Tag: ReliaQuest Bowl

Alabama QB Jalen Milroe: ‘I will be playing’ vs. Michigan

One team will likely be much less shorthanded than the other.

If Michigan football was hoping to have a war of attrition in the ReliaQuest Bowl against Alabama, the Crimson Tide are not acceding.

The Wolverines already have a few opt-outs, as defensive tackle Mason Graham and cornerback Will Johnson have both declared for the NFL draft. More will likely come in the lead-up to the bowl game, now three weeks away. Tight end Colston Loveland and defensive tackle Kenneth Grant being among those who have decisions to make.

But for the Alabama side, head coach Kalen DeBoer expects as close a full contingent to suit up, and now we at least know that the signal caller will be present.

According to Tuscaloosa News reporter Colin Gay, junior quarterback Jalen Milroe — who Michigan saw a year ago in the Rose Bowl — does intend to suit up and play in Tampa.

 

The game does promise to be something of a mismatch, regardless of the entrants. Alabama, 9-3, had its hopes on bypassing an 11-2 SMU team that only got its second loss in the ACC Championship against Clemson. Michigan, however, enters the game at 7-5, with its sole ranked win having come in The Game against playoff-bound Ohio State. But with Graham, Johnson, and likely more opt-outs coming, the hill to victory for the Wolverines has steepened.

Milroe explained at his media availability that his decision is due to him wanting to finish the mission with the players he started with.

 


Michigan and Alabama will kick off the ReliaQuest Bowl at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida at noon EST on Dec. 31.

Alabama football 2024 bowl game opponent and destination announced

Here’s who the Alabama Crimson Tide will play in their 2024 bowl game.

The Alabama Crimson Tide have learned their destination and opponent for the 2024 college football bowl season.

Alabama will face the Michigan Wolverines in the ReliaQuest Bowl on Dec. 31 at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Fla. Kickoff is set for 11 a.m. CT. The game will be televised on ESPN.

The ReliaQuest Bowl confirmed the news Sunday. The event was previously known as the Outback Bowl from 1995-2022.

The Crimson Tide and Wolverines met in the College Football Playoff at the Rose Bowl last season on Jan. 1, 2024. Michigan won, 27-20, in overtime en route to winning the national championship a week later over the Washington Huskies, then coached by Kalen DeBoer.

Alabama and Michigan look a lot different this year.

Both coaches from last season’s Rose Bowl are no longer with their respective teams. Nick Saban announced his retirement on Jan. 10. Former Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh left Ann Arbor to return to the NFL and a head coaching job with the Los Angeles Chargers. DeBoer was announced as Alabama’s head coach on Jan. 12.

Neither Alabama or Michigan will be playing for much more than bragging rights and the hope of finishing a disappointing season on a high note when they meet in Tampa.

Alabama went 9-3 in the regular season and had hoped to sneak in to the 12-team College Football Playoff. Instead, the selection committee chose the SMU Mustangs over Alabama Sunday.

Michigan is 7-5 under first-year coach Sherrone Moore but scored a thrilling 13-10 upset win over the Ohio State Buckeyes in “The Game” to close its regular season. Alabama closed its regular season with a 28-14 win over the Auburn Tigers in the Iron Bowl.

Alabama and Michigan have met six times on the gridiron, five of them in the postseason. The all-time head to head series is tied 3-3.

The 2024 ReliaQuest Bowl will mark Alabama’s first appearance in this annual postseason event since New Year’s Day 1997. That day, the Crimson Tide also played Michigan and won 17-14 in Gene Stallings’ final game as Alabama’s head coach.

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Oklahoma football heading to new locale in USA TODAY Sports Bowl Projections

The Oklahoma Sooners miss out on the playoffs in USA TODAY Sports latest bowl projections.

Oklahoma football opened the season 1-0 with a 51-3 win over the Temple Owls. The Sooners rode a strong performance from their defense, which created six turnovers and six sacks of quarterback Forrest Brock.

The offense was solid. It didn’t need to open the playbook completely. It cashed in on six of its eight possessions in the first half for a 34-0 lead at the break.

The Sooners are set up to have a strong season. How good it will be, only time will tell. The Sooners have a tough schedule and a number of games that could go either way. Though I have the Sooners going 10-2, the latest look at the ESPN matchup predictor has the Sooners ending 8-4.

