2012 Meineke Car Care Bowl Preview

Date: December 28, 2012 9:00 PM ET
Stadium: Reliant Stadium, Houston, Texas
Payout: $1,700,000 per team
Played: 2006-present
Former Names: Texas Bowl (2006-2010)
Broadcasters: Mark Jones, Brock Huard
Sideline Reporter: Jessica Mendoza

Minnesota: The Golden Gophers went just 2-6 in Big Ten games, but 4-0 in their non-conference slate to sneak into their first bowl game under Jerry Kill's leadership. The Golden Gophers are having trouble on offense; they are 114th in total yards per game and only scored more than 17 points in game once this season. Minnesota has lost its last four bowl games, including the 2006 Insight Bowl, which was the only previous meeting between the Golden Gophers and the Red Raiders.

Texas Tech: The Red Raiders had no trouble scoring in 2012, averaging 37.8 points per contest. The pass attack, led by senior Seth Doege, lit up opponents for 361.9 yards per game, second only to Marshall. Offensive line coach Chris Thomsen will lead Texas Tech after the December 8th departure of head coach Tommy Tuberville to Cincinnati. Texas Tech will play in its fourth consecutive bowl game within the borders of its own state.

	Minnesota			Texas Tech
Overall Record	6-6		Overall Record	7-5
Conference Record	2-6		Conference Record	4-5
Bowl Record	5-9		Bowl Record	12-21-1
Last Bowl Win	2004 Music City		Last Bowl Win	2011 TicketCity

All Time Series: 1-0 Texas Tech
Line: Texas Tech by 13

Helmet Stickers: Week 8

ACC—No. 7 Clemson is 8-0 for the first time in eleven years after a 59-38 win over North Carolina. Quarterback Tajh Boyd threw five touchdowns and no interceptions en route to 367 passing yards. Tigers defensive end Kourntnei Brown had two touchdowns: an interception returned for a touchdown and a fumble returned for a touchdown.  The Tar Heels turned the ball over six times, while the Tigers lost just one fumble. Clemson scored 35 of their 59 points in the third quarter.

Big 10—No. 16 Michigan State gave No. 6 Wisconsin its first loss of the season, 37-31. Michigan State started the game down 14-0, but came back in the second quarter scoring 23 unanswered points on a safety, two offensive touchdowns, and a blocked punt returned for a touchdown. By the end of the fourth quarter Wisconsin had the momentum and tied the game at 31-31. The Spartans had 1:26 to put a drive together. Michigan State drove to the Wisconsin 44-yard line and had time for a final play with four ticks left on the clock. Kirk Cousins launched a Hail Mary into the end zone. It was deflected and caught by Spartans wide receiver Keith Nichol who pushed across the goal line to win the game. Michigan State had 0 penalties in the game.

Big 12—Texas Tech upset undefeated No. 3 Oklahoma in Norman on Saturday night, ending a 39-game home winning streak. Texas Tech was a four touchdown underdog. Red Raiders quarterback Seth Doege threw for 441 yards and four touchdowns. Wide receiver Alex Torres caught three of his touchdown passes. The Red Raiders built up a 31-7 lead just over two minutes into the second half. The Sooners go their act together after halftime, but it was too little too late. The Red Raiders held on to win the game 41-38, possibly keeping the Sooners out of the national title game.

Big East—Syracuse took down No. 15 West Virginia for the second straight year. The Orange upset the Mountaineers last year 19-14 in Morgantown. West Virginia promised revenge in 2011. The Orange blasted the Mountaineers 49-23 in the Carrier Dome, picking up their first home win over West Virginia in ten years. Quarterback Ryan Nassib threw four touchdowns, three of which were caught by tight end Nick Provo, and ran for another touchdown. Wide receiver Dorian Graham returned a kickoff 98 yards for a score in the second quarter. The Orange defense sacked Geno Smith twice, batted down two of his passes, and intercepted two of his passes. Syracuse’s 49 points were the most they have ever put up against West Virginia.

C-USA—UAB picked up its first win of the season in Week 8 with a 26-24 win over UCF at Legion Field on Thursday night. Trailing by 1 with 21 seconds left in the game, Ty Long put a 40-yard field goal through the uprights to win the game for the Blazers. UAB had 27 first downs and 501 yards of offense. UAB quarterback Jonathan Perry, filling in for an injured Bryan Ellis, completed 31 of 42 passes for 327 yards. Perry also rushed for 33 yards on eight carries. After the game, UAB head coach Neil Callaway said, “The satisfaction of winning a football game is mighty big for us.” The Blazers ended a seven-game losing a streak, dating back to November 27, 2010.

