TODAY’S BOWL GAMES
Military Bowl
Pittsburgh (8-4, ACC) vs. Navy (10-2, AAC), 12:30 p.m., ESPN ■ LINE: Navy by 3 ■ SERIES RECORD: Pitt leads 22-14-3 ■ WHAT’S AT STAKE: Playing its final game with star QB Keenan Reynolds, Navy vies for the first 11-win season in the history of the program and its first three-game winning streak in bowl games. Pittsburgh wraps up its first season under coach Pat Narduzzi seeking its first nine-win season since 2009. Making its eighth straight bowl appearance, the Panthers have dropped three of their last four postseason games.
PLAYERS TO WATCH: Navy: Reynolds has
■ scored 85 career touchdowns (all rushing), the most in Division I history. He has rushed for a school-record 4,415 yards and his 512 career points are the second-most in NCAA history. Pittsburgh: Freshman RB Qadree Ollison, the ACC Offensive Rookie of the Year, began the season as a third-stringer. He moved up following injuries to James Conner and Rachid Ibrahim and finished with 1,048 yards rushing with 10 touchdowns.
FACTS & FIGURES: Pitt went 5-1 on the road
■ this season, and although this is technically a neutral site, the game is being held at Navy’s home stadium. … Dating back to last year, Navy has won 16 of 19 with two of the defeats coming against Notre Dame. … Pitt is 13-18 in bowl games, Navy 9-10-1. … Pitt junior Tyler Boyd is the school career leader with 248 catches and 3,308 yards receiving. … First game for Navy coach Ken Niumatalolo since he turned down chance to take over at BYU. He interviewed for job after Midshipmen beat Army 21-17 on Dec. 12 to reclaim the Commander-In-Chief’s Trophy. He is 67-37 at Navy. … Pitt has allowed only two TDs and 32 points in the third quarter. … Navy has gone 47 straight games without being blanked and has scored a touchdown on the ground in each of those contests.
Quick Lane Bowl
Central Michigan (7-5) vs. Minnesota (5-7), Monday, 3 p.m., ESPN2 LINE: Minnesota by 4½ SERIES RECORD: Minnesota leads 1-0
WHAT’S AT STAKE: The Golden Gophers hope to end the season on a solid note after reaching a bowl despite a losing record. Minnesota is in this game because not enough teams reached six wins to fill all the bowls. Central Michigan is the only Mid-American Conference team facing a Power Five school this postseason, and the Chippewas will try to represent their league well.
PLAYERS TO WATCH: CMU: DB Kavon Frazier. The senior leads the team in tackles and also has an interception, two forced fumbles and a blocked punt. Minnesota: QB Mitch Leidner. He has completed 218 passes this season, a school record for a junior.
FACTS & FIGURES: CMU’s Brian Eavey has made 16 FGs this season and needs five more to break the school’s single-season record. ... CMU has won the time of possession battle in 10 of its 12 games this year. ... Tracy Claeys took over as Minnesota’s coach in October after Jerry Kill resigned for health reasons. ... The Gophers are one of 13 schools with three or fewer seniors at the offensive skill positions — quarterback, running back, wide receiver and tight end.