Best of the 2007 Bowls

Author:
SI Staff
Publish date:
Jan 8, 2008

Best of the 2007 Bowls

Dec. 20, Poinsettia Bowl

The Utes won their seventh consecutive bowl game and earned their ninth victory of the season. Utah QB Brian Johnson (pictured) threw one touchdown and ran for an additional score.

Dec. 21, New Orleans Bowl

Howard Schnellenberger (pictured) led FAU to a win in the program's first bowl game. Owls QB Rusty Smith threw for 336 yards and a New Orleans Bowl record five touchdowns.

Dec. 22, PapaJohns.com Bowl

Ben Mauk paced Cincinnati's offensive attack, throwing for 334 yards and four touchdowns. The win gave the Bearcats their first 10-win season since 1951.

Dec. 22, New Mexico Bowl

The Lobos ended a 46-year span without a postseason victory by completely stifling Nevada's "Pistol" Offense. New Mexico held the Wolf Pack to 210 yards of total offense.

Dec. 22, Las Vegas Bowl

The Bruins made a spectacular, 87-yard drive to set up a 28-yard field goal for the win, but BYU's Eathyn Manumaleuna blocked the attempt to give the Cougars their 11th victory.

Dec. 23, Hawaii Bowl

RB Chris Johnson (pictured) set an NCAA bowl record with 408 all-purpose yards and the Pirates upset last season's bowl darling, Boise State.

Dec. 26, Motor City Bowl

Chris Summers nailed a 40-yard field goal as time expired to give the Boilermakers their eighth win. Purdue QB Curtis Painter threw for a school-record 546 yards and three touchdowns.

Dec. 27, Holiday Bowl

Jamaal Charles paced the Longhorns offense, rushing for 161 yards and two touchdowns, but this game will be remembered for one of the strangest plays in recent bowl history. Chris Jessie (far right) -- a member of Texas' football operations staff and Mack Brown's stepson -- appeared to touch a live football near the sideline, negating the ensuing Longhorns recovery.

Dec. 28, Champs Sports Bowl

Matt Ryan led Boston College to its eighth consecutive bowl victory by throwing three touchdown passes. Jamie Silva led the Eagles' defense, recording two interceptions, including one in the end zone.

Dec. 28, Texas Bowl

The Horned Frogs used an extremely balanced attack -- 10 different receivers had a catch -- to edge out the Cougars. TCU has ended its last three seasons with a bowl victory.

Dec. 28, Emerald Bowl

Yvenson Bernard finished off his storied career at Oregon State in a fitting fashion, rushing for 177 yards and a touchdown. Freshman James Rodgers (pictured) offered a glimpse of the future, adding 115 rushing yards of his own.

Dec. 29, Meineke Car Care Bowl

The Huskies jumped out to a 10-0 advantage, but the Demon Deacons came roaring back, scoring the game's final 24 points. Playing in his last game, senior WR Kenneth Moore (pictured) paced the Wake Forest offense, catching 11 passes 112 yards.

Dec. 29, Liberty Bowl

After winning three games in each of his first three seasons, Sylvester Croom finished the '07 campaign with an eighth win over UCF. In a defensive ballgame, Anthony Dixon (pictured) led the Bulldogs' charge with 86 yards rushing and the game's only touchdown.

Dec. 29, Alamo Bowl

The Aggies had a 14-0 lead after the first quarter, but Penn State responded with a 17-0 advantage in the second quarter. In the end, the Nittany Lions handed Joe Paterno a victory in his 500th career game.

Dec. 30, Independence Bowl

When the Crimson Tide went up 20-0, it looked like this game would be a rout, but the Buffs wouldn't go away. Regardless, Alabama stopped a four-game losing streak and avoided consecutive losing seasons for the first time in 50 years.

Dec. 31, Armed Forces Bowl

Cal fell in a 21-0 hole, but the Golden Bears came back behind backup quarterback Kevin Riley. Riley -- who took over for Nate Longshore in the second quarter -- completed 16-of-19 passes for 269 yards and three touchdowns and ran for an additional score.

