Friday
Sun Bowl
2:00 PM ET CBS: Notre Dame 7-5 vs. Miami-FL 7-5 (-3) - This is the old "Catholics vs. Convicts" game in name only as both programs have seriously fallen off the national landscape. This season the Irish have had to adjust to a new coach in Brian Kelly, season ending injuries to QB Dayne Crist, RB Armando Allen, and TE Kyle Rudolph, and the Declan Sullivan tragedy. New QB Tommy Rees has stepped in an led them to a three game win streak. In those games he had a 63.9|PERCENT| completion rate, 6/4 TD/INT ratio, and averaged 164.0 yards per game passing. The 'Canes are very good against the pass, allowing the fewest passing TDs in the nation and having had only one QB complete more than 60|PERCENT| of his passes against them. Their run defense is another matter as they've allowed 6 TDs and an average of 193 ypg on the ground in their last two games. RBs Cierre Woods and Robert Hughes were highly touted coming out of high school and together have averaged over 4 yards per carry in their last four games for the Irish. Expect ND to use both of them fairly often to take the pressure off of Rees, who will see plenty of 'Canes DE Allen Bailey. Miami has had their own set of QB issues this season as Jacory Harris has had a disappointing season, to put it lightly. He completed only 54.8|PERCENT| of his passes (96th in the nation) and finished the regular season with a 119.3 QB passer rating (82nd in the nation). QB Stephen Morris, who subbed in for Harris when he was injured this season, probably would have started this game, but an ankle injury will likely sideline him. Maybe the biggest storyline for "The U" in this game is that of interim head coach Jeff Stoutland, formerly the offensive line coach, who took over the team when Randy Shannon was fired after their loss to South Florida at the end of the season. With the play of Harris being what it is and the fact that the Irish haven't allowed a passing TD in their last three games, expect Soutland to choose to run the ball as much as possible. The run game is a strength of Miami as they averaged 230.5 ypg in their last four games with 9 TDs. Brian Kelly is 2-1 in bowl games, while this is Stoutland's first game as a head coach.
Fighting Irish Offense: 378.3 ypg (63rd), 5.5 yards/play (61st), & 37.5|PERCENT| 3rd Down (78th)
Pass: 257.4 ypg (29th), 6.8 ypa (74th), 59.7|PERCENT| comp. (56th), 26 TDs, & 16 INTs
Run: 120.8 ypg (97th), 3.96 yards/carry (79th), & 10 TDs
Hurricanes Defense: 317.2 ypg (16th), 4.8 yards/play (16th), & 33.7|PERCENT| 3rd Down (13th)
Pass: 146.3 ypg (2nd), 5.9 ypa (10th), 49.3|PERCENT| comp. (2nd), 7 TDs, & 16 INTs
Run: 170.8 ypg (81st), 4.11 yards/carry (59th), & 19 TDs
Hurricanes Offense: 422.6 ypg (31st), 5.8 yards/play (38th), & 39.7|PERCENT| 3rd Down (64th)
Pass: 232.2 ypg (48th), 6.9 ypa (69th), 53.1|PERCENT| comp. (107th), 19 TDs, & 23 INTs
Run: 190.4 ypg (26th), 4.87 yards/carry (26th), & 19 TDs
Fighting Irish Defense: 353.2 ypg (47th), 5.0 yards/play (31st), & 35.1|PERCENT| 3rd Down (22nd)
Pass: 205.9 ypg (42nd), 6.2 ypa (21st), 61.9|PERCENT| comp. (91st), 9 TDs, & 14 INTs
Run: 147.3 ypg (56th), 4.01 yards/carry (54th), & 15 TDs
Liberty Bowl
3:30 PM ET ESPN: Georgia 6-6 (-6.5) vs. #25 Central Florida 10-3 - Georgia's season was a tale of two halves. The first half saw them lose star WR AJ Green to suspension, QB Aaron Murray have an 8/3 TD/INT ratio, and them lose four of their first five games. The second half was much better as Green was fully integrated into the offense, Murray had a 16/3 TD/INT ratio, and they won five of their last seven games. As a frosh, Murray has been fantastic with a 162.7 QB passer rating (9th nationally) and a 9.4 YPA (5th nationally). UCF had one of the best pass defenses in C-USA, but never faced a QB/WR combo like the Murray/Green one they'll see. The Bulldogs offensive line is huge and talented (see guard Clint Boling & center Cordy Glenn as All-Americans) and could feast on the UCF defense, if they over commit to stopping Murray and Green. Still, they were 10th in the nation in rush yards allowed per game, so it should be a good match-up. Central Florida's offense is also led by a great frosh QB in Jeff Godfrey. Godfrey ranked 8th in passer rating (165.3), 4th in YPA (9.8), and 6th in completion percentage (68.4) nationally. The Georgia pass defense was stout for the most part this season and was outstanding down the stretch as they allowed 120.3 ypg and a 42.9|PERCENT| completion rate with a 3/5 TD/INT ratio in their last three games. They're soft against the run, which plays into UCF's hands as they have the 25th ranked rushing offense with Godfrey and RBs Ronnie Weaver and Latavius Murray. Mark Richt is 7-2 in bowl games, while George O'Leary, who often coached against Georgia while at Georgia Tech, is 2-5.
