Reliaquest Bowl: Alabama Crimson Tide (9-3) vs Michigan Wolverines (7-5)
Key Facts: A rematch of last year’s Playoff game where Michigan won in wild fashion. The last time either program played in a non-playoff or NY6 Bowl was also against each other in the 2019 Citrus Bowl, Alabama won that game 35-16. The Tide generally clean up very well in the rare occasions they’re in a game like this. Both teams have seen their share of offensive struggles this season. It remains to be seen what players opt in or out of this game. I miss when this was the Outback Bowl.
Previous Meetings: These programs have met 6 times previously with the series tied at 3 all. All but one of the 6 matchups have occurred in bowl games, while the other was a neutral site season opener at Jerry world, can we get an on campus series please? These programs tend to put on a show when they play each other 4 of the 6 meetings were one score games.
Motivation Edge: This one is a challenging one to figure out. Michigan is satisfied after upsetting their biggest rival, are they out for blood to beat another major program or just happy they beat Ohio State? Alabama missed the playoff due to a horrific 24-3 loss to Oklahoma so what is their motivation level for this one? Angry and ready to prove a point or disappointed ready for next season?
Tony the Tiger Sun Bowl: Louisville Cardinals (8-4) vs Washington Huskies (6-6)
Key Facts: Good luck figuring out how a Jeff Brohm team will show up in a bowl. He coached his WKU squads to big wins but otherwise they’ve won bowls in fun and exciting fashion or got run off the field. Louisville is 2-2 in their most recent bowls so they’re up and down too. Washington has been in a lot of playoff or NY6 Bowls lately but the Huskies have won their last 2 regular bowls. Washington has been a wild split team. The Huskies are 6-0 at home and 0-6 in road/neutral site games.
Previous Meetings: This is a FIRST TIME MATCHUP! The Cardinals and Huskies are very far apart so it’s not surprising they haven’t met. What’s fun about this game is they both have very passionate fanbases but aren’t super aware of each other.
Motivation Edge: Both teams are going to be excited to get a shot at a new foe and play in the historic Sun Bowl. Louisville will be without their QB Tyler Shough which was a strange decision to me, he came back for his 7th year there’s likely not much of a NFL future so he’s here for the love of the game but opts out of the bowl? Watch for other opt outs too.
Cheeze-It Citrus Bowl: South Carolina Gamecocks (9-3) vs Illinois Fighting Illini (9-3)
Key Facts: These are both teams that aren’t traditionally toward the top of their conferences but really had a great season that might be the building block for the future. Neither team seems set to be impacted by opt outs either so this game would definitely be a springboard for next year. South Carolina hasn’t been great in bowls since Spurrier retired they’re 2-3 in their last 5 appearances. It’s been even worse for Illinois. The Fighting Illini haven’t won a bowl game since a 20-14 win over UCLA in the 2011 Fight Hunger Bowl (this was the infamous Ron Zook season where they started 6-0 and lost their last 6.)
Previous Meetings: It feels like these two programs have played each other in multiple bowl games, but that’s not the case. This is a FIRST TIME MATCHUP!
Motivation Edge: I think Illinois will be a little more motivated here. The Fighting Illini will be excited to face a higher ranked team while Illinois may not pop out as extremely exciting for South Carolina. It’s not a huge edge though, both teams will be out to win this one.
Kinder’s Texas Bowl: Baylor Bears (8-4) vs LSU Tigers (8-4)
Key Facts: Baylor finished the year as one of the hottest teams in the country. The Bears were 2-4 before winning their last 6. They did this on the back of a very good run game but QB Sawyer Robinson has played at a high level as well. HC Dave Aranda is a former LSU DC so he’s familiar with the Tigers program. LSU’s strength lies in their pass game typically but it’s been inconsistent at times. One of the biggest issues for the Tigers is stopping the run, they still struggle to do so. Baylor has won 4 of their last 6 bowl games and Aranda is 1-1 in them. Brian Kelly’s bowl record is one to behold. He’s never won a playoff/NY6 bowl but he’s never lost a non-playoff/NY6 bowl so this game is right in his sweet spot.
Previous Meetings: These programs have faced off 11 times with LSU holding a 8-3 edge. Their most recent matchup was the 1985 Liberty Bowl. A one loss LSU team took on a 3 loss Baylor team. The Tigers seemed set to win big when they returned a 1st quarter punt for a TD but that’s all the explosion the Tigers had. The Bears had them caged the rest of the game in a 21-7 win.
Motivation Edge: Baylor is definitely going to be more excited seeing that they get a shot at an LSU team they haven’t played in a while. LSU had their eyes on the playoff entering the year so this isn’t what they imagined but Brian Kelly seems to be pretty good at getting his teams motivated for these games.
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