| Bowl Previews |
| Matchup | Key Stat | Player to Watch | The Skinny |
| Bowl Recaps |
| Matchup | Key Stat | Player of the Game | The Skinny |
Las Vegas Bowl:
North Carolina 20, San Diego State 13
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48 Top wind gusts in Las Vegas. Those winds wreaked havoc on the passing and kicking games.
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Ronald Curry, QB, North Carolina
Completed just one pass for 3 yards but his 48-yard scamper on the last play of the first quarter put the Heels ahead for good. |
A nice ending for the Heels who started the season 0-3. They had just 196 yards of offense and needed a late goal-line interception to knock off the pesky Aztecs.
Recap | Box score
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Motor City Bowl
Marshall 48,
Louisville 29
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27-232 Total penalties and penalty yardage in this rather ugly game.
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Chad Pennington, QB, Marshall
Won the QB battle by throwing for 411 yards and 4 TDs. |
Not surprisingly, the two teams combined for 1,015 yards in this shootout. However, the Herd shut down Louisville in the second half and rolled from there.
Recap | Box score |
Aloha Bowl
Colorado 51, vs. (21) Oregon 43
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6 Number of Oregon turnovers. Colorado converted those into 23 points.
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Mike Moschetti, QB, Colorado
Took advantage of the mistakes to throw 4 TD passes, including ones of 58 and 72 yards. |
The 94 points are the second highest total in bowl history. Colorado opened up a huge lead and then held off a fierce Oregon rally in the fourth quarter to secure an entertaining win.
Recap | Box score
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Oahu Bowl
(16) Air Force 45,
Washington 25
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267 Yards passing by Air Force, its highest total of the season.
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Blane Morgan, QB, Air Force
Surprised everyone by passing for 267 yards and 2 TDs. |
Air Force made it a Colorado sweep of the Hawaii bowls by unleashing a balanced ground and air attack on the Huskies. The Falcons also picked off Brock Huard three times.
Recap | Box score
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Insight.com Bowl
Missouri 34,
West Virginia 31
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32 Yards rushing by West Virginia star RB Amos Zereoue. He had rushed for at least 100 yards in all but two games this season.
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Julian Jones, CB, Missouri
Emergency starter set the tone early with an interception and a blocked punt. |
Missouri raced out to a 31-10 lead behind senior stars Devin West and Corby Jones before West Virginia rallied behind Marc Bulger to make it close.
Recap | Box score
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Music City Bowl
Virginia Tech 38
Alabama 7 |
2 Number of blocked kicks by Virginia Tech's special teams, increasing the total to 12 this season.
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Corey Moore, DE, Virginia Tech
Blocked a punt, forced a fumble and had a sack to lead the dominating defense. |
Virginia Tech's defense dominated as usual, picking off two passes and recovering a muffed punt. Alabama QB Andrew Zow played like a freshman while the Hokies looked very experienced.
Recap | Box score
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Micron PC Bowl
(24) Miami 46
NC State 23 |
5 Number of interceptions by the Miami defense, including one that bounced off the umpire's head.
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Scott Covington, QB, Miami
Had a stellar day throwing for 320 yards and 2 TDs. |
Miami continued its hot offensive play from the UCLA game and even added a little defense, shutting down NC State's star WR Torry Holt.
Recap | Game preview
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Alamo Bowl
Purdue 37
(4) Kansas State 34 |
4 Number of interceptions by Michael Bishop in the game, matching his total from the entire season.
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Drew Brees, QB, Purdue
Struggled early but pulled off his best John Elway and rallied Purdue to a last-minute, game-winning TD drive. Finished with three TD passes. |
K-State looked sluggish for most of the game before rallying to take a 34-30 lead late in the game. Purdue's high-flying offense then took over in the clutch to stun a Wildcats team that still seemed shocked from its BCS snub.
Recap | Box score
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Humanitarian Bowl
Idaho 42, Southern Miss 35
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6 Turnovers forced by the Vandals defense.
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John Welsh, QB, Idaho
The freshman passed for 291 yards and 4 TDs. |
The Vandals took advantage of turnovers and an explosive offense to overcome an early 21-7 lead to shock Southern Miss, who was favored by more than two TDs.
Recap | Box score
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Holiday Bowl
(5) Arizona 23, (14) Nebraska 20
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87 Rushing yards by the Nebraska offense, its second lowest total of the season.
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Chris McAlister, DB, Arizona
Sealed the victory with an interception late in the fourth quarter. |
Defense ruled this game, especially in the first half. The Arizona offense had just enough firepower in the second half to score a great win.
Recap | Box score
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Liberty Bowl
(10) Tulane 41, BYU 27
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528 Total offense rolled up by the Green Wave.
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Shaun King, QB, Tulane
Finished a magical season by throwing for 276 yards and 2 TDs and running for 109 more with another score. |
Tulane made its case for a national title after finishing a perfect season with another high-scoring whipping.
