The
All-Time Ranking Of BCS Bowls
Part 2 - The
Good. No. 15 to No. 28
It's been 11 years since the Big Ten and Pac 10 relented
and joined the bizarre exercise known as the BCS to form the system,
for the most part we have now. Over the last decade-plus have been
some of the greatest games in the history of college football, to go
along with a slew of major clunkers. As the 2009 BCS season kicks
in, here's part two of the CFN ranking of all 42 BCS bowl games from
1999 to 2008 with the good games, but not the great ones.
- Part One: The
Worst BCS Bowls
- Part Three: The
Classics
28. 2002
Sugar Bowl
No. 13 LSU 47 ... No. 8 Illinois 34
LSU jumped out to a 27-0 lead as Domanick Davis scored the first
three TDs of the game, then Rohan Davey and Josh Reed took over as
Davey threw for a Sugar Bowl record 444 yards and three TDs with
Reed catching 14 passes for 240 yards and two scores. Down 34-7 at
halftime, Illinois made it a little bit interesting as Kurt Kittner
threw for four touchdowns and WR Walter Young made six catches for
178 yards and two scores, and he threw a 40-yard touchdown pass to
Brandon Lloyd, but the hole was too deep to dig out of. LSU cranked
out 595 yards of total offense, but committed 13 penalties for 113
yards.
Player of the Game: LSU QB Rohan Davey completed
31-of-53 passes for 444 yards and three TDs. LSU WR Josh Reed caught
14 passes for 240 yards and two scores.
Stat Leaders: Illinois - Passing: Kurt Kittner,
14-35, 262 yds, 4 TD, 1 INT
Rushing: Rocky Harvey, 9-42. Receiving: Walter Young,
6-178, 2 TD
LSU - Passing: Rohan Davey, 31-53, 444 yds, 3
TD
Rushing: Domanick Davis, 28-129, 4 TD. Receiving: Josh
Reed, 14-240, 2 TD
27. 1999 Sugar Bowl
No. 4 Ohio State 24 … No. 6 Texas A&M 14
Ohio State answered an early Texas A&M touchdown run from Dante
Hall with 21 first quarter points. Joe Germaine connected with
Reggie Germany from 18 yards out, Joe Montgomery ran for a ten yard
score, and Kevin Griffin took a blocked punt for a touchdown. The
Buckeyes only managed a field goal the rest of the way, but the
defense did the rest allowing a seven-yard score from Leroy Hodge.
Texas A&M was held to 283 yards of total offense while Ohio State
ran for 210 and threw for 222.
Player of the game: Ohio State WR David Boston made 11
catches for 105 yards
Stat Leaders: Texas A&M - Passing: Branndon
Stewart, 22-39, 187 yds, 1 TD
Rushing: Jamar Toombs, 10-62. Receiving: Chris Taylor,
5-52
Ohio State - Passing: Joe Germaine, 21-38, 222
yds, 1 TD
Rushing: Joe Montgomery, 9-96, 1 TD. Receiving: David
Boston, 11-105
26. 2003 Sugar Bowl
No. 3 Georgia 26 ... No. 14 Florida State 13
Georgia's Bruce Thornton intercepted an ill-advised Fabian
Walker pass and took it 71 yards for a touchdown in the second
quarter, Terrence Edwards caught a 37-yard touchdown pass, and Billy
Bennett connected on field goals from 23, 42, 25 and 35 yards to
overcome a bad offensive performance to put away a pesky Seminole
team. With Walker struggling, WR Anquan Boldin played most of the
second half at quarterback and threw a 40-yard touchdown pass to
Craphanso Thorpe. Boldin also caught a five-yard touchdown
pass. Georgia only gained 276 yards and 11 first downs.
Player of the game: Georgia RB Musa Smith carried the ball 23
times for 146 yards.
Stat Leaders: Georgia - Passing: David Greene,
9-14, 88 yds
Rushing: Musa Smith, 23-146. Receiving: Terrence
Edwards, 3-60. 1 TD
Florida State - Passing: Anquan Boldin, 6-14,
78 yds, 1 TD
Rushing: Leon Washington, 10-48. Receiving: Anquan Boldin,
3-34, 1 TD
25. 2001 Sugar Bowl
No. 3 Miami 37 … No. 7 Florida 20
In the first meeting of in-state powerhouses in 13 years, Miami
got three touchdown passes from Ken Dorsey including two in the
second half to take control of the game. A 19-yard scoring pass to
D.J. Williams and a two-yard play to Najeh Davenport gave the Canes
a 27-17 lead and then got a three-yard Davenport touchdown run late
to hold off the Gator threat. Miami only outgained Florida 454 yards
to 452, but the Gator turnovers proved to be costly.
