Top Individual/Team Performances from the Bowl Season
The Daily blog will be undergoing some changes in the coming months now that the college football season is complete. Starting this week I will be going to a Monday, Wednesday and weekend blog format until magazine season is over in late spring/early summer. Today’s blog will start analyzing this years bowl games giving you the top players and performances from the past bowl season. In the next blog on Wednesday I will give you who has the longest winning/losing streaks overall, home and away in college football. This Saturday and Sunday I will give you my forecasts for the NFL divisional games played that day including my computer’s projected box score of the games. Next week will feature my projection of what the Preseason AP top 10 will be for 2010 and that will be coming after January 15th when juniors have to declare or not declare for the NFL Draft.
Here are some of the top individual performances from the past bowl season.
Top 5 Individual Passers
| Name, School | Comp | Att | Yards | TD | INT | Rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mike Kafka, Northwestern | 47 | 78 | 532 | 4 | 5 | 121.7 |
| Tim Tebow, Florida | 31 | 35 | 482 | 3 | 0 | 232.5 |
| Kyle Padron, SMU | 32 | 41 | 460 | 2 | 0 | 188.4 |
| Landry Jones, Oklahoma | 30 | 51 | 418 | 3 | 1 | 143.2 |
| Dan LeFevour, Central Michigan | 33 | 55 | 395 | 1 | 1 | 122.7 |
Mike Kafka threw for 532 yards game despite the 38-35 loss to Auburn in the Outback Bowl. Kafka’s completions and attempts were Outback bowl records. However Kafka did throw 5 interceptions after coming into the game with only 7 on the season and had a streak of 116 consecutive passes without one.
Tim Tebow threw for a career high 482 yards and three touchdowns in his final game as the Gators rolled to a 51-24 victory over Cincinnati in the Sugar Bowl. Tebow added 51 yards rushing and another TD as his 533 total yards were more than anyone in BCS history. His 88.6% completion % was a career high as well
Freshman Kyle Padron threw for a SMU-record 460 yards leading the Mustangs to a 45-10 victory over Nevada in the Hawaii Bowl. It was SMU’s first bowl appearance in 25 years.
Landry Jones threw for 418 yards in the 31-27 win over Stanford in the Sun Bowl as the Sooners finished up an injury-plagued season strong.
Dan LeFevour finished his college career in style with 395 yards passing as the Chippewas beat Troy 44-41 in the GMAC Bowl. LeFevour finished his career with 15,853 total yards trailing only Hawaii’s Timmy Chang (16,910). He also moved into fifth place in the FBS career completions and 10th in yards passing. Adding the 12 yards rushing to his passing total it was the 10th 400-yard game of his career.
Top Individual Rushers
| Name, School | Att | Yds | Avg | TD | Long |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mike Ford, USF | 20 | 207 | 10.4 | 1 | 36 |
| Dwight Dasher, Middle Tennessee | 27 | 204 | 7.6 | 2 | 35 |
| Dexter McCluster, Ole Miss | 34 | 185 | 5.4 | 2 | 86 |
| Jared Tew, Air Force | 26 | 173 | 6.7 | 2 | 71 |
| Noel Devine, West Virginia | 16 | 168 | 10.5 | 1 | 70 |
Mike Ford played the best game of his career in just two quarters. Ford ran for a career-high 207 yards (10.4) and had 1 TD in the 27-3 win over Northern Illinois in the International Bowl. Ford had just one carry for 18 yards in the 1H before exploding for 189 yards in the 2H.
QB Dwight Dasher ran for 201 yards (7.6) and 2 TDs in the 42-32 win over Southern Mississippi in the New Orleans Bowl. The 201 yards rushing were the most by a QB in a bowl game breaking the record of 200 yards set Vince Young in the 2006 Rose Bowl.
Dexter McCluster had a career high 32 carries for 182 yards and 2 TDs including an 86 yd TD run in the 21-7 win over Oklahoma St in the Cotton Bowl. McCluster became the first SEC player with 1,000 yards rushing and 500 yards receiving in the same season.
