TODAY’S COLLEGE FOOTBALL BOWL GAMES
■ First Responder Bowl: No. 16 Louisiana-Lafayette (9-1) vs. UTSA (7-4), at Dallas, 3:30 p.m. (ABC).
■ Line: LouisianaLafayette by 5.
■ Series record: First meeting.
WHAT’SATSTAKE
■ Louisiana-Lafayette is playing in its third bowl game in a rowunder coach Billy Napier. The Ragin’ Cajunswere declared
Sun Belt co-champions after theywere denied a chance for a rematch against undefeated No. 9 Coastal Carolina, the only team to beat them (3027 on Oct. 14). The Sun Belt championship game was canceled because of COVID-19 issues within the Chanticleers program. UTSA, with first-year coach Jeff Traylor, has a three-game winning streak and is one win away from matching the programrecord of eight set in 2012. UTSA said Traylorwill not travel to Dallas for the game after he tested positive for COVID-19.
KEYMATCHUP
■ Ragin’ Cajuns defense against UTSA dualthreat QB Frank Harris and Conference USA rushing leader Sincere McCormick. Harris has passed for 1,422 yards with 10 touchdowns and run for another 437 yards and eight more scores. McCormick has 1,345 yards rushing and 11 TDs. Louisiana-Lafayette has the Sun Belt’s best pass defense, allowing 167 yards per game, and gives up 347 total yards per game.
PLAYERSTOWATCH
■ Louisiana-Lafayette: SeniorQB Levi Lewis, 21-6 as the starter, joined Jake Delhomme as the only quarterbacks in program historywith more than 6,000 career passing yards and 50 TDs. Lewis has led five game-winning drives in the fourth quarter, four this season. He has 2,128 yards passing with 17 TDs this season.
■ UTSA: Sophomore safety Rashad Wisdom leads the Roadrunners with 82 tackles and four interceptions. He has also recovered two fumbles.
FACTS& FIGURES
■ Louisiana-Lafayette
RBs Elijah Mitchell and Trey Ragas are the only teammates who have recorded 1,100yard rushing seasons in separate years, and both have more than 600 yards this season. ... The Roadrunners are playing in their first bowl game since the 2016 NewMexico Bowl, when theymatched an NCAA modern startup record when playing in a bowl game in only its sixth season as a program. ... UTSAwas initially headed to the Frisco Bowl, but that gamewas canceled
after expected opponent SMU had COVID-19 issues. ... Louisiana-Lafayette can have consecutive seasons with at least 10 wins for first time in school history.
■ Lending Tree Bowl: Georgia State (5-4, Sun Belt Conference) vs. Western Kentucky (5-6, Conference USA), 3:30 p.m. (ESPN)
■ LOCATION: Mobile, Alabama
TOPPLAYERS
■ Georgia State: Redshirt freshman QB Cornelious Brown IV is second in the Sun Belt in passing (227.3 yards per game) and total offense (256.3 ypg). Has passed for 14 touchdowns and rushed for seven.
■ Western Kentucky: DE DeAngelo Malone, the defending C-USA Defensive Player of the Year, has six sacks, 11 tackles for loss, two forced fumbles and eight quarterback hurries.
NOTABLE
■ Georgia State: Won three of its last four games. Allowed averages of just 18.3 points and 334.7 yards in its last three games, including wins over South Alabama and Georgia Southern and a loss to Appalachian State. Ranks seventh in FBS with 3.56 sacks per game.
■ Western Kentucky: Closed the season with three straight wins over Southern Miss, FIU and Charlotte. One of 10 FBS teams to play 11-plus games this season. Eighth nationally allowing 170.1 passing yards per game.
LASTTIME
■ Georgia Statewon 27-17 in the 2017 Cure Bowl after Western Kentucky took the first meeting.
BOWLHISTORY
■ Georgia State: The Panthers are seeking their second bowl victory against the sameWKU team that they defeated for their first bowl win, a 27-17 victory over the Hilltoppers in the 2017 Cure Bowl in coach Shawn Elliott’s first season.
■ Western Kentucky: Making its seventh bowl appearance since 2012 and eighth overall. Won
three straight bowl games from 2014-16.
■ Cure Bowl: Coastal Carolina (11-0, 8-0 Sun Belt) against Liberty (9-1), 7:30 p.m. (ESPN)
■ Line: Coastal Carolina by 61/2.
■ Series record: Tied 7-7.
WHAT’SATSTAKE
■ No. 9 Coastal Carolina should be motivated after being ranked 12th in the latest College Football Playoff rankings despite being one of just five undefeated teams in the nation. No. 23 Liberty is seeking to win the Cure Bowl for the second consecutive year, complete the best season in programhistory and finish ranked in the Top 25.
KEYMATCHUP
■ The game could come down to which defense has the most success stopping the run. Liberty is eighth in the nation in rushing at 252.1 yards per game. Coastal Carolina averages 223.2, 15th in the country.
PLAYERSTOWATCH
■ Coastal Carolina: Running back CJ Marable has rushed for 844 yards and 12 touchdown.
■ Liberty: FormerAuburn quarterbackMalik Willis has thrown for 2,040 yards, while also gaining a team-leading 807 yards on the ground.
FACTS& FIGURES
■ This is the first Top 25 matchup in the Cure Bowl’s six-year history.
... Kickoffwasmoved from noon to prime time after the pairingwas announced. ... Coastal Carolina is making its first bowl appearance. ... The one-time Big South rivals were scheduled to play on Dec. 5, but the gamewas canceled due to COVID-19 protocols. ... Coastal Carolina has a 12-game winning streak, dating to last season. That is tied with top-ranked Alabama for the longest current winning streak in the nation. ... Liberty started 8-0 before suffering its lone loss, 15-14 at North Carolina State on Nov. 21.