Player of the game: Miami Ken Dorsey completed 22-of-40
passes for 270 yards and three touchdowns with two interceptions.
Stat Leaders: Florida - Passing: Rex Grossman,
18-41, 312 yds, 1 TD, 3 INT
Rushing: Earnest Graham, 15-136, 1 TD. Receiving:
Jabar Gaffney, 7-75
Miami - Passing: Ken Dorsey, 22-40, 270 yds, 3
TD, 2 INT
Rushing: Clinton Portis, 18-97. Receiving: Santana Moss,
6-89
24. 2000 Rose Bowl
No. 9 Wisconsin 17 … No. 9 Stanford 9
Ron Dayne and the Wisconsin offense were held in check in the
first half as Stanford took a 9-3 lead into the locker room on a
one-yard Kerry Carter touchdown run, and then it was all about the
Heisman winner in the second half. Dayne finished with 200 yards,
with 154 in the second half, with a four-yard touchdown run in the
third quarter. QB Brooks Bollinger ran for a one-yard score in the
fourth to put it away. Stanford finished with a net -5 rushing
yards.
Player of the game: Wisconsin RB Ron Dayne ran 34 times for
200 yards and a touchdown
Stat Leaders: Stanford - Passing: Todd Husak,
17-34, 258 yds
Rushing: Coy Wire, 5-6. Receiving: DeRonnie Pitts,
6-81
Wisconsin - Passing: Brooks Bollinger, 7-14,
105 yds
Rushing: Ron Dayne, 34-200. Receiving: Chris Chambers,
5-76
23. 2000 Fiesta Bowl
No. 3 Nebraska 31 … No. 5 Tennessee 21
Nebraska ran for 321 yards and controlled the clock and the game
in the beginning and at the very end. The Huskers got up 17-0
highlighted by a 60-yard punt return for a touchdown from Bobby
Newcombe, but Tennessee got two touchdown catches from Donte
Stallworth, scoring from nine and 44 yards out, to make it
interesting, but the Huskers were comfortably able to put it away
with a two-yard Correll Buckhalter touchdown run. Nebraska’s Mike
Brown came up with two interceptions.
Player of the game: Nebraska RB Dan Alexander ran 21 times
for 108 yards and a touchdown.
Stat Leaders: Tennessee - Passing: Tee Martin,
19-34, 223 yds, 1 TD, 2 INT
Rushing: Travis Henry, 10-31, 1 TD. Receiving: Donte
Stallworth, 8-108, 2 TD
Nebraska - Passing: Eric Crouch, 9-15, 148 yds,
1 TD
Rushing: Dan Alexander, 21-108, 1 TD. Receiving: Matt
Davison, 2-68
22. 2008 Fiesta Bowl
No. 9 West Virginia 48 ... No. 4 Oklahoma 28
In the stunner of the bowl season, West Virginia ran for 349 yards
with home run after home run. Up 6-3, the Mountaineers got a 57-yard
touchdown run from Owen Schmitt in the second quarter, and the
passing game helped out with Pat White hitting a wide open Darius
Reynaud with a 21-yard touchdown pass and later on a 79-yard strike
to Tito Gonzalez. Reynaud ran for a 30-yard touchdown dash late in
the third quarter, and Noel Devine tore off scoring runs from 17 and
65 yards. Oklahoma had a few chances to get in the game, but rarely
took advantage of its opportunities. A one-yard Chris Brown
touchdown run midway through the third quarter got the Sooners
within five, but Sam Bradford misfired on a two-point conversion
attempt, an onside kick attempt was recovered by West Virginia, and
the Mountaineers opened the game up from there going 39 yards in six
plays culminating in Devine's first scoring dash.
