Basketball schools KU, UNLV battle on gridiron Guaranteed Rate Bowl: Kansas vs. UNLV, 9 ET, ESPN
As a public service announcement, we are obligated to clarify that there is no boxing scheduled on Boxing Day. There is, however, football.
After a brief holiday timeout, the college bowl season continues Tuesday with a trio of games, all on the four-letter network.
There’s no real overarching theme for the day. The three games feature representatives from six different conferences. None are champions, but one of today’s participants was a finalist. The offerings later in the day as we move westward would therefore appear to make for more compelling viewing, but any bowl game has the capacity to surprise. Here are the day’s matchups.
Quick Lane Bowl: Bowling Green vs. Minnesota, 2 ET, ESPN
Yes, we know what we just said about this sport’s ability to produce unexpected results in these uncertain bowl settings. But in all likelihood this game is going to be a tough watch. The Falcons lost this same bowl a year ago to New Mexico State, and Minnesota comes in following a winless November. The Golden Gophers, like the rest of the Big Ten West, struggled to put points on the board even in the games they managed to win. With QB Athan Kaliakmanis now in the portal, longtime backup Cole Kramer will get the start. Falcons QB Connor Bazelak will be around, but he can be pick-prone.
First Responder Bowl:
Rice vs. Texas State, 5:30 ET, ESPN
The “happy-to-be-here” factor will be more evident in this contest. For the Bobcats, the last of 12 Sun Belt squads to take the field in this postseason, it’s the first bowl appearance in program history. The Owls went bowling last year as a 5-7 team but this berth undoubtedly feels more earned within the program. As an added bonus, they are the only one of the three American Athletic teams with owl mascots to make a bowl. Isn’t that a hoot? Sorry, couldn’t resist. Texas State puts up a solid 36 points a game, with QB T.J. Finley and RB Ismail Mahdi leading the way. The Rice attack
This should be good. These are two schools better known for their achievements in an indoor sport, but both seem to have found the right coach to make them relevant on the gridiron. Barry Odom needed just one year to get the Rebels into the Mountain West title game. Never mind that UNLV comes in on a two-game skid. The chance to reach 10 victories for the first time since 1984 will have the team fully engaged. Lance Leipold, a winner at all of his coaching stops, has been making steady progress in Lawrence. The Jayhawks had up and down moments this year, but their takedown of Oklahoma was the unquestioned highlight. UNLV QB Jayden Maiava has been solid at the controls, but the star of the Rebels offense is WR Ricky White, who averages over 17 yards on his 81 catches amassing 1,386 yards. QB Jason Bean has handled most of the snaps for KU this season with Jalon Daniels sidelined for much of the campaign with back issues. Daniels will be back in 2024, but meanwhile Bean and the Jayhawks will continue to rely on standout RB Devin Neal to keep the sticks moving.