Outback, Gator Bowls courting Penn State
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UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. -- Penn State almost certainly will be headed to Florida for the holidays.
Although bowl bids won't officially be extended until Sunday, two New Year's Day games -- the Outback Bowl in Tampa, Fla., and the Gator Bowl in Jacksonville, Fla. -- have their eyes on the Nittany Lions.
Penn State is one of five teams in the jumbled Big Ten Conference that the Outback Bowl is considering, provided Wisconsin (Rose Bowl) and Ohio State (Sugar Bowl) are selected for BCS games, as expected.
Michigan State, the Big Ten's third 11-1 team, likely will land in the Capital One Bowl.
That would leave the Outback Bowl with the next pick, and the selection committee could choose between 7-5 teams Penn State, Iowa, Michigan and Northwestern and 6-5 Illinois, which wraps up its season Friday night at Fresno State.
"Penn State absolutely is in the middle of all of our discussions," Outback Bowl president and CEO Jim McVay said Tuesday.
The Outback Bowl's final choice very well could come down to Penn State and Iowa, with the runner-up pick heading to the Gator Bowl.
Although the Hawkeyes beat the Lions, 24-3, earlier this season, Penn State finished 4-2 while Iowa staggered to a 2-4 finish, with three consecutive losses to end the year.
History could favor the Lions, who are 3-0 in the Outback Bowl, but have not been there since beating Tennessee, 20-10, in 2007. Iowa has made three appearances in the past seven years, going 2-1.
McVay cited Hall of Fame coach Joe Paterno's career win total (401), bowl victories (24), the school's large traveling fan base and TV ratings as reasons Penn State would be a good pick for the Outback Bowl.
"Penn State is just one of those tradition-rich programs that everybody recognizes," McVay said. "There are a huge number of pluses in Penn State's favor, but we will evaluate all of the Big Ten schools."
First Published December 1, 2010 12:00 am