While 10-2 would put Oklahoma in the College Football Playoff, an 8-4 finish would have the Sooners bowling. In USA TODAY Sports’ latest bowl projections, Oklahoma would travel to Tampa, Florida, to play in the ReliaQuest Bowl.

Formerly the Outback Bowl, this game has tie-ins with the SEC and the Big Ten. According to Erick Smith of USA TODAY Sports, OU would face the Iowa Hawkeyes.

In Smith’s projections, he has four SEC teams making the playoffs. Georgia, Texas, Alabama and Missouri.

While that would no doubt be a disappointing landing spot in the postseason for a proud Oklahoma football program, it would provide an intriguing bowl matchup. The Hawkeyes have had one of the best defenses in college football over the last several years but have struggled to find an offense. Despite a sluggish start with just six points in the first half against Illinois State, the Hawkeyes hit their stride in the second half for a 40-0 win.

A battle of really good defenses could break out in Tampa if the Sooners and Hawkeyes met up in the postseason.

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Garrett Nussmeier discusses his postgame interaction with Jayden Daniels after ReliaQuest Bowl win

Garrett Nussmeier will have his chance to lead the Tigers to the promised land in 2024.

[autotag]Garrett Nussmeier[/autotag] got his first career start as an LSU Tiger against the Wisconsin Badgers in the ReliaQuest Bowl. After a slow start, Nussmeier settled in and had a great game. He finished the game 31-for-45 for 395 yards, three touchdowns, and one interception.

He helped [autotag]Brian Kelly[/autotag] have his second straight 10-win season in Baton Rouge and he showed a lot of promise for the 2024 season. After the game, Nussmeier had an interaction with 2023 Heisman Trophy winner [autotag]Jayden Daniels[/autotag] on the sideline. It was a role reversal of what had been happening all season. Usually, it was Nuss congratulating Daniels but this time it was Daniels congratulating him. Here is what Nuss had to say about their relationship.

“I appreciate our relationship a lot,” Nussmeier said, per On3. “It was kind of a moment of — it was like roles reversed. I’m used to giving him a high five after he just made a Heisman statement or something like that. So it was cool. I appreciate him a lot. I’m grateful for the time we had together.”

Nussmeier will have his chance to lead the Tigers to the promised land in 2024.

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LSU-Wisconsin in ReliaQuest Bowl among most-watched postseason games

The ReliaQuest Bowl was viewed more than all but one non-CFP/NY6 game last week.

While bowl games are diminishing in interest, that isn’t the case across the board.

When LSU played Wisconsin in the ReliaQuest Bowl on New Year’s Day, 4.61 million people tuned in as the Tigers overcame a 14-point deficit to win, marking the largest comeback in program bowl history, according to Sports Media Watch.

That more than doubled the viewership from last year’s game, and it was one of the most-watched bowl games from Week 3. It outperformed every non-College Football Playoff/New Year’s Six game aside from the Citrus Bowl between Tennessee and Iowa.

It was also the most-watched bowl game of the week that didn’t air either on ESPN or ABC.

That game may have served as a preview of what’s to come at LSU in the [autotag]Garrett Nussmeier[/autotag] era, and it’s one that quite a few people outside the fanbase saw.

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Wisconsin pushed LSU into making a big change after ReliaQuest Bowl performance

Wisconsin pushed LSU into making a big change after ReliaQuest Bowl performance

Wisconsin had its best offensive day of the season in its ReliaQuest Bowl loss to LSU earlier this week.

The Badgers totaled 31 points, 22 first downs, 506 total yards, 378 passing yards and 9.5 yards per passing attempt. In Tanner Mordecai’s final game as a Badger, it was the best he and the Phil Longo offense looked.

For Wisconsin fans, that dominance along with the stellar performances by wide receivers Will Pauling and Bryson Green as fans excited for what 2024 can hold in year two of the system.

For the LSU program which just allowed that career day, it fired its defensive coordinator Matt House.

The headline is written facetiously, as LSU’s defense was a problem all season and this move had been coming for months. The Tigers had the No. 105 defense in the nation. It in large part wasted a Heisman season from quarterback Jayden Daniels.

But in the eyes of Wisconsin fans, let’s agree the Badgers were the reason LSU fired its defensive coordinator.

Brian Kelly praises play-calling from Joe Sloan, Cortez Hankton in bowl win

The duo was tasked with helping Garrett Nussmeier settle into his first start as an LSU Tiger.