Player of the Game: West Virginia QB Pat White completed 10
of 19 passes for 176 yards and two touchdowns and ran 20 times for
150 yards
Stat Leaders: Oklahoma - Passing: Sam Bradford,
21-33, 242 yds, 2 TD, 1 INT
Rushing: Allen Patrick, 14-82. Receiving: Juaquin
Iglesias, 8-43, 1 TD
West Virginia - Passing: Pat White, 10-19, 176
yds, 2 TD
Rushing: Pat White, 20-150. Receiving: Darius Reynaud,
5-42, 1 TD
21. 2007 Orange Bowl
No. 6 Louisville 24 ... No. 14 Wake Forest 13
Wake Forest was able to keep the Louisville offense under wraps
for three quarters, but after Sam Swank hit a 36-yard field goal for
a 13-10 Demon Deacon lead, the Cardinal attack finally woke up going
81 yards in eight plays finishing with a one-yard Anthony Allen
touchdown run. Louisville put it away on an 18-yard Brock Bolen dash
with less than five minutes to play to end the tough battle. Wake
Forest got on the board first with a 44-yard Swank field goal, but
Louisville held the halftime lead with a 41-yard Art Carmody shot
and a 21-yard touchdown catch from Anthony Allen. Nate Morton took a
short pass thirty yards for a touchdown to tie it before Swank hit
his fourth quarter shot, but the offense simply couldn't keep up the
pace. Demon Deacon LB Jon Abbate made 14 tackles.
Player of the Game: Louisville WR Harry Douglas caught ten
passes for 165 yards
Stat Leaders: Louisville - Passing: Brian Brohm,
24-34, 311 yds
Rushing: Kolby Smith, 16-82 Receiving: Harry Douglas,
10-165
Wake Forest - Passing: Riley Skinner, 21-33,
271 yds, 1 TD, 1 INT
Rushing: Kenneth Moore, 12-73 Receiving: Willie
Idlette, 6-91
20. 2006 Fiesta Bowl
No. 4 Ohio State 34 ... No. 6 Notre Dame 20
Ohio State cranked out 617 yards of total offense, but needed a
60-yard touchdown run from Antonio Pittman to finally put the Irish
away. The Buckeyes scored on four plays of 56 yards or more with a
56-yard scoring pass to Ted Ginn Jr., a Ginn Jr. 68-yard touchdown
run and an 85-yard touchdown pass to Santonio Holmes in the first
half, but they settled for field goals in the second half, before
the Pittman score, letting the Irish get back into the game on two
of Darius Walker's three touchdown runs. Ohio State averaged 7.6
yards per carry and 18 yards per completion, while Notre Dame
averaged 2.2yards per carry and 9.9 yards per pass.
Player of the game: Ohio State QB Troy Smith completed 19 of
28 passes for 342 yards and two touchdowns and ran 13 times for 66
yards.
Stat Leaders: Ohio State - Passing: Troy Smith,
19-28, 342 yds, 2 TD
Rushing: Antonio Pittman, 21-136, 1 TD. Receiving: Ted
Ginn Jr., 8-167, 1 TD
Notre Dame - Passing: Brady Quinn, 29-45, 286
yds
Rushing: Darius Walker, 16-90, 3 TD. Receiving: Maurice
Stovall, 9-126
19. 2007 Rose Bowl
No. 5 USC 32 ... No. 3 Michigan 18
USC exploded for 29 second half points pulling away in the
fourth quarter on a 62-yard touchdown from Dwayne Jarrett. Steve
Smith followed up with a seven-yard scoring pass on USC's next drive
for a 32-11 lead. Booty threw four touchdown passes with two to
Jarrett and a two-yard pass to Chris McFoy, but Michigan stayed
alive with an 11-yard Adrian Arrington touchdown catch and a Mike
Hart two-point conversion early in the fourth quarter before Jarrett
took over. Steve Breaston scored on a 41-yard touchdown pass in
garbage time. Michigan finished with just 12 yards rushing hurt by
six sacks; Chad Henne was under pressure all game long.
Player of the Game: USC WR Dwayne Jarrett caught 11 passes
for 205 yards and two touchdowns
Stat Leaders: USC - Passing: John David Booty
27-45, 391 yds, 4 TD
Rushing: C.J. Gable, 13-25. Receiving: Dwayne Jarrett,
11-205, 2 TD
Michigan - Passing: Chad Henne, 26-41, 309 yds,
2 TD, 1 INT
Rushing: Mike Hart, 17-47. Receiving: Steve Breaston,
7-115, 1 TD
18.
2005 Sugar Bowl
No. 3 Auburn 16 ... No. 8 Virginia Tech 13
Auburn finished its season 13-0, but its wasn't easy as a dominant
performance nearly turned into disaster. Early Tiger drives turned
into field goals instead of touchdowns as John Vaughn connected on
three kicks. Virginia Tech was able to move the ball a bit, but
failed on its opportunities with a fourth down drop in the end zone
and a missed short field goal. Up 9-0, Auburn appeared to be on its
way to a rout with a five-yard touchdown pass to Devin Aromashodu,
but the Hokies rallied on Josh Morgan touchdown catches from 29 and
80 yards. Two missed onside kicks proved costly and the Tigers were
able to run out the clock.
