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AutoZone Liberty Bowl The 2015 AutoZone Liberty Bowl had the Missouri Tigers taking on the New Mexico State Aggies. The teams traded FG's through the 3rd quarter. Heading into the 4th quarter tied 6 to 6, the Tigers connected on a 3 yard TD pass from QB Raymond Finley to WR Jason Caldwell at the 4:52 mark. With time running out, Aggies QB Aaron Romano tossed a 2 yard pass to RB Kurtis Farmer to send the game into overtime. The teams traded TD's in OT, but thanks to a big defensive stop and a QB TD sneak by Finley the Tigers pulled out the 26 to 20 win.

Ticket City Cactus Bowl If you love field goals, this was your game. The 2015 Ticket City Cactus Bowl brought together the Colorado Buffaloes and the Massachusetts Minutemen to showcase their respective kicking games. The teams combined for 6 field goals in 7 attempts, with CU kicker Phillip Wall going 4 for 5. It is worth pointing out that Colorado RB Ray Phillips rushed for 90 yards on 19 carries, raising his season total to 1,037 rushing yards. Not to be outdone, UMass RB Michael Suarez gained 86 yards on 16 carries; raising his season total to 1,000 rushing yards. Not sure how many fans stuck around to see the Buffaloes get the 20 to 6 victory. #snoozefest

TaxSlayer Gator Bowl The 2015 TaxSlayer Gator Bowl featured a match-up between the South Carolina Gamecocks and the Michigan Wolverines. The Gamecocks were on roll and stormed out to a 16 to 0 lead midway through the 3rd quarter. It was all down hill there from there for South Carolina. From that point on, the Wolverines put up 27 points to get the 27 to 19 victory. The solid play of QB Michael Winters (272 passing yards, 2 TD's) and WR Lonnie Fleming (117 receiving yards) led the Michigan offense.

Week 19 Offense & Defense Leaders Week 19 Offense & Defense top game performances.

Bad Boy Mowers Gasparilla Bowl The final bowl game of the week had the Southern Mississippi Golden Eagles taking on the Central Florida Knights in the 2015 Bad Boy Mowers Gasparilla Bowl. While the Golden Eagles jumped out to an early 1st quarter lead, the Knights simply dominated this game on both sides of the ball. UCF had 19 more 1st downs (28 to 9) and controlled the ball for nearly 15 minutes more (37:16 v. 22:44) than the Golden Eagles. Leading the way for UCF in the 37 to 20 victory was the standout junior RB Richard Hill, who rushed for 166 yards on 33 carries. This brought his season total to 1,818 rushing yards and 13 TD's.

Lockheed Martin Armed Forces Bowl Nothing like watching a couple of 5-Win teams playing in a rather obscure bowl game in late December, but such was the case when the Middle Tennessee State Blue Raiders squared off against the Purdue Boilermakers. While it might be easy to dismiss such a game, this was actually a fun one to watch play out. Both sides played solid defense and the score was 16 to 14 late in the 4th quarter. It was not until the 5:15 mark when Purdue QB Justin Hickman connected with WR Jon Walker that the game was finally put away. The real star of the game though was Boilermaker ILB Kyle Coronado who had 11 tackles, 4 sacks, 3 stuffs, 1 forced fumble, 1 pass deflection, and 1 QB hurry. #beast

Quick Lane Bowl The 2015 Quick Lane Bowl featured the Minnesota Gophers and the Utah Utes. While not necessarily must see TV, it still brought together two talented teams who had experienced a disappointing season and were looking to end on a good note. Aside from the 2nd quarter which the Gophers owned, the teams were fairly evenly matched. Leading the ground-game for the Gophers was sophomore RB Louis King who gained 104 yards on 24 carries & 2 TD's. This brought King's season rushing total to 1,454 yards and 13 TD's.

This is great -- look forward to following along. Love seeing Creighton as a #2 seed. Go Jays!

Birmingham Bowl Always fun to have a match-up between the service academies. The 2015 Birmingham Bowl brought together the Army Black Knights and the Navy Midshipmen. While the Black Knights had the better regular season, records never matter when these teams square off. Army jumped out to a 9 to 0 lead, but the Midshipmen went into the 4th quarter with a slim 10 to 9 lead. With each team scoring two (2) TD's in the quarter, the game turned on the fact that Navy failed to convert both of its two-point attempts. Smart play resulted in Army getting the 24 to 22 win. They were led by sophomore RB Michael Lewis' 147 rushing yards; bringing his season total to 1,230 rushing yards.