Dec. 31, Sun Bowl

No Dixon? No problem. Nobody gave the depleted Ducks a chance in this game, but they rolled behind bruising RB Jonathan Stewart, who rushed 23 times for a career-high 253 yards (a Sun Bowl record) and a touchdown. Freshman QB Justin Roper added four touchdown passes.

Dec. 31, Humanitarian Bowl

The Bulldogs racked up 571 yards of offense on a respectable Yellow Jackets defense. Clifton Smith (pictured) ran for 152 yards and two touchdowns and also caught four balls for 57 yards.

Dec. 31, Music City Bowl

Andre Woodson finished a fabulous career at Kentucky by winning Music City Bowl MVP honors for the second straight year. Woodson threw for 358 yards and four touchdowns.

Dec. 31, Insight Bowl

The Hoosiers just had no answer for Pokes QB Zac Robinson. The sophomore threw for 302 yards and three touchdowns and ran for 70 yards and an additional score.

Dec. 31, Chick-fil-A Bowl

Freshman QB Kodi Burns (pictured) burst on the scene in Auburn's new spread offense, which was instituted before the bowl by new offensive coordinator Tony Franklin. Burns, who split time with Brandon Cox, had a touchdown pass in regulation and the game-winning touchdown run in overtime.

Jan. 1, Outback Bowl

Erik Ainge finished his Tennessee career in style, throwing for 365 yards and two touchdowns. The win gave Tennessee its first 10-win season since 2004.

Jan. 1, Cotton Bowl

In a game that was supposed to showcase Heisman finalists Chase Daniel and Darren McFadden, Tigers RB Tony Temple emerged as the player to watch. Temple rushed for 281 yards and four touchdowns -- both Cotton Bowl records.

Jan. 1, Gator Bowl

The Red Raiders overcame a 14-point, fourth-quarter deficit and Alex Trlica hit a 41-yard field goal with two seconds left for the win. Texas Tech QB Graham Harrell finished 44-of-69 for 407 yards and three touchdowns.

Jan. 1, Capital One Bowl

Many expected the speedy Gators to blow away Michigan, but the Wolverines rallied in Lloyd Carr's last game. Michigan QB Chad Henne picked apart Florida's young secondary, throwing for a career-high 373 yards and three touchdowns.

Jan. 1, Rose Bowl

USC finished the regular season playing its best football, and it carried over into the bowl game. The Trojans lambasted inferior Illinois, racking up 633 yards of offense.

Jan. 1, Sugar Bowl

Georgia's feisty defense terrorized Heisman finalist Colt Brennan, sacking the QB eight times and intercepting three of his passes. Bulldogs freshman sensation Knowshon Moreno had two rushing touchdowns.

Jan. 2, Fiesta Bowl

In quite possibly the most shocking result of this bowl season, the Mountaineers ran wild on a vaunted Oklahoma front, amassing 349 yards on the ground. Playing without Rich Rodriguez for the first time in his career, West Virginia QB Pat White threw for 176 yards and two touchdowns and ran for an additional 150 yards.

Jan. 3, Orange Bowl

Kansas capped off its dream season with a 12th victory. The Jayhawks offense wasn't as explosive as usual, but KU's D played one of its finest games of the season.

Jan. 5, International Bowl

Rutgers earned its second bowl victory in the program's 138-year history by riding star RB Ray Rice (pictured). The junior rushed for 280 yards and four touchdowns.

Jan. 6, GMAC Bowl

Golden Hurricane QB Paul Smith set an NCAA record by throwing for 300 yards for the 14th straight game and Tulsa earned its 10th win in convincing fashion.

Jan. 7, BCS National Championship Game

Just like in last year's title game, the Buckeyes jumped out to an early advantage but then sputtered through the rest of the game. After Ohio State earned a 10-0 lead, LSU rolled off 31 straight points to put the game away. LSU QB Matt Flynn threw a career-high four touchdown passes.

Best of the 2007 Bowls