The bowl season rolls merrily along on Saturday with a full slate of seven games. Coincidentally, six of them involve members of the Sun Belt Conference.
This was in no way predetermined, but the league happened to get a record 12 teams up to the eligibility threshold, including one that is ahead of schedule (more on that below).
It probably won’t hurt that three of the day’s contests are in the heart of Sun Belt territory in the Yellowhammer State, but outside of that trio the league’s foil will be three representatives from the Mountain West Conference. The lineup also includes a prime-time clash of power conferences in the desert. Here’s the full schedule for – oh, let’s just go with ‘Sun Belt Saturday.’
This is the SBC’s lone crack at a so-called Power Five conference squad, and it seems fitting that it’s the league champ getting that opportunity. As it happens, both schools will be led by interim coaches with Duke’s Mike Elko and Troy’s Jon Sumrall off to Texas A&M and Tulane, respectively. Trooper Taylor will mind the store for the Blue Devils as they await the arrival of Manny Diaz, and the Trojans will be managed by Greg Gasparato with Gerad Parker on the way. From a player standpoint, the exodus via the portal has seemingly been more consequential for Duke, particularly on the defensive side. Trojans RB Kimani Vidal will look to take advantage, though he’ll likely have frequent encounters with Duke LB Tre Freeman. Blue Devils QB Grayson Loftis, pressed into service as a freshman when Riley Leonard went down in the middle of the season, hopes to avoid Trojans DE Javon Solomon as he looks to add to his 16 sacks.
This is the first of two contests on the day matching the Mid-American Conference against the Sun Belt, with those two leagues having split their first two encounters in the…
Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/bowl-game-schedule-today-everything-110351484.html
Author : USA TODAY Sports
Publish date : 2023-12-23 11:03:51
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