Jared Tew ran for 173 yards (6.7) as the Falcons had 402 yards rushing in their 47-20 win over Houston in the Armed Forces Bowl. Tew was not the only Falcon with more than 100 yards as Asher Clark added 129 yds making Air Force, Alabama, and Navy the only teams this bowl season to have 2 100-yd rushers.
Noel Devine ran for 168 yards (10.5) and a TD for West Virginia who led 14-3 early before falling 33-21 to Florida St in the Gator Bowl.
The Top 5 Individual Receivers
| Name,School | Rec | Yds | Avg | TD | Long |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Freddie Barnes, Bowling Green | 17 | 219 | 12.9 | 3 | 51 |
| Antonio Brown, Central Michigan | 13 | 178 | 13.7 | 0 | 37 |
| Ryan Broyles, Oklahoma | 13 | 156 | 12 | 3 | 30 |
| Damian Williams, USC | 12 | 189 | 15.8 | 0 | 48 |
| Darvin Adams, Auburn | 12 | 142 | 11.8 | 0 | 26 |
Needing just five catches to set a NCAA FBS record for receptions in a season, Freddie Barnes finished with 17 receptions for 219 yards (12.88) and 3 TDs in the 43-42 loss to Idaho in the Hummanitarian Bowl. His 51-yard TD grab with 32 seconds left put BG up 42-35 only to have Idaho comeback and win with 4 seconds left with a TD pass and 2-pt conversion.
Antonio Brown had 13 receptions for 178 yards (13.7) in Central Michigan’s 44-41 win in 2OT over Troy in the GMAC Bowl. Brown’s best play however came in the return game as he had a 95-yd KOR TD to cut the Troy lead to 31-26 in the fourth quarter.
Damian Williams caught 12 passes for 189 yards in what turned out to be his final game for the Trojans in the 24-13 win over Boston College in the Emerald Bowl.
Ryan Broyles set a Sun Bowl record with 3 TD catches and had 156 yards receiving in Oklahoma’s 31-27 win over Stanford in the Sun Bowl. His 13 receptions set a single game Oklahoma record as the Sooners broke a 3 game bowl losing streak.
Darvin Adams led Auburn with 12 catches for 142 yards in the Tigers wild 38-35 win over Northwestern in the Outback Bowl.
The Top 5 Rush Offense
| Team | Opp | Att | Yds | Avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Air Force | Houston | 72 | 402 | 5.58 |
| Navy | Missouri | 67 | 385 | 5.75 |
| Middle Tennessee | Southern Miss | 44 | 243 | 5.52 |
| Wyoming | Fresno St | 50 | 234 | 4.68 |
| Virginia Tech | Tennessee | 48 | 229 | 4.77 |
Air Force ran for 402 yards (5.58) in their 47-20 win over Houston in the Armed Forces Bowl. The Falcons had 2 100 yd rushers in Jared Tew (173) and Clark 129.
Navy had 385 yards rushing in their 35-13 win over Missouri in the Texas Bowl led by QB Ricky Dobbs who had 166 yards (5.53) and 3 TDs.
Middle Tennessee ran for 243 yards in their win over Southern Miss in the New Orleans Bowl. The Blue Raiders were led by QB Dwight Dasher who had a QB bowl game record 201 yards.
Wyoming had 234 yards rushing (4.68) in their 35-28 2OT win over Fresno St in the New Mexico Bowl. The Cowboys were led by RB Alvester Alexander who 137 yards (11.4 ypc!)
Virginia Tech dominated the line of scrimmage against Tennessee with a 229-5 rush edge.