MAC—Eastern Michigan defeated Western Michigan by a score of 14-10 Saturday to win the Michigan MAC Trophy. Eastern Michigan defeated Central Michigan the previous Saturday. Sophomore running back Javonti Greene caught a 50-yard touchdown pass in the first quarter and rushed for a 50-yard touchdown in the fourth quarter. The Eagles are looking good at 5-3 after compiling only five wins total across the 2008, 2009, and 2010 seasons. The last time the Eagles had five wins in a season was 1995 when Eastern went 6-5.

MWC—Texas Christian University blanked New Mexico 69-0. The Horned Frogs broke their program’s record for most points scored in a game. The previous record was 68 points against Austin College in 1932. TCU’s defense held the Lobos offense to just 85 yards and forced three fumbles. Nine different Horned Frogs scored touchdowns. Senior kicker Ross Evans was 9 for 10 on PAT’s. TCU moves to 3-0 in Mountain West Conference games.

Pac-12—USC defeated long-time rival Notre Dame in South Bend 31-17. The Trojans have beaten the Fighting Irish in 9 of their last 10 meetings. USC outgained Notre Dame 443 yards to 267 yards and forced the Irish to turn the ball over three times in the second half. On one of those turnovers, a Notre Dame fumble on the USC 1-yard line, USC safety Jawanza Starling scooped the ball up and ran 80 yards for a touchdown. Matt Barkley completed 24 of 35 passes for 224 yards and three touchdowns. Curtis McNeal rushed for 118 yards, while Marc Tyler rushed for 63 yards. Stud wide receiver Robert Woods had 8 grabs for 119 yards. The Trojan defense held Notre Dame to just 41 yards rushing.

SEC—No. 1 LSU kicked No. 20 Auburn to the curb in a 45-10 home victory. The news all week was about the suspensions of Tyrann Mathieu, Spencer Ware, and Tharold Simon for testing positive for drugs. Louisiana State proved it did not need the three Tigers as it dismantled Auburn in its eighth straight double-digit-point victory this season. Freshman running back Kenny Hilliard rushed for 65 yards on just 10 carries. Running back Michael Ford was even better with 82 yards off of 12 carries. Both Jarrett Lee and Jordon Jefferson saw time at quarterback: Lee threw for 165 yards and two touchdowns, while Jefferson threw for 54 yards and a touchdown. LSU punter Brad Wing averaged 51.3 yards per punt on four punts.

Sun Belt—Western Kentucky upset Sunbelt frontrunner UL-Lafayette in Bowling Green Saturday by a score of 42-23. The win ended an eighteen-game home losing streak for the Hilltoppers and was the Hilltoppers’ first win at home over a FBS foe. Running back Bobby Rainey had a career-high three touchdowns and 206 rushing yards. Fullback Kadeem Jones rushed for two scores. WKU quarterback Kawaun Jakes had 15 completions on 18 passes, amassing 242 yards, a touchdown, and an interception. Western Kentucky has now won three straight games, its longest winning streak since joining the Football Bowl Subdivision in 2008.

WAC—Nevada got by Fresno State 45 to 38 in a Saturday afternoon shootout. Wolf Pack senior receiver Rishard Matthews had 148 yard on seven catches. On special teams, Matthews returned a punt for an 86-yard touchdown. Junior running back Mike Ball had 198 yards on the ground, with his longest carry being 41 yards. The Wolf Pack defense recovered two Fresno State fumbles. Nevada has now won fifteen straight home games. At 2-0 in conference games, Nevada is in first place in the WAC.

Texas Tech Fans Vandalize Texas A&M's Buses

Texas Tech fans vandalized four Texas A&M football buses early Saturday morning outside of the Holiday Inn the Aggies football team was staying at. Manure was smeared on the outside of the buses and inside one bus that was not locked. The buses were also graffitied with Texas Tech logos and vulgarities aimed at the Aggies.

Friends who attended Texas Tech have described the Red Raiders-Aggies games as a bitter rivalry game. The Big 12 schools have animosity towards the Aggies for going to the SEC, but the classless actions of a few Texas Tech fans stems more from the rivalry between the Texas ag schools.

The Aggies got the last laugh as they defeated the Red Raiders 45-40 in Lubbock.

2011 TicketCity Bowl Preview

January 1, 2011 12:00 PM ET

Stadium: Cotton Bowl, Dallas, Texas

Payout: $1,200,000

Played: 2011

Once known as: N/A

Broadcasters: Dave Pasch, Bob Griese, Chris Spielman

Sideline Reporter: Quint Kessenich

Storyline: The inaugural TicketCity Bowl kicks off Saturday in Dallas in the Cotton Bowl. Northwestern and Texas Tech are teams headed in opposite directions. Northwestern lost five of its last seven, while Texas Tech won three of its last four. Northwestern lost their best player, quarterback Dan Persa, at the conclusion of the Northwestern-Iowa game on November 13^th. Persa accounted for 310 yards per game on average. Backup quarterback Evan Watkins has one touchdown and four picks in two games. Texas Tech is sixth in passing yards per game with 330.5. A struggling Northwestern defense will have its hands full. Texas Tech is just as bad on defense, ranking 116^th in the FBS. Northwestern looks to get its first bowl victory since it’s only bowl victory, the 1949 Rose Bowl. The Wildcats have lost seven straight bowls since then. Texas Tech looks to rack up another W in its eleventh straight bowl. The Red Raiders have won six of their last eight postseason games.

