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One of this year's semifinal games will feature two of the game’s traditional powers, Alabama and Michigan, in just their sixth meeting in college football history. The other, Texas vs. Washington, is a rematch of last year’s Alamo Bowl with greatly elevated stakes.
The Rose Bowl Game got a doozy of a matchup when the playoff committee selected Alabama over undefeated Florida State. While the Crimson Tide was the most scrutinized selection at the beginning of the month, the program is also one of the hottest teams entering the postseason. Bama has won 11 straight since falling to No. 3 Texas in Week 2, capped by a miraculous win over rival Auburn at Jordan-Hare and an upset of Georgia to capture the SEC championship. This is by no means Nick Saban’s most star-studded team, but this might be his best coaching job since getting to Tuscaloosa in 2007.
The committee did no favors to Michigan by matching the top-ranked team with Alabama. They’ve yet to face a quarterback with Jalen Milroe’s athletic ability and the Tide is built for games of this magnitude. Still, the Wolverines are the No. 1 seed for a reason. They have a championship-caliber roster and a chip on their shoulder after losing in the semis the last two years. The ground game is terrific and the D allows an FBS-low 9.5 points per game. But to beat this opponent, the Big Ten champs must unlock the potential of QB J.J. McCarthy who threw just one TD pass over the final five games. That’s no small ask versus a secondary featuring All-SEC first-teamers Caleb Downs, Kool-Aid McKinstry and Terrion Arnold.
Texas and Washington are coming off their best regular seasons in years. The Longhorns, long rumored to be on the brink of a breakthrough, finally delivered in Steve Sarkisian’s third season in Austin. They banked a statement Week 2 win at Alabama, rebounded from a Red River loss to Oklahoma and closed with seven straight wins, including their first conference championship since 2009. This season’s difference? The Horns have always had speed and skill talent, but this year they also have elite linemen, such as LT Kelvin Banks and interior defensive linemen T'Vondre Sweat and Byron Murphy. UT ranks second nationally in run defense and is one of just seven FBS teams allowing less than three yards a carry.
But can Texas stop an elite passing game? It didn’t in Dallas and Washington is far more advanced than Oklahoma. The Huskies are an interesting team. They’re part flash, with QB Michael Penix Jr. slinging it to the nation’s best receiving corps, comprised of Rome Odunze, Jalen McMillan and Ja’Lynn Polk. However, U-Dub has grit, chemistry and an uncanny ability to endure in close games. Remarkably, the Huskies have won nine straight games by 10 or fewer points, a credit to the preparation of head coach Kalen DeBoer and the rest of the staff. Two of those wins were over Oregon, including Dec. 3 Las Vegas, when the entire world wrote off their chances of winning the Pac-12 title.
The Maxwell Football Club honors the nation’s best player with the Maxwell Award. Here’s a look at some of the bowl season's top offensive performers, so far.
In last night’s Guaranteed Rate Bowl, UNLV could not contain Kansas which won its first postseason game since 2008. The 9-4 Jayhawks racked up 591 total yards, most off the right arm of Bean, one of the nation’s trustiest backups. While the battle-tested senior did throw three interceptions in the 49-36 win he also completed 19-of-28 passes for 449 yards and a school record tying six touchdowns, three apiece to receivers Lawrence Arnold and Luke Grimm.
The future in the Bay Area is very bright. The Bulls capped a breakout season under first-year head coach Alex Golesh with a Boca Raton Bowl blowout of Syracuse, 45-0. Brown finished his debut season as the starter by once again showing off his multidimensional skillset. The redshirt freshman from Raleigh accounted for 299 yards and three touchdowns, all through the air, while also catching a pass and being the game’s leading rusher.
The backfield of Grainger and RB Freddie Brock gashed Utah State Saturday in a 45-22 Famous Idaho Potato Bowl victory. Brock, the Maine transfer with only six carries all season, rushed 24 times for a Georgia State-record 276 yards, including bursts of 31, 43, 58 and 60 yards. Grainger was even better. He completed 19-of-22 passes while accounting for 368 total yards and five total touchdowns. Those five scores tied his own single-game school record.
The 68 Ventures Bowl was the scene of the passing of the baton as Lopez showed why he’s the future under center in Mobile. The true freshman from Huntsville shared snaps with veteran Desmond Trotter, earning MVP honors in a 59-10 demolition of Eastern Michigan. Looking like a Tua Tagovailoa doppelganger, the accurate lefty diced up the Eagles for 192 yards and three touchdowns on 14-of-19 passing. Lopez also rushed for a game-high 88 yards and a score in a harbinger of what’s to come at South Alabama.