For the ReliaQuest Bowl against Wisconsin, [autotag]Brian Kelly[/autotag] turned the playcalling duties over to [autotag]Joe Sloan[/autotag] and [autotag]Cortez Hankton[/autotag]. They were tasked with helping Garrett Nussmeier settle into his first start as an LSU Tiger.

It started slow as the Tigers found themselves with a 14-point deficit until Nussmeier turned it around and the offense caught fire late in the game. The offense then had an eight-play, 98-yard drive that only took three minutes to take a 35-31 lead over the Badgers with only three minutes left in the game.

After LSU won, Kelly was asked how he thought Sloan and Hankton did calling plays. Here is what he had to say.

I think it’s Joe (Sloan) and Cortez (Hankton) and really the whole staff,” Kelly said. “Today was really about a cohesive group. Brad (Davis) had great suggestions on adjustments on the offensive line. Frank (Wilson) is doing a great job, you saw his rotation of backs in there. That all feeds into what you’re doing offensively. It doesn’t fall on one shoulder or shoulders if you will, the plays came down from the box. There was an input and I thought Joe and Cortez managed that end of it really well. And then we had great adjustments from our entire staff to be an efficient offense in this transition.

With the bowl win, Kelly has now won 10 games in back-to-back seasons at LSU.

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LSU punter Jay Bramblett ties FBS record for games played

LSU’s Jay Bramblett tied an FBS record for game played in the ReliaQuest Bowl

After playing in the ReliaQuest Bowl on Monday, LSU punter [autotag]Jay Bramblett[/autotag] tied an FBS record for games played.

Bramblett began his career at Notre Dame in 2019, where he appeared in 13 games as a freshman. He held the punter job for the next two years before following [autotag]Brian Kelly[/autotag] to LSU in 2022.

In his career at LSU, Bramblett put 27 punts inside the opposing team’s 20-yard line. Given how good LSU’s offense was in 2023, not much was asked of Bramblett this fall, but LSU’s punting unit was the best in the SEC at preventing return yards, with a total of -1 on the year.

In his career, Bramblett has 232 punts for 9,819 yards. At LSU, he averaged 43.3 yards per punt, better than the 41.9 he averaged at Notre Dame.

Bramblett’s career game came against Alabama in 2022, when he put three punts inside the Alabama 15, allowing LSU to take an early lead while the defense held Bama scoreless.

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Garrett Nussmeier gives credit to teammates after leading ReliaQuest Bowl comeback against Wisconsin

Garrett Nussmeier was humble after earning bowl MVP in his first career start.

In the first start of his career, [autotag]Garrett Nussmeier[/autotag] started slow but finished with what some people might call a career-defining drive to win the game against Wisconsin.

Nussmeier led an 8-play, 98-yard touchdown drive in only three minutes to give LSU a 35-31 lead with just three minutes left.

He finished the game 31-for-45 passing for 395 yards and three touchdowns while only throwing one interception. He showed the ability and promise he brings to the table for the 2024 version of the LSU Tigers.

After the game was over, Nussmeier was named as the MVP of the bowl game and he gave all the credit to his teammates.

“I didn’t carry the team on my back. We did it together,” Nussmeier said, per On3. “It started two weeks ago in bowl prep. First, I’d like to say God is good. His timing is always right. I feel really good right now and I feel really blessed and that’s all because of Him.”

Nussmeier gave credit where credit was due and I can’t wait to see how he plays in 2024.

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LSU’s comeback against Wisconsin was biggest in program’s bowl history

LSU had never come back from a 14-point deficit in a bowl game in school history until Monday.

LSU had never come back from a 14-point deficit in a bowl game in school history until Monday. LSU overcame a 28-14 deficit to the Wisconsin Badgers to win the game 35-31.

It took an eight-play, 98-yard, three-minute drive to take the lead with only six minutes left on the clock to get the job done but [autotag]Garrett Nussmeier[/autotag] was up to the task.

He hit [autotag]Brian Thomas Jr.[/autotag] for the touchdown pass to give the Tigers the lead with three minutes left in the game. That was still a lot of time for the Wisconsin offense as they tried to march down the field to win the game.

When LSU needed their defense the most, they showed up. The Tigers defense had been their Achilles heel all season long but when they had an opportunity to make their mark on the season, they made two sacks in a row to secure another 10-win season.

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