 13, 1999. Three of its losses have been by six or fewer points.

"I know it's good to win seven straight and it feels good but I'm not super surprised," wide receiver Taulib Ikharo said.

Neither is Patterson.

"We have a lot of respect for Louisiana Tech and coach Sonny Dykes," he said. "They're conference champions and have had an outstanding season with some very impressive wins. They've gone on the road and beat an SEC team (27-7 over Mississippi on Nov. 12). They are very skilled on both sides of the ball."

The Bulldogs are averaging 30.6 points and 397.5 yards -- both in the top 50 in the FBS -- and have been even better since redshirt junior quarterback Colby Cameron took over for injured freshman Nick Isham five games ago. Louisiana Tech is scoring 34.8 per contest with 445.6 yards with Cameron starting.

Cameron has thrown for 1,403 yards with 11 TDs and two INTs, and he's confident he'll be able to connect with Ikharo and first-team all-WAC wide receiver Quinton Patton (1,135 yards, 10 TDs).

"Knowing (offensive coordinator) coach (Tony) Franklin, he will have an excellent game plan and I think we will be able to execute it against a great defense," Cameron said.

While the Frogs are well off last season's pace when they led the FBS in total defense at 228.5 yards per game and scoring defense at 12.0 points, they're still a force. TCU is holding opponents to 346.3 yards per contest -- 32nd in the nation -- and an average of 21.3 points, 30th in the FBS.

The anchor of that unit, senior linebacker Tank Carder, will play his final college game after being named the conference defensive player of the year for the second consecutive season. He has 66 tackles with two interceptions -- both returned for scores.

"I actually saw him last year when TCU played in the Rose Bowl," Cameron said. "It's funny but it's great to know that you're up against a great defensive player."

TCU sophomore quarterback Casey Pachall could face his share of those as he makes his bowl debut.

WAC defensive player of the year Adrien Cole leads the Bulldogs with 121 tackles, including a team-best 12 for loss, while Christian Lacey is tied with TCU end Stansly Maponga with 8 1/2 sacks.

Louisiana Tech is third in the nation with 20 INTs, while Pachall has thrown only six picks to go with his 24 TDs. He's helped the Horned Frogs average 41.7 points -- ninth in the FBS.

Pachall, though, will not be working with Justin Fuente in San Diego after the Frogs' former co-offensive coordinator was named Memphis coach Dec. 7. Co-offensive coordinator and running backs coach Jarrett Anderson will likely handle Fuente's duties.

TCU is averaging 210.2 yards on the ground, while Louisiana Tech is allowing 122.2 per contest.

Special teams could also play a major role in who leaves Qualcomm Stadium with a victory. TCU senior Greg McCoy is fourth in the country in kickoff return average at 31.6 yards, while Louisiana Tech punter Ryan Allen, the Ray Guy Award winner, leads the nation with 36 punts inside the 20-yard line.

TCU defeated then-unbeaten Boise State 17-16 in the 2008 Poinsettia Bowl, two years after making its debut in the game with a 37-7 victory over Northern Illinois.