Player of the Game: Auburn QB Jason Campbell completed
11-of-16 passes for 189 yards and a touchdown with an interception
Stat Leaders: Virginia Tech - Passing: Bryan
Randall, 19-36, 299, 2 TD, 2 INT
Rushing: Bryan Randall, 9-45. Receiving: Josh Morgan,
3-126, 2 TD
Auburn - Passing: Jason Campbell, 11-16, 189
yds, 1 TD, 1 INT
Rushing: Ronnie Brown, 14-67. Receiving: Courtney Taylor,
5-87
17. 2004 Orange Bowl
No. 9 Miami 16 ... No. 7 Florida State 14
Miami RB Jarrett Payton ran for 131 yards and Jon Peattie
hit three field goals including a career-long 51-yard shot, but
Florida State lost by yet another wide right as Xavier Beitia missed
a 39-yard kick with 5:30 to play. The Noles were still in the game
as the defense held, but Miami did a direct snap on a punt to D.J.
Williams for a first down to keep the drive alive. FSU's B.J. Ward
blocked a game-sealing kick, but the Noles couldn't get back into
field goal range to give Beitia another shot. FSU got second quarter
touchdowns from Lorenzo Booker and Matt Henshaw, while Miami got
into the end zone on a three-yard run by Tyrone Moss.
Player of the game: Miami RB Jarrett Payton ran 22
times for 131 yards
Stat Leaders: Florida State - Passing: Chris
Rix, 6-19, 96 yds, 1 TD, 1 INT
Rushing: Greg Jones, 6-38. Receiving: Maurice Stovall,
4-79
Miami - Passing: Brock Berlin, 14-29, 157 yds,
2 INT
Rushing: Jarrett Patron, 22-131. Receiving: Ryan Moore,
3-52
16. 2004 Rose Bowl
No. 3 USC 28 ... No. 4 Michigan 14
USC won at least a split of the national title as QB Matt
Leinart threw three touchdown passes with two to Keary Colbert, but
the it was the play of the Trojan defensive line that controlled the
game sacking Michigan QB John Navarre nine times. Colbert made a
one-handed grab for a 47-yard touchdown pass giving USC a 21-0 lead
in the third quarter, and Michigan couldn't answer, only getting a
six-yard touchdown pass to Tim Massaquoi before the Trojans sealed
the win with a 15-yard scoring pass from WR Mike Williams on a
reverse to Leinart. Michigan finished off the scoring with a short
Chris Perry scoring run.
Player of the game: USC QB Matt Leinart completed
23-of-34 passes for 331 yards and three touchdowns. He also caught a
pass for a touchdown.
Stat Leaders: Michigan - Passing: John Navarre,
23-34, 327 yds, 3 TD
Rushing: Chris Perry, 23-85, 1 TD. Receiving: Braylon
Edwards, 10-107
USC - Passing: Matt Leinart, 23-34, 331 yds, 3
TD
Rushing: Reggie Bush, 8-41. Receiving: Keary Colbert,
6-149, 2 TD
15. 2001 Rose Bowl
No. 4 Washington 34 … No. 14 Purdue, 24
Marques Tuisasosopo led the way with a five-yard touchdown run
and an eight-yard touchdown pass as Washington stayed one step ahead
of Drew Brees and the high-octane Purdue passing attack all game
long. Brees threw two touchdown passes, both to Vinny Sutherland,
but he was held to 275 passing yards. A 17-point Husky run in the
second half helped put the game away with a Willie Hurst eight-yard
touchdown run sealing the victory. The Washington offense kept
control of the ball and the game, holding it for 35:52 with 268
rushing yards.
Player of the game: Washington QB Marques Tuiasosopo
completed 16-of-22 passes for 138 yards and a touchdown, and he ran
15 times for 75 yards and a score.
Stat Leaders: Purdue - Passing: Drew Brees,
23-39, 275 yds, 2 TD
Rushing: Montrell Lowe, 20-79. Receiving: Vinny
Sutherland, 7-88, 2 TD
Washington - Passing: Marques Tuiasosopo,
16-22, 138 yds, 1 TD
Rushing: Rich Alexis, 10-78. Receiving: Jerramy Stevens,
5-51
- Part One: The
Worst BCS Bowls
- Part Two: The
Good BCS Bowls