The Top 5 Pass Offense
| Team | Opp | Comp | Att | Yds | TD | Int |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Northwestern | Auburn | 47 | 78 | 532 | 4 | 5 |
| Florida | Cincinnati | 31 | 36 | 482 | 3 | 0 |
| Texas Tech | Michigan St | 38 | 54 | 460 | 3 | 1 |
| Oklahoma | Stanford | 30 | 51 | 418 | 3 | 1 |
| Troy | Central Michigan | 32 | 57 | 403 | 1 | 0 |
Northwestern QB Kafka had a bowl game record for completions and yards in their 38-35 OT loss to Auburn in the Outback Bowl.
Florida QB Tim Tebow had a career day in his final game as he hit 31 of 35 passes (88.6%!) for 482 yards in Florida’s 51-24 win over Cincinnati in the Sugar Bowl.
Texas Tech used two different QBs to get their 460 yards passing. Taylor Potts threw for Alamo Bowl record 372 yards before leaving with a injury to his non-throwing hand. Backup Steven Sheffield came in and hit 9 of 11 passes (81.8) for 88 yards to lead the comeback win over Michigan St.
Oklahoma QB Landry Jones had 418 yards passing in the 31-27 win over Stanford in the Sun Bowl.
Troy QB Levi Brown refused to be overshadowed by Central Michigan QB Dan LeFevour in the GMAC bowl and threw for 386 yards.
The Top 5 Total Offense
| Team | Opp | Rush | Pass | Tot |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Florida | Cincinnati | 177 | 482 | 659 |
| Northwestern | Auburn | 93 | 532 | 625 |
| Texas Tech | Michigan St | 119 | 460 | 579 |
| Troy | Central Michigan | 169 | 403 | 572 |
| Air Force | Houston | 402 | 161 | 56 |
Florida came into the Sugar Bowl avg 442 ypg and had a season high 659 yards. Northwestern had a season high 625 yards despite the loss to Auburn.
The Top 5 Rush Defense
| Team | Opp | Att | Yds | Avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Virginia Tech | Tennessee | 31 | 5 | 0.16 |
| Marshall | Ohio | 24 | 12 | 0.5 |
| Rutgers | UCF | 30 | 35 | 1.17 |
| Boise St | TCU | 20 | 36 | 1.8 |
| Penn St | LSU | 25 | 41 | 1.64 |
Virginia Tech held the Tennessee rush offense to only 5 yards as the Vols came into the game avg 170 rush ypg. Marshall held the Bobcats to just 12 yards (0.5!) which was 109 yds below their season avg! TCU came into the Fiesta Bowl matchup avg 256 rush ypg but were held to 220 yards below their season avg by Boise St! Penn St dominated the line of scrimmage against LSU holding the Tigers to just 41 yards.
The Top 5 Pass Defense
| Team | Opp | Comp | Att | Yds | TD | Int |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Iowa | Georgia Tech | 2 | 9 | 12 | 0 | 1 |
| Nebraska | Arizona | 10 | 31 | 46 | 0 | 1 |
| Texas | Alabama | 6 | 12 | 58 | 0 | 1 |
| Ohio State | Oregon | 9 | 20 | 81 | 0 | 1 |
| Ohio | Marshall | 12 | 17 | 85 | 0 | 0 |
Iowa held Georgia Tech to a season low 12 yards passing in their 24-14 win in the Orange Bowl. Ohio St contained Oregon QB Masoli and held the Ducks to just 260 yards in their 26-17 win in the Rose Bowl.
The Top 5 Total Defense
| Team | Opp | Rush | Pass | Tot |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nebraska | Arizona | 63 | 46 | 109 |
| Marshall | Ohio | 12 | 111 | 123 |
| Iowa | Georgia Tech | 143 | 12 | 155 |
| Connecticut | South Carolina | 76 | 129 | 205 |
| South Florida | N.Illinois | 108 | 130 | 238 |
Nebraska easily had the best defensive performance of the bowl season holding Arizona to just 109 total yards which was nearly 300 yds below their season avg! Marshall’s defense was dominant holding Ohio to 200 yards below their season avg. Connecticut’s defense was a big reason for their upset win over South Carolina in the PapaJohns bowl holding the Gamecocks to just 205 yards.