Northrop Grumman Military Bowl While you might think a bowl game with the term "military" in its name would actually have a "military" team playing, yet you would be wrong. The 2015 Northrop Grumman Military Bowl saw the University of South Florida Bulls taking on the North Carolina State Wolfpack. As a Top-25 ranked, 12 win team, the Bulls came into this game heavily favored over the Wolfpack. While the game stayed tight through 3 quarters, the Bulls pulled away with a 19 point 4th quarter to get the 33 to 18 victory. Finishing with 13 wins and a likely Top-15 ranking is something the USF fans should be proud of. What should not be overlooked in this game was the solid Bulls' defensive and special team play which had a 76 yard punt return, a 30 yard INT return, and a 80 yard INT return. #whoneedstheoffense

Camping World Independence Bowl The 2015 Camping World Independence Bowl brought together the Wyoming Cowboys and the Boston College Eagles. While neither team had a particular good season, this game was a chance for the teams to showcase to their recruiting classes what might be. The BC Eagles did just that, as they jumped out to a 21 point lead early in the 2nd quarter & cruised to a dominating 49 to 7 win over the Cowboys. In whole, BC put together 526 yards in total offense and 31 first downs. Leading the way for the Eagles was junior QB Edward Rodriguez who tossed for 283 yards and 4 TD's. I Also noteworthy was the team also had two running backs who each topped the 100 yard mark: Joseph Burnette (116 yards on 10 carries) and Kenneth Barnes (109 yards on 19 carries). #buttkicking

Zaxby's Heart of Dallas Bowl The University of Alabama-Birmingham Blazers have been looking for respect all season long. Despite having 11 wins coming into the 2015 Zaxby's Heart of Dallas Bowl game, the Blazers have received very little attention by the National press. While it is doubtful that they will finish the year within the Top-25 poll, their convincing 39 to 10 win over the Georgia State Panthers might just be enough for this 12 win UAB team to finally get a national mention. The Blazers jumped out to an early 16 - 0 1st Quarter lead, and cruised to an easy victory. Led by junior QB Justin Warner (263 passing yards & 3 TD's), UAB racked up nearly 450 yards in total offense.

Yep, agreed. While clearly not an elite level QB any longer, he is still a player that likely every other team would want leading them.

Makers Wanted Bahamas Bowl There are far worse things then playing a football game in Nassau, Bahamas. The 2015 Makers Wanted Bahamas Bowl brought together the Northern Illinois University Huskies (11-3) and the Florida Atlantic Owls (11-2). Not sure if was the jetlag, but the Huskies were sluggish in this one and just could not things going on offense. It didn't help matters that NIU kicker Zachary Mitchell went 0 for 4 on field goal attempts. The Owls convincing 25 to 7 win over a ranked team, to go along with their 11 win season, should set them up for continued success in the near future.

Foster Farms Bowl The 2015 Foster Farms Bowl saw the #24 Stanford Cardinals square off against the Northwestern Wildcats. The game was close through the first half, as the Cardinals struggled to get its offense going. That all changed in the 2nd half, as they put up 28 consecutive points to put the game away. While RB Eric Smith had a great day gaining 141 yards on 16 carries, it was QB Gerald Williams who stole the show. Williams, who was awarded "Player of the Game" honors, passed for 328 yards and 4 TD's. This was a nice way for the Cardinals to end the season; getting to 10 wins and locking in a Top 25 ranking.

Advocare Texas Bowl The 2015 Advocare Texas Bowl brought together the #20 Mississippi State Bulldogs from the SEC to face off against the Kansas State Wildcats of the Big12. The Bulldogs controlled this one from the start, and cruised to an easy victory. RB Ramon Flores had a solid game, rushing for 148 yards on the day and finished off the season with 2,178 rushing yards. This was a nice season for Mississippi State, and getting 11 wins should help the team to continue to draw in top talent.

