Wrapping Up Bowl Season

01/03/2023 Wrapping Up Bowl Season

By: Jeff Yoder

The Final Day of Bowl Games Before The National Championship

The bowl season wrapped up on Monday with four more matchups among ranked teams prior to the week-long lead-up to next Monday’s National Championship. Tulane and USC delivered a thriller, but it was the Green Wave that washed away Heisman Trophy winner Caleb Williams. Penn State outshined Utah in the second half, and LSU made Drew Brees and Purdue look like a high school team. Let’s tie a bow on bowl season before we look ahead to “The Big One.”

 

Monday’s Bowl Highlights

 

#11 Penn State def. #8 Utah (35-21)

The Nittany Lions captured their second Rose Bowl crown Monday night in Pasadena thanks to 21 unanswered points in the second half. Penn State QB Sean Clifford threw for 279 yards and 2 TDs, and RB Nicholas Singleton busted an 87-yard TD run. The PSU defense was also disruptive with six sacks.

 

#16 Tulane def. #10 USC (46-45)

Heisman winner and USC QB Caleb Williams did everything he could to lead the Trojans in the Cotton Bowl, but a stunning upset from Tulane stunned Lincoln Riley’s squad. Williams (462 yards, 5 TDs, 1 INT) was electrifying, but Tulane RB Tyjae Spears (17 carries, 205 yards, 4 TDs) ran wild. Tulane threw for the game-winning TD with just nine seconds left.

 

#17 LSU def. Purdue (63-7)

A no-contest in the Citrus Bowl… Purdue turned to legendary alum Drew Brees as the interim coach for their bowl game with LSU, but the Tigers made quick work of the Boilers in Orlando. It was 35-0 at the half with both teams repping four different quarterbacks throughout the onslaught.

 

#22 Mississippi State def. Illinois (19-10)

A low-scoring affair in the ReliaQuest Bowl ended with a 16-0 fourth quarter from Mississippi State to turn the tables on Illinois. Only two offensive touchdowns occurred while three field goals and a fumble recovery score delivered the other points for the Rebels.

 

Bowl Records by Conference

SEC: 6-5 (.545)

Big Ten: 5-4 (.555)

Big 12: 2-6 (.333)

Pac-12: 3-4 (.429)

ACC: 5-4 (.556)

American: 4-3 (.571)

C-USA: 3-3 (.500)

MAC: 4-2 (.667)

Mountain West: 3-4 (.429)

 

Photo: Icon Sportswire / Getty Images