All-time Series: 0-0

Line: Texas Tech by 9.5

	Northwestern			Texas Tech
Overall Record	7-5		Overall Record	7-5
Conference Record	3-5		Conference Record	3-5
Bowl Record	1-7		Bowl Record	11-21-1
Last Bowl Win	1949 Rose		Last Bowl Win	2010 Alamo

Big 12 Home Attendance Figures

	Baylor			Colorado
Floyd Casey Stadium			Folsom Field
S4 Sam Houston State	42,821		S18 Hawaii	47,840
S11 Buffalo	40,853		O2 Georgia	52,855
O2 Kansas	35,405		O16 Baylor	48,953
O23 Kansas State	40,057		O23 Texas Tech	47,665
N13 Texas A&M	45,089		N13 Iowa State	42,722
N20 Oklahoma	36,034		N20 Kansas State	41,147
AVERAGE	40,043		AVERAGE	46,864
	Iowa State			Kansas
Jack Trice Stadium			Memorial Stadium
S2 Northern Illinois	43,116		S4 North Dakota State	48,417
S25 Northern Iowa	48,874		S11 Georgia Tech	46,907
O2 Texas Tech	43,162		S25 New Mexico State	46,719
O9 Utah	43,195		O14 Kansas State	47,561
O30 Kansas	46,485		O23 Texas A&M	44,239
N6 Nebraska	51,159		N6 Colorado	40,851
N20 Missouri	41,776		N20 Oklahoma State	39,261
AVERAGE	45,395		AVERAGE	44,851
	Kansas State			Missouri
Bill Snyder Stadium			Faurot Field
S4 UCLA	51,059		S11 McNeese State	55,582
S11 Missouri State	48,672		S18 San Diego State	56,050
S25 UCF	50,586		S25 Miami (OH)	60,329
O7 Nebraska	51,015		O9 Colorado	62,965
O30 Oklahoma State	50,831		O23 Oklahoma	71,004
N6 Texas	46,734		N13 Kansas State	63,310
AVERAGE	49,816		AVERAGE	61,540
	Nebraska			Oklahoma
Memorial Stadium			Oklahoma Memorial Stadium
S4 Western Kentucky	85,555		S4 Utah State	85,151
S11 Idaho	85,732		S11 Florida State	85,630
S25 South Dakota State	85,573		S18 Air Force	84,332
O16 Texas	85,648		O16 Iowa State	84,024
O30 Missouri	85,907		O30 Colorado	84,173
N13 Kansas	85,587		N13 Texas Tech	85,116
N26 Colorado	85,646
AVERAGE	85,664		AVERAGE	84,738
	Oklahoma State			Texas
Boone Pickens Stadium			Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium
S4 Washington State	48,692		S11 Wyoming	101,339
S11 Troy	48,820		S25 UCLA	101,437
S18 Tulsa	51,778		O23 Iowa State	100,142
S30 Texas A&M	48,284		O30 Baylor	100,452
O23 Nebraska	55,935		N13 Oklahoma State	100,659
N6 Baylor	50,741		N20 Florida Atlantic	99,799
N27 Oklahoma	51,164		N25 Texas A&M	100,752
AVERAGE	50,773		AVERAGE	100,654
	Texas A&M			Texas Tech
Kyle Field			Jones AT&T Stadium
S4 Stephen F. Austin	81,287		S5 SMU	57,528
S11 Louisiana Tech	77,579		S18 Texas	60,454
S18 FIU	79,069		O16 Oklahoma State	60,454
O16 Missouri	83,453		N6 Missouri	55,667
O30 Texas Tech	84,479		N20 Weber State	55,083
N6 Oklahoma	81,392		N27 Houston	53,461
N20 Nebraska	90,079
AVERAGE	82,477		AVERAGE	57,108

AVERAGE ATTENDANCE BY SCHOOL

Texas	100,654
Nebraska	85,664
Oklahoma	84,738
Texas A&M	82,477
Missouri	61,540
Texas Tech	57,108
Oklahoma State	50,773
Kansas State	49,816
Colorado	46,864
Iowa State	45,395
Kansas	44,851
Baylor	40,043