Bowl Buzz: All signs point West
November 30, 2015 | Football, Andy Baggot
Holiday Bowl invite could be in Badgers’ future
Each week leading up to the announcement of the Badgers' bowl destination on Dec. 6, Andy Baggot will take a look at one of Wisconsin's potential destinations. More information is available at UWBowlCentral.com.
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BY ANDY BAGGOT
UWBadgers.com Insider
MADISON, Wis. -- All signs point to the Wisconsin football team making its 10th bowl appearance in California, but there's something new about the projected venue.
According to multiple bowl forecasters, the 25th-ranked Badgers will make their first appearance in the Holiday Bowl, which will be staged Dec. 30 at Qualcomm Stadium in San Diego.
Wisconsin's previous nine postseason assignments in California involved the Rose Bowl in Pasadena (1953, '60, '63, '94, '99, 2000, '11, '12 and '13).
A formal announcement is expected after conference championship games are played and the makeup of the four-team College Football Playoff is determined.
Wisconsin isn't in the mix for the CFP after finishing the regular season 9-3 overall and 6-2 in the Big Ten Conference West Division, but its resume is strong. In addition to the nine victories, its losses came at the hands of teams a combined 33-3 overall: Iowa 12-0, Alabama 11-1 and Northwestern 10-2.
Iowa, which plays Michigan State in the Big Ten title game on Saturday, and Alabama, which faces Florida in the Southeastern Conference championship game, are currently projected as CFP semifinalists.
This will be the 14th-consecutive season Wisconsin has finished a season playing in a bowl game, the longest current streak in the Big Ten Conference.
The Big Ten has contractual agreements with 10 bowls, including the College Football Playoff, which seeds the top four teams in the nation as determined by a 12-member selection committee. One of the committee members is Wisconsin athletic director Barry Alvarez.
Of the nine remaining bowl possibilities, one is off-limits to Wisconsin. Because they played in the Outback Bowl in Tampa, Florida, last January, knocking off Auburn 33-30 in overtime, the Badgers can't play there again this year.
That leaves the following options:
Buffalo Wild Wings Citrus Bowl, Jan. 1, Orlando, Florida
Holiday Bowl, Dec. 30, San Diego, California
Franklin American Mortgage Music City Bowl, Dec. 30, Nashville, Tennessee
Taxslayer Bowl, Jan. 2, Jacksonville, Florida
New Era Pinstripe Bowl, Dec. 26, New York, New York
Foster Farms Bowl, Dec. 26, Santa Clara, California
Quick Lane Bowl, Dec. 28, Detroit, Michigan
Lockheed Martin Armed Forces Bowl, Dec. 29, Fort Worth, Texas
Multiple national media outlets offer weekly predictions on bowl matchups. The latest from Jerry Palm of CBS Sports and Mark Schlabach and Brett McMurphy of ESPN have the Badgers in the Holiday Bowl facing a school from the Pac-12 Conference.
Palm and Schlabach have Wisconsin facing 21st-ranked Utah (9-3, 6-3). McMurphy, meanwhile, has 15th-rated Oregon (9-3, 7-2) as theopponent. Washington State has also been rumored as a possible opponent in online chatter.
Headline: California dreaming as Badgers make Holiday Bowl debut.
Pertinent details: Kickoff at 9:30 p.m. (CST) at Qualcomm Stadium. ESPN will televise.
Website:www.sandiegobowlgames.com.
Series: Wisconsin has faced the Utes three times dating back to 1961 and is 2-1. The last meeting took place in the 1996 Copper Bowl in Tucson, Arizona. Tailback Ron Dayne finished off his record-setting freshman season with the Badgers by rushing for 246 yards and three touchdowns in a 38-10 victory. Conversely, Wisconsin has taken on Oregon five times dating back to 1977 and is 3-2. However, the Ducks have won the last two meetings: 31-28 during a regular-season game in Eugene, Oregon, in 2001; 45-38 in the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California, in 2012.
Personal note: Two former Wisconsin coaches - Alvarez and Bret Bielema - have first-hand experience with the Holiday Bowl. Alvarez, who coached the Badgers from 1990 to 2005, was an assistant at Iowa in 1986 when it appeared in San Diego. Bielema, who succeeded Alvarez at Wisconsin and ran the show from 2006 to 2012, played for Iowa when it appeared in the Holiday Bowl in 1991 and was an assistant coach at Kansas State when it qualified in 2002.
For complete details on potential bowl destinations, ticket information and travel packages, be sure to check out UWBowlCentral.com.