Bulldogs Offense: 393.8 ypg (48th), 6.4 yards/play (17th), & 42.3|PERCENT| 3rd Down (46th)
Pass: 246.1 ypg (38th), 9.2 ypa (8th), 61.4|PERCENT| comp. (42nd), 25 TDs, & 6 INTs
Run: 147.7 ypg (72nd), 4.19 yards/carry (59th), & 21 TDs
Knights Defense: 318.1 ypg (18th), 4.8 yards/play (16th), & 45.1|PERCENT| 3rd Down (105th)
Pass: 207.7 ypg (45th), 6.2 ypa (21st), 54.2|PERCENT| comp. (15th), 21 TDs, & 15 INTs
Run: 110.4 ypg (10th), 3.42 yards/carry (16th), & 9 TDs
Knights Offense: 384.2 ypg (58th), 6.0 yards/play (31st), & 52.1|PERCENT| 3rd Down (7th)
Pass: 191.8 ypg (83rd), 9.4 ypa (7th), 65.8|PERCENT| comp. (15th), 16 TDs, & 9 INTs
Run: 192.5 ypg (25th), 4.37 yards/carry (51st), & 35 TDs
Bulldogs Defense: 335.8 ypg (29th), 5.2 yards/play (45th), & 42.6|PERCENT| 3rd Down (87th)
Pass: 185.6 ypg (20th), 7.8 ypa (95th), 54.9|PERCENT| comp. (21st), 14 TDs, & 14 INTs
Run: 150.3 ypg (59th), 3.74 yards/carry (39th), & 23 TDs
Peach Bowl
7:30 PM ET ESPN: #20 South Carolina 9-4 (-3) vs. #23 Florida State 9-4 - South Carolina had a fantastic season, beating then #1 ranked Alabama and eventually winning the SEC East. RB Marcus Lattimore was a large part of that success. He was the 2nd leading rusher in the nation among freshmen, averaging 99.8 a game. The FSU defense was one of the better run stopping units in the ACC and will likely make stopping Lattimore their number one priority. Their number two priority will be stopping WR Alshon Jeffery, which is an almost impossible task as he is big and physical. He finished the regular season 5th in the nation in receiving ypg (106.7). QB Stephen Garcia has had an up and down season under the OBC, but that's to be expected as Spurrier demands much of his starting QB. The FSU defense finished the season 2nd in the nation in sacks, so it could be a long game for Garcia. On offense, the Seminoles should have a fairly easy time when they choose to pass, but the question still remains: who will be team's starting QB? Senior Christian Ponder is still recovering from surgery he had on his throwing elbow to remove scar tissue. Should he not be able to play, sophomore EJ Manuel will step in. In the two games Manuel started this season he had a 69.1|PERCENT| completion rate and a 1/3 TD/INT ratio. The Gamecocks pass defense ranked 107th allowing over 250 yards a game and would love to see Manuel, rather than Ponder who was 2nd in the ACC in completion percentage (62.1|PERCENT|). The South Carolina run defense is as good as their pass defense is bad. They kept 9 of their 12 opponents (faced Auburn twice) under 100 yards rushing. This does not bode well for a FSU run game that only managed 4 yards per carry once in their last four games. Steve Spurrier is 7-9 in bowl games, while this is Jimbo Fisher's first bowl game.
Gamecocks Offense: 391.2 ypg (50th), 6.0 yards/play (31st), & 49.1|PERCENT| 3rd Down (14th)
Pass: 25.6 ypg (47th), 8.7 ypa (13th), 65.4|PERCENT| comp. (17th), 22 TDs, & 14 INTs
Run: 155.5 ypg (60th), 4.13 yards/carry (68th), & 25 TDs
Seminoles Defense: 349.1 ypg (41st), 4.8 yards/play (16th), & 40.9|PERCENT| 3rd Down (71st)
Pass: 221.2 ypg (68th), 6.5 ypa (35th), & 58.3|PERCENT| comp. (59th), 16 TDs, & 12 INTs
Run: 127.9 ypg (25th), 3.35 yards/carry (15th), & 11 TDs
Seminoles Offense: 386.9 ypg (55th), 6.1 yards/play (28th), & 48.5|PERCENT| 3rd Down (16th)
Pass: 219.1 ypg (61st), 7.6 ypa (37th), 63.2|PERCENT| comp. (30th), 23 TDs, & 12 INTs
Run: 167.9 ypg (42nd), 4.79 yards/carry (29th), & 26 TDs
Gamecocks Defense: 357.9 ypg (52nd), 5.4 yards/play (56th), & 40.2|PERCENT| 3rd Down (67th)
Pass: 253.6 ypg (107th), 7.5 ypa (83rd), 63.1|PERCENT| comp. (102nd), 22 TDs, & 9 INTs
Run: 104.3 ypg (9th), 3.21 yards/carry (8th), & 12 TDs
Note: Instead of previewing the New Year's Day games, I'll be posting the stats for all the games going in and running a live blog. I hope you join me as I commentate all day on the TicketCity, Capital One, Outback, Gator, Rose, and Fiesta Bowls.