50. Riley Leonard, QB Duke
The Blue Devil offense started well, took over in the second quarter, and kept things moving in the 30-13 win over UCF in the Military Bowl thanks to Leonard. He completed 19-of-28 passes for 173 yards and ran for a game-high 63 yards and two scores on ten carries.
49. Carlton Martial, LB Troy
The all-star tackling-machine came up with a game-high 14 stops in the 18-12 Duluth Trading Cure Bowl win over UTSA.
48. Kyrie Fisher-Morris, LB Oregon State
The game’s leading tackler made 11 tackles – seven of them solo – with a sack and three tackles for loss in the 30-3 SRS Distribution Las Vegas Bowl win over Florida.
47. Haaziq Daniels, QB Air Force
Everything worked almost perfectly with Daniels at the helm in the win over Baylor. He competed 4-of-7 passes for 103 yards and a score, and he ran 15 times for 81 yards and a touchdown in the 30-15 win in the Armed Forces Bowl.
46. Kevorian Barnes, RB UTSA
Taking over the running game, he ran 22 times for 138 yards with one catch for 10 yards in the 18-12 Duluth Trading Cure Bowl loss to Troy.
45. Clayton Tune, QB Houston
Tune came up with a late scoring drive to pull out a bowl win over Auburn last season. This time around he drove the team in the last few minutes – closing out with a game-winning touchdown pass – to finish 19-of-28 for 224 yards and three touchdowns with no picks. He also led the way with 44 rushing yards on 11 carries in the 23-16 win over Louisiana in the Radiance Technologies Independence Bowl.
44. Luke Grimm, WR Kansas
Someone had to catch all the Jalon Daniels throws in the wild comeback attempt. Grimm was all but unstoppable, catching ten passes for 167 yards and a touchdown. It was his grab from 21 yards out with 41 seconds to play to force overtime in the 55-53 Liberty Bowl loss to Arkansas.
43. Nathanial Vakos, PK Ohio
His 46-yard field goal with four seconds to play forced overtime – it was his third field goal of the game after connecting from 43 and 45 yards out in the 30-27 win over Wyoming in the Barstool Sports Arizona Bowl.
42. Rod Moore, S Michigan
It was a rough day overall for the Wolverine defense and Moore had to make too many plays. He was one of the brighter spots with a game-high 12 tackles – nine solo stops – with an interception in the 51-45 loss to TCU in the College Football Playoff Semifinal Fiesta Bowl.
41. Reddy Steward, CB Troy
Locked in a few key downfield battles, he made seven tackles with three broken up passes in the 18-12 Duluth Trading Cure Bowl win over UTSA.
40. Durrell Johnson DE Liberty
His team might have lost, and the defense couldn’t get off the field, but he did what he could with nine tackles – seven solo – a sack, and five tackles for loss in the RoofClaim.com Boca Raton Bowl loss to Toledo.
39. Carlton Johnson S, Fresno State
The veteran defensive back led the way with a game-high ten tackles with a broken up pass and a tackle for loss in the 29-6 win over Washington State in the Jimmy Kimmel LA Bowl presented by Stifel.
38. Jermaine Brown, RB UAB
Stepping in for DeWayne McBride – the nation’s leading rusher – Brown ran 24 times for 116 yards and two touchdowns including the game-winner in the 24-20 win over Miami University in the HomeTown Lenders Bahamas Bowl.
37. Devo Bridges, DE Fresno State
Along with 8 tackles – 6 of them solo stops – he tied for a game-high two sacks in the 29-6 win over Washington State in the Jimmy Kimmel LA Bowl presented by Stifel.
36. Brian Branch, S Alabama
Fellow safety DeMarcco Hellams led the team and the game with 13 tackles, but Branch had a bigger all-around day with 12 tackles – 11 solo stops – with a sack, four tackles for loss, and a pick in the 45-20 win over Kansas State in the Allstate Sugar Bowl.
35. Coleman Bryson, S Minnesota
All seven of his tackles were solo stops, and his 70-yard pick six turned the game around. The big play put the Gophers in control for good in the 28-20 Bad Boy Mowers Pinstripe Bowl win over Syracuse.
34. Holton Ahlers, QB East Carolina
East Carolina started hot and stayed there for a full four quarters in the 53-29 win over Coastal Carolina in the TicketSmarter Birmingham Bowl. Ahlers was the main reason, completing 26-of-38 passes for 300 yards and five scores with 48 rushing yards and a touchdown.
33. Daylen Gill, LB Southern Miss
All over the place, he led the game with 11 tackles with three sacks in the 38-24 win over Rice in the LendingTree Bowl.
32. Maurice Turner, RB Louisville
The workhorse on a day full of big rushing performances, he ran 31 times for 160 yards averaging 5.2 yards per carry in the 24-7 win over Cincinnati in the Wasabi Fenway Bowl.
31. Jake Haener, QB Fresno State
The veteran closed out his career completing 24-of-36 passes for 280 yards and two scores in the 29-6 win over Washington State in the Jimmy Kimmel LA Bowl presented by Stifel.
30. Dalvin Smith, WR WKU
One of three WKU receivers to get to 100 yards – Jaylen Hall hit 138 yards with a score and Malachi Corley caught 11 passes with two touchdowns – Smith caught six passes for 145 yards and a touchdown and threw a 25-yard touchdown pass in the 44-23 R&L Carriers New Orleans Bowl win over South Alabama.
29. Xavier Nwankpa, S Iowa
The freshman picked a great time to have a standout performance after making just four tackles all year. He stepped up with eight tackles – seven solo – with a pick six in the 21-0 TransPerfect Music City Bowl win over Kentucky.
28. Johnny Wilson, WR Florida State
Jordan Travis spread the ball around, but his main man for the biggest plays turned out to be Wilson, who caught eight passes for 202 yards in the 35-32 win over Oklahoma in the Cheez-It Bowl.
27. Trea Shropshire, WR UAB
With six catches for 183 yards – averaging over 30 yards per grab – and a touchdown, he set the tone early and needed attention the rest of the way in the 24-20 win over Miami University in the HomeTown Lenders Bahamas Bowl.
26. Brock Bowers, TE Georgia
Fine in the 42-41 win over Ohio State in the Fiesta Bowl, he caught four passes for 64 yards. And then everything clicked on the biggest stage, catching seven passes for 152 yards and a score in the 65-7 win over TCU in the CFP National Championship.
100 Best Players of the Bowl Season
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