This year's title game rotates to New Orleans, on January 9. Football gods be praised. The more bottom-feeding bowls we can latch onto this system, the closer we'll eventually edge to year-round college football. Cookie banner We use cookies and other tracking technologies to improve your browsing experience on our site, show personalized content and targeted ads, analyze site traffic, and understand where our audiences come from.
By choosing I Accept , you consent to our use of cookies and other tracking technologies. Spanish La Liga View team list. Filed under:. But Saturday had to be extra special for other reasons. Gundy's program needed a jolt of positivity after losing to Baylor in the Big 12 Championship Game. A defense that carried the Cowboys all season and led the Big 12 endured the departure of coordinator Jim Knowles, who left for the same job at Ohio State, and then they were shredded by Jack Coan and the Irish in an embarrassing first half.
Thanks to huge games from Malcolm Rodriguez, Kolby Harvell-Peel and others, they reached down and pulled out plenty of second-half pride, shutting out the Irish until a late desperation touchdown shaved the lead to the final margin before a failed onside kick ended the threat. Finally, there was quarterback Spencer Sanders. After throwing four picks against the Bears in the league title game, the dual-threat signal-caller was the catalyst in the win, throwing for yards and four scores three to Tay Martin and rushing for more.
After jumping out to a three-touchdown lead over Oklahoma State in the Fiesta Bowl, Freeman's Irish choked on their way to a stunning loss to the Cowboys. The Irish have lost all eight times they played in one of those games. The way things started for Notre Dame on Saturday, it's hard to believe we're riding that same narrative, too. Quarterback Jack Coan yards, five touchdowns sprayed the ball around to receivers all over the field, torching the vaunted Pokes defense.
Then it just stopped. Two Irish turnovers helped turn the momentum toward the Cowboys, but more than that, it was a sheer lack of answers by Freeman, offensive coordinator Tommy Rees and Co. In the first game following Brian Kelly 's decision to take the money and run to LSU, nobody stepped up to stop the bleeding. Freeman is a brilliant recruiter, has a great defensive mind and has a lot of upside at just 35 years old.
But Saturday is going to be remembered as a colossal blunder and squandered opportunity. The Irish must perform better in big games to be considered a title-contending threat in the future.
The recent history of the program has been up-and-down, from Art Briles' Bears dominance to his ignominious exit to Matt Rhule's rebuild before his departure for the NFL. It looked like hiring the former LSU defensive coordinator was a mistake. A year later, it's obvious Baylor struck gold. Yes, the Rebels struggled offensively after Matt Corral's first-quarter leg injury, but one of Baylor's three interceptions came on a Corral throw.
They dictated the pace of play and controlled the game. Even when the Ole Miss defense played exceptionally, Baylor's was a bit better. Al Walcott's yard pick-six helped give the Bears a seven-point lead that lasted until the Rebs tied it in the third quarter on their only sustained drive with Luke Altmyer under center. The Bears' dominance on defense bought them time, allowing for two fourth-quarter offensive touchdowns including one on a short field after JT Woods' second interception of the game in what wound up as a thorough win.
All that equaled a New Year's Six bowl victory and the first win season in Bears history. Ole Miss star quarterback Matt Corral was carted off the Sugar Bowl field against Baylor with a lower-leg injury, and social media immediately erupted with debates about whether players should opt out of bowl games. Even though we don't know the extent of his injury, just the possibility of the junior star electing to share one more huge moment with his teammates and getting hurt in the process was tough to stomach.
Of course, a situation like this will ignite conversation, but such an important decision should be up to the player. Then, everybody should sit back and hope it works out for the best. He's not only one of college football's best players, he's also one of the grittiest and most likable. To see Corral go down with an injury in such a big moment, just months before his opportunity to make millions, is sad.
No matter how—or if—this is an injury that could affect Corral's draft status, the Rebels wanted him out there, and it's likely Baylor did too. Everybody should hope he gets well soon, returns to form and is well enough to show out for NFL draft scouts. Whether it impacts the topic of future decisions of players to opt out is irrelevant.
For a while on Saturday, you'd have to pardon Arkansas if it looked like it hadn't been here before. After enduring years of turmoil and turnover, the Razorbacks hadn't played in a bowl game since or a New Year's Day or New Year's Six bowl since ' Once they got their sea legs, they got those legs churning.
The result was a annihilation of an outmatched Penn State in the Outback Bowl. Trailing by three points at halftime, the Razorbacks really got moving with their running game after the break as they turned to dual-threat quarterback KJ Jefferson on a keeper-infused, third-quarter-opening touchdown drive on their way to yards on the ground in the third frame. For the game, a Hogs team that finished second in the SEC with more than yards on the game embarrassed a strong Nittany Lions defense to the tune of rushing yards, a 6.
Jefferson's rushing yards led the way and more than made up for a pedestrian 98 passing yards, but, just like Arkansas has done all year, he wasn't alone. Freshman running back Raheim "Rocket" Sanders had 79 yards and a pair of touchdowns, Dominique Johnson had 77 more, and backup signal-caller Malik Hornsby added 67 yards on just four carries.
Parker Washington and KeAndre Lambert-Smith ran wild throughout the first half of the Outback Bowl, making plays, giving Penn State fans a glimpse of the future and almost allowing them to forget about receiver Jahan Dotson, who opted out to focus on the draft. On one hand, it's hard to scheme up plays when you're as one-dimensional as coordinator Mike Yurcich's offense is.
The Nittany Lions finished the season 13th in the Big Ten in rushing yards and struggled again against Arkansas. But it isn't like there's a lack of talent. You can understand why Penn State fans are so frustrated with this team after last year's debacle.
Head coach James Franklin recruits so well, and at one point of the season, PSU was looking strong at Then, it went the rest of the way, crumbling in the wake of prosperity. Not only did the Razorbacks torch Penn State's vaunted defense while running the ball, but the Nittany Lions also couldn't get anything going offensively.
The Lions had just 91 second-half yards and seven first downs, and the one time they mustered a drive and got all the way into scoring position, Sean Clifford threw a crippling interception in the end zone. With an elite recruiting class coming in and some good, young playmakers ready to take charge, Penn State has reasons for excitement. But Franklin has to do more with these players than he has the past two years, or the seat is going to get very warm soon.
Say what you want about the ugly way Kentucky wins, but the Wildcats are continuing to truck right along under Mark Stoops.
In the Citrus Bowl against Iowa, the Wildcats had to play a Hawkeyes brand of slug-it-out football, blowing a point halftime lead only to rally with a massive fourth-quarter drive to pull out a win. UK linebacker DeAndre Square's lunging interception ended the Hawkeyes' threat to take the lead late, and the Wildcats ran out the clock for the win.
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