Recap | Box score
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Sun Bowl
TCU 28, USC 19
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-23 Total rushing yards by the USC offense once known for its legendary running game.
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Basil Mitchell, RB, TCU
Led the way with 185 yards rushing and 2 TDs. |
TCU shocked the Trojans with a very effective option attack. USC rallied briefly in the second half but fell short.
Recap | Box score
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Peach Bowl
(19) Georgia 35, (13) Virginia 33
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3 Kicks missed by Virginia's Todd Braverman, an extra point and two field goals, including a 48-yard attempt in the closing seconds.
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Olandis Gary, RB, Georgia
Rushed for 110 yards and 2 TDs. |
Virginia raced out to a 21-0 lead early on but Georgia kept on clawing back. The Dawgs took the lead late and held on to win another wild Peach Bowl.
Recap | Box score
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Independence Bowl
Mississippi 35, Texas Tech 18 |
82 Total rushing yards by Texas Tech, including just 85 from star RB Ricky Williams.
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Romaro Miller, QB, Ole Miss
Making his first start since breaking his collarbone last month, he threw an Independence Bowl-record 3 TD passes. |
Ole Miss responded very well to new head coach David Cutcliffe, who had been ill in the days leading up to the bowl. The Rebels' offense was clicking on all cylinders.
Recap | Box score
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Outback Bowl
(22) Penn State 26, Kentucky 14
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6 Number of sacks by the Penn State defense on Kentucky's Tim Couch.
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LaVarr Arrington, LB, Penn State
Led a strong Penn State defense by blocking a field goal and making a key fourth-down stop. |
Couch burned the Nittany Lions early but was shut down after the first quarter, allowing Penn State to take the game and give Joe Paterno his 19th bowl win.
Recap | Box score
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Cotton Bowl
(20) Texas 38,
(25) Mississippi State 11
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24 Points scored by Texas in the third quarter to ice away what was a close game at halftime.
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Ricky Williams, RB, Texas
Finished his college career with a Texas bowl record 203 yards rushing. |
Williams and QB Major Applewhite both had huge days shredding Miss. State's defense. It was a storybook ending to Williams' stellar career.
Recap | Box score
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Gator Bowl
(12) Georgia Tech 35, (17) Notre Dame 28
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10 With the victory, Tech got its first 10-win season since 1990.
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Joe Hamilton, QB, Georgia Tech
Threw three TD passes and caught another. |
A wild shootout that few people expected. Tech's offensive weapons were more than enough to overcome the return of the Irish's Jarious Jackson.
Recap | Box score
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Citrus Bowl
(15) Michigan 45,
(11) Arkansas 31
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14 Number of points Michigan scored directly off Arkansas turnovers, two picks returned for TDs.
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Anthony Thomas, RB, Michigan
Rushed for 132 yards and scored three TDs. |
Another surprising shootout between two solid defensive squads. Both teams took advantage of turnovers, but Michigan had the upper hand thanks to two picks returned for scores.
Recap | Box score
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Rose Bowl
(9) Wisconsin 38, (6) UCLA 31
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343 Total rushing yards allowed by UCLA's defense, actually 28 yards less than what Miami racked up on Dec. 5.
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Ron Dayne, RB, Wisconsin
Powered past the Bruins for 246 yards and 4 TDs. His 4 TDs tied a Rose Bowl record and the 246 was 1 yard short of that Rose Bowl record. |
Another wild shootout loss for the Bruins. This time Dayne punished UCLA defense. The Badgers also forced some key turnovers, including returning a pick for a score.
Recap | Box score
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Sugar Bowl
(3) Ohio State 24, (8) Texas A&M 14
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3 Number of first downs picked up by Texas A&M after its TD drive to open the game.
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David Boston, WR, Ohio State
Had 11 catches for 105 yards despite playing with an injured ankle that slowed him down on the punt return game. |
The Buckeyes scored 24 points in the first half then held off the Aggies in the second to secure a close, hard-fought win. Ohio State thinks it may have a shot at the national title should Florida State win.
Recap | Box score
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Orange Bowl
(7) Florida 31, (18) Syracuse 10
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303 Total yards by the Florida offense in the first half as the Gators raced to a 28-3 first-half lead.
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Travis Taylor, WR, Florida
Had a career day with seven catches for 159 yards and the Gators' first two TDs. |
The Gators' offense dominated in the first half and didn't lose a step even when Doug Johnson broke his leg. Donovan McNabb tried to do everything for the 'Cuse but came up short in his collegiate finale.
Recap | Box score
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Fiesta Bowl
(1) Tennessee 23, (2) Florida State 16
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13 Number of penalties by the Florida State defense for a whopping 102 yards.
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Peerless Price, WR, Tennessee
Caught four passes for 199 yards and the backbreaking 79-yard TD in the fourth quarter. |
Tennessee played very strong defense and overcame sloppy play all over the place to secure the national title and just plain destiny.
Recap | Box score
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