Lane Kiffin donning a sombrero. Like a strip-club line item on an expense report, it was one of those beautiful, iconic images that have come to define bowl season. Hours later, it all came crashing down. Whatever goodwill the Trojans had built up on their holiday trip to the Sun Bowl courtesy of Kiffin’s hat […]

Rice vs. Air Force Dec 29, 11:45am (ET), ESPN Amon Carter Stadium (Fort Worth, TX) Line: Air Force -3 If you love old school rushing football between two teams that are mediocre at best then this game is for you my friend. Rice is making their first bowl game since 2008 thanks to reeling off […]

Baylor Bears vs. No. 17 UCLA Bruins Dec. 27, 9:45 pm (ET), ESPN Reliant Stadium (Houston) Line: UCLA -3 Dating back to the night in 1988 when Barry Sanders ran wild all over the Wyoming Cowboys, the Holiday Bowl has garnered a reputation as one of the more fun and festive of the postseason exhibitions. […]

Texas Tech vs. Minnesota Dec 28, 8pm (ET), ESPN Reliant Stadium (Houston, TX) Line: Texas Tech -12 1/2 Ahh, Minnesota… The perennial fringe bowl team returns to it's rightful place as just that – a fringe bowl team. They are making their first appearance in a bowl game since 2009 and will take on a […]

San Jose State vs. Bowling Green December 27, 3pm (ET), ESPN RFK Memorial (Washington, DC) Line: San Jose State -7 1/2 If you told me two years ago that either of these teams would be playing in a bowl game, let alone be ranked I would've told you you were crazy. I mean they won […]

With the news coming out of Madison at the beginning of December it's easily forgivable if you forgot that Purdue also was without a coach in early December. However, their hire came quick as the Boilermakers made a splash in announcing Darrell Hazell from Kent State as the next leader of the Boilermakers football program.  […]

When evaluating off-season coaching hires, it’s always important to be sure and differentiate between the fundamental questions of “Whether the last guy should’ve been fired” versus “Can the new guy succeed?” One essentially has nothing to do with the other.   That’s certainly the case at Colorado, where most of the off-season fireworks around the […]

Ohio Bobcats vs. Louisiana-Monroe Warhawks Dec. 28, 2 p.m., ESPN Independence Stadium (Shreveport, La.) Line: Louisiana-Monroe -7 Louisiana-Monroe is enjoying its best season since becoming an FBS program in 1994 with an 8-4 record and 6-2 in the Sun Belt Conference. Ohio expected to play for a Mid-American Conference, but injuries weakened the Bobcats to […]

Boise State won yet another bowl game Saturday afternoon, downing Washington out in the desert at the MAACO Bowl Las Vegas. As tends to happen in the era of conference realignment, the action on the field had to share headlines with the action in the boardroom. ESPN.com’s Brett McMurphy, the realignment reporter of record, broke […]

Duke Blue Devils vs. Cincinnati Bearcats Dec. 27, 6:30 p.m., ESPN Bank of America Stadium (Charlotte, N.C.) Line: Cincinnati -7 The Belk Bowl, formerly known as the Continental Tire Bowl and the Meineke Car Care Bowl, has another so-so matchup. But this game is a big deal to Duke. The Blue Devils have not played […]

Western Kentucky vs. Central Michigan Dec. 26, 7:30pm (ET), ESPN Ford Field (Detroit, MI) Line: Western Kentucky -5 1/2 Western Kentucky has come a long way in a short time as an FBS football playing school. That hard work and shrewd hiring of Willie Taggart will pay off on Wednesday as they play in their […]