There are a ridiculous 35 Bowls this year with names that sound more like annoying pop-up ads. Here the Bowl games you can't miss:
Josh Helmuth is the editor of CraveOnline Sports. You can follow him @JHelmuth or "like" CraveOnline Sports on Facebook.
Top BCS Bowls Calendar
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December 21 - Gildan New Mexico Bowl: 2:00 PM ET, ESPN
Washington State (6-6) vs. Colorado State (7-6)
Why do two mediocre teams make the cut? Because this is the first Bowl game of the season! The entire schedule kicks off with this New Mexico Bowl matchup whre I expect the Cougars (4th in the nation in passing) to rack up a ton of points. After all, Wazzou knocked off USC earlier in the season (Lame Kiffin era) and lost to Auburn by only one touchdown.
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December 21 - Royal Purple Las Vegas Bowl: 3:30 PM ET, ABC
20 Fresno State (11-1) vs. 25 USC (9-4)
Ranked first in the country in passing and led by Heisman Trophy candidate Derek Carr, Fresno State looked like an intriguing BCS bound team who was undefeated heading into the last game of the season...only to lose to San Jose State in the Mountain West Championship. USC, on the other hand, went 6-1 with interim head coach Ed Orgeron before being tripped up by cross-town rival UCLA. Considering Orgeron fled the team after being passed over for the permanent job as well, it's very possible the Fresno State team will play more inspired. Carr has a lot of NFL teams looking at him for a possible first round selection and playing well could mean a hefty paycheck for the younger brother of David.
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December 26 - S.D. County Credit Union Poinsettia Bowl: 9:30 PM ET, ESPN
Utah State (8-5) vs. 23 Northern Illinois (12-1)
If you love the passion from the mid-majors this game is going to have it. Utah State ranks top 10 in overall defense in the nation and NIU's Jordan Lynch might have been the first Heisman winner from a non-major conference in history if Jameis Winston would have been charged with the alleged sex crimes. Lynch is one of the rarest and most exciting type of quarterbacks; he leads the team in rushing with over 1,800 yards and 22 TDs while also tossing 23 TDs in the air so far this year.
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December 27 - Fight Hunger Bowl: 9:30 PM ET, ESPN
BYU (8-4) vs. Washington (8-4)
Both teams have played good football in select games throughout the year but these are two schools still trying to get past the hump of rebuilding their former dynasties to current prominence. Both teams have a great rush attack. Both have great fan bases. With Washington's coach jumping to USC, it may be BYU that plays more inspired.
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December 28 - Russell Athletic Bowl: 6:45 PM ET, ESPN
Miami (FL) (9-3) vs. 18 Louisville (11-1)
Miami was 7-0 to start the year, now fans in Tallahassee are screaming "I told you so!" This is still a great matchup with a very good ACC school going up against one of the best quarterbacks in all of college football in Teddy Bridgewater; he led an inspiring comeback in a bowl game last year. Can he do it again?
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December 30 - Valero Alamo Bowl: 6:45 PM ET, ESPN
10 Oregon (10-2) vs. Texas (8-4)
Oregon was a national title contender for most of the season while Texas was on the verge of firing their head coach more times than I splurged on Krispy Kremes this season...and that was a lot. The Big 12 is down and the Pac 12 is up; it's been that way for the last few years. If Oregon plays like they did against Stanford (although they only lost by 6) and not how they did against Arizona (it was a dumpster fire), Marcus Mariota and the Ducks will run away with this one.
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December 31 - Chik-fil-A Bowl: 8:00 PM ET, ESPN
24 Duke (10-3) vs. 21 Texas A&M (8-4)
Duke won 10 games for the first time in program history and they're going up against the most exciting/loved/hated quarterback in possibly college football history. This will be Johnny Manziel's last game as an 'amateur.' Can Duke pull off the big upset or will Manziel dominate?
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January 1 - Capital One Bowl: 1:00 PM ET, ABC
19 Wisconsin (9-3) vs. 9 South Carolina (10-2)
We all know South Carolina is a damn good football who could be competing for a national champioship if not an early September loss to high-ranked Georgia and a last second Tennesee field goal following a Connor Shaw injury. However, Wisconsin also might be better than most think, charging through the season with an old-school attack of great defense and solid rushing -- both of which are top 10 in the nation. This is going to be a slugfest. If any Big 10 team has a shot at taking down a mighty SEC school it's the Badgers.
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January 1 - Rose Bowl Game presented by Vizio: 5:00 PM ET, ESPN
5 Stanford (11-2) vs. 4 Michigan State (12-1)
Both are good at holding teams out of the endzone and both are awful at posing for pictures with roses. MSU finally got through a season without imploding mid-way through. If they play as inspired against Stanford as they did against the Buckeyes they might have a shot, but it will still be tough. Stanford has a defense just as sturdy as the Spartans'. Somehow, though, the Spartans only played three ranked teams all year. Stanford played seven...and beat every. single. one of them. The experience with stiff competition will be a factor here.
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January 1 - Tostitos Fiesta Bowl: 8:30 PM ET, ESPN
15 UCF (11-1) vs. 6 Baylor (11-1)
Baylor is first in scoring in the nation and UCF QB Blake Bortles is projected to be a top 10 NFL draft pick.
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January 2 - Allstate Sugar Bowl: 8:30 ET, ESPN
11 Oklahoma (10-2) vs. 3 Alabama (11-1)
Alabama: 15-time national champions, most of all-time. Oklahoma: 7-time national champions. This is a power-house matchup of the ages, but with many question marks. After a devastating loss in the Iron Bowl, will Alabama show up? Since it will be A.J. McCarron's last game and since he's the most succesful QB in Bama history, I think so. No doubt Oregon would have been a more crowd-pleasing matchup with the defending champions, but Oklahoma was closer to New Orleans and will therefore bring in a larger crowd. However, if the Tide decide to play, this game won't be close.
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January 3 - AT&T Cotton Bowl: 7:30 PM ET, FOX
13 Oklahoma State (10-2) vs. 8 Missouri (11-2)
Other than the fact they manhandled then No. 4 Baylor, the Cowboys bring an underwhelming resume while Mizzou has wins against four ranked teams. This game has a great shot to be a shootout with future NFL draft picks in abundance.
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January 3 - Discover Orange Bowl: 8:30 ET, ESPN
12 Clemson (10-2) vs. 7 Ohio State (12-1)
The Buckeyes went wild in their locker room while watching Auburn return-man Chris Davis run that missed field goal back for a TD to beat Bama; the play put them at No. 2 for the first time all season....and then they lost to Michigan State the next week. Considering they couldn't close out the conference and compete for their first national championship under the Urban Meyer era, along with the fact they're playing Tajh Boyd and the 12th highest scoring team in the country, the Buckeyes could be in over their head. OSU's Braxton Miller will still very likely make this a ball game.
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January 6 - Vizio BCS National Championship: 8:30 ET, ESPN
1 Florida State (13-0) vs. 2 Auburn (12-1)
And finally, the top-ranked game on everyone's schedule. With two miracle comebacks in consecutive weeks before defeating Missouri in a shootout, is Auburn a team of destiny? Or is Heisman candidate Jameis Winston and the Seminoles on the clear-cut path of dominance? Some say FSU is the best college footbal team in a decade, but the SEC has won the last seven national championships. If Auburn wins, the national championship trophy will stay in the state of Alabama for the fifth year in row. If FSU wins it will mean a new era of college football is officially underway.