Defense and a relentless ground game. It was a time-tested recipe for success for Air Force in Saturday’s 31-21 Armed Forced Bowl win over 11-1 James Madison. Michel spearheaded a rushing attack that churned out 351 yards versus a top-ranked Dukes’ run defense allowing just 62 yards per game. The senior from Lawrenceville, Ga. turned 35 carries into a career-high and Air Force bowl-record 203 yards and a pair of touchdowns.
The Gophers were a different team in the Quick Lane Bowl with Taylor who missed the previous five games with a leg injury. In a homecoming of sorts, the true freshman from Detroit rushed for a career-high 208 yards and a touchdown on 35 carries as Minnesota captured its seventh straight bowl game, 30-24, over Bowling Green. With Taylor carrying an offense led by first-time starting QB Cole Kramer, the Gophers reached 30 points for just the third time all year. He’ll be the face of the attack in 2024 and one of the Big Ten’s premier running backs.
Starter Grayson McCall missed a chunk of the season and ultimately transferred to NC State. The silver lining? It gave the Chanticleers an opportunity to develop Vasko as the heir behind center. The redshirt freshman transfer from Kansas got the nod in early November and peaked in Saturday’s Hawaii Bowl win against San Jose State. He threw for 199 yards and a season-high three scores while displaying his athleticism by rushing for a team-best 50 yards on 17 carries.
The Maxwell Football Club honors the nation’s best defensive player with the Chuck Bednarik Award. Here’s a look at this past week’s standout defenders.
Lost in the Aggies’ lopsided Famous Idaho Potato Bowl defeat to Georgia State was a pass rush that generated consistent pressure. Fitzgerald, in particular, is a young edge rusher the Utah State staff can build around this offseason. The redshirt freshman from Idaho Falls tallied a career-high three sacks, which also tied for the most sacks in a game in school history. Fitzgerald finished his first season ranked among the nation’s leaders in sacks and tackles for loss for a freshman.
Throw up a hand if you had Northwestern beating Utah in a bowl game after the team lost the opener to Rutgers with an interim coach at the helm. Now the head coach, David Braun has engineered a rather remarkable turnaround in Evanston, highlighted by Saturday’s 14-7 Las Vegas Bowl defeat of the Utes. In a collaborative effort, the Wildcat D allowed just 211 yards and not a single play for more than 25 yards. Heard led the way with a dozen tackles and recovered a fumble forced by LB Xander Mueller, another of the team’s veteran leaders.
An historic season for the Bobcats ended fittingly in Tuesday night’s First Responder Bowl. The Bobcats defeated Rice, 45-21, for the school’s first-ever bowl win while setting a new FBS program record with eight wins in a season. Holloway was one of many heroes on both sides of the ball. The senior had six tackles and a pair of pick-sixes, becoming the first Texas State player to return two interceptions for TDs in the same game. Holloway was named game MVP in a stadium he called home for three years as an SMU Mustang.
Joyner had a breakout junior season with the Gophers. The best is yet to come. The 6-5, 265-pounder from Danbury, Conn. showed in Wednesday’s Quick Lane Bowl why he’s an emerging next-level pass rusher. In an efficient and explosive all-around effort, Joyner’s 38 snaps against Bowling Green resulted in two sacks, eight hurries, one hit and a single-game personal-best 11 total pressures on Falcon QB Connor Bazelak.
Brent Key has the Yellow Jackets pointed in the right direction, with the exclamation point coming in Friday night’s Gasparilla Bowl rally versus UCF. Tech captured its first bowl win since 2016 and its first winning season since 2018, overcoming a 14-0 deficit and dominating the second half. Moala, the Idaho and Notre Dame transfer, helped shutout the Knights over the final 38 minutes with six tackles, three stops for loss, two sacks and a game-high five total pressures.
No matter what James Madison tried, it could not slow down the rush of Richter who was tenacious off the edge. The All-Mountain West veteran schooled the Dukes offensive line in a 31-21 win in the Armed Forced Bowl. Richter had just four tackles, but his presence was felt until the final whistle. He racked up a dozen total pressures of QB Jordan McCloud, which included four tackles, 3.5 stops for loss, two sacks and a forced fumble.
The Blue Devils defeated Troy in the Birmingham Bowl, despite being without their former head coach and top two quarterbacks. The defense pitched a first half shutout and allowed just 2-of-12 third down conversions enroute to the 17-10 victory. Rivers was a factor in all phases of the D. He was in on five tackles, two for minus yards, broke up three Gunnar Watson passes and pressured the pocket on timely blitzes.
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Rich Cirminiello is the VP of College Awards at Maxwell Football Club. He can be followed on Twitter at @Rich Cirminiello