Belk Bowl Very nice win for the Duke Blue Devils over the Texas A&M Aggies in the 2015 Belk Bowl. Duke RB Luis Taylor did an outstanding job of chewing up the A&M defense, gaining 128 yards on 28 carries.The A&M offense just could not get any momentum going; only gaining 228 total net yards on the day. Getting to 10 wins might just be enough for Duke to crack the final Top 25 poll.

New Era Pinstripe Bowl The 2015 New Era Pinstripe Bowl game featured the Oregon Ducks taking on the Louisville Cardinals. While the teams played a close game through the 1st half, Louisville went up 31 to 17 early in the 4th quarter and then had to withstand a furious Oregon effort to hold onto the lead to seal the victory. This was a disappointing finish for the Ducks, as they were a borderline Top-10 team earlier in the season.

Franklin American Mortgage Music City Bowl Heading into the 2015 season, the Alabama Crimson Tide would never have thought they would end the season playing in the Franklin American Mortgage Music City Bowl. After all, this was the mighty Crimson Tide that seemingly always plays in major bowl games. Yet, the season had not gone as planned. So here they were, playing against a 7 win Wake Forest Demon Deacon team. The game was tight through the first half, with the score tied at 10 to 10 heading into the 3rd quarter. It was only through the pounding running game of Alabama freshman RB Troy Williams (186 yards on 37 carries, and 1 TD) that the Tide were able to control the clock and seal the 23 to 12 victory. A 10 win season should be enough to keep Alabama in the Top-20 when the final poll is issued. #rolltide

Hyundai Sun Bowl The 2015 Hyundai Sun Bowl saw a truly dominating performance by Notre Dame senior RB Richard Johnson as he led the Fighting Irish to a 28 to 21 victory over the UCLA Bruins. On the day, Johnson rushed for 204 yards on 29 carriers, and scored 3 TD's. In what was a magical season for him, Johnson finished with 2,061 rushing yards and 15 TD's. In getting 12 wins on the season, the Irish should end up in the Top-10 once the final poll is released.

Holiday Bowl The 2015 Holiday Bowl lived up to the hype, as the #21 Arizona State Sun Devils and the #10 Ohio State Buckeyes put on a show. Nothing like waiting until the last game of the season to have your best game, but Sun Devil QB Juan Perry did just that; tossing for 394 yards and 4 TD's in leading his team to victory. On the defensive side of the ball, Sun Devil DT Mark Mays had 3 sacks, 3 QB hurries, and 1 deflected pass. Very nice 31 to 21 win for ASU.

Camping World Bowl The 2015 Camping World Bowl featured a match-up between the #18 Virginia Tech Hokies and the West Virginia Mountaineers. The Hokies came into the game heavily favored, having had a far better offense and defense throughout the season. Someone forgot to tell the Mountaineers that they were the underdog, as they jumped out to an early lead and were up 14-0 in the early 3rd quarter. Behind the solid running of RB David Dejesus (148 yards on 24 carries), West Virginia pulled off the upset. Dejesus was awarded player of the game honors, and finished with 1,016 rushing yards on the season.

Arizona Bowl The 2015 Arizona Bowl featured a match-up between your San Jose State Spartans and the Texas El-Paso Miners. The Spartans come into the bowl game with the 111th ranked offense and the 65th ranked defense. Clearly not an impressive ranking, and normally would not give much of a chance of winning. Yet, the Spartans have been pulling off wins like this all year. They jumped out to an early lead and were cruising until the Miners mounted a comeback. Late in the 3rd quarter UTEP was up by a score of 16 to 15. With star running back John Moreno knocked out of the game, it was not looking too good for San Jose State. Thanks to a fumble recovery, a long drive, and a TD pass from Tony Lima, the Spartans took the lead for good. The victory gave the Spartans 7 wins on the season, a winning record, and great momentum heading into the off-season. The team sure came a long way from my early season concern about them not being able to win any games this season. Being a "bowl game winning team" sure sounds good. #winning

Week 18 Offense & Defense Leaders Week 18 Offense & Defense top game performances.

Marmot Boca Raton Bowl The final game of Week 18 of the 2015 bowl season saw the East Carolina Pirates and the Bowling Green Falcons square off in the Marmot Boca Raton bowl. While neither team had a particular good regular season, they played outstanding in this one and needed extra time to get a winner. Once the dust had settled, the Falcons pulled out the 24 to 17 victory.