The 2015-16 bowl season will kick off in just a week and a half and run all the way through the beginning of January.
Teams have varying degrees of motivation when they step on the field at their respective bowl sites, and here are five teams which could have just a bit extra juice when they strap on the pads in their bowls.
Miami vs. Washington State, Hyundai Sun Bowl
Saturday, December 26, 2:00 p.m. ET
There are definitely a couple motivating factors here for the Canes. First off, the team hasn't won a bowl game since 2006, something that has to be weighing on a program so rich in history and tradition. Secondly, Miami finally had something positive happen to it. One of its alumni, Mark Richt is coming back to coach the team, and though going 9-3 seemingly every year and not contending for a National Championship wasn't good enough for Georgia, it certainly would be a step in the right direction for the Hurricanes. There's been a buzz around south Florida ever since Richt was fired, knowing that the possibility was there that he'd take the job. Now he has. Things should be looking up for "The U" for the first time in basically a decade.
Duke vs. Indiana, New Era Pinstripe Bowl
Saturday, December 26, 3:30 p.m. ET
It's a little bit surprising that David Cutcliffe's name was really never brought up for any of the bigger job openings, particularly in the SEC. He's done a great job with Duke, taking a program which was basically barren and turning it into a bowl team for four years running. Still, there's a missing piece here for the Blue Devils. They've yet to win a bowl game in this era. In fact, no one around the Duke program was even alive the last time the men in blue won a bowl game. You have to go way back to 1960 to find the last time the Dookies hoisted a trophy in a bowl. This could be the day where it all comes together for Cutcliffe.
Virginia Tech vs. Tulsa, Camping World Independence Bowl
Monday, December 27, 5:45 p.m. ET
Did you see the celebration on the sidelines when the Hokies won their last game of the regular season to become bowl eligible? Frank Beamer was dabbing in the locker room. That's how excited he was to get to coach one more game before going into retirement. The Hokies would love nothing more than to send the man who has coached them for years and should have the stadium named after him in Blacksburg out with a win, even if it just is the Independence Bowl. Tulsa provides a juicy matchup for sure, and there's a reason why the Hokies, even at just 6-6, are the biggest favorites of the bowl season.
Navy vs. Pittsburgh, Military Bowl presented by Northrop Grumman
Tuesday, December 28, 2:30 p.m. ET
There's a lot to like about the Middies a few days after Christmas. They're playing a home game against a Power 5 school, and that in and of itself is a treat for the fans. The bigger positive though, is the fact that this will be the last game for Keenan Reynolds, one of the true all-time greats in Navy football history. He's going to leave the school with all sorts of national rushing records, and getting the chance to see him strap up the boots one last time in a bowl game should be a tremendous motivating factor both for him and the Midshipmen.
Iowa vs. Stanford, Rose Bowl
Friday, January 1, 4:00 p.m. ET
Iowa proved a lot in the Big Ten Championship Game. Though the Hawkeyes didn't beat Michigan State, they did come within a few yards of doing so. That in and of itself validated a 12-0 regular season which was largely blasted by most. There's a chip on the shoulder of the Hawkeyes that can only be removed with a win in the Rose Bowl. That's the same type of chip that Stanford carried on its shoulder four years ago when it went to its first of now three Rose Bowls in a span of four years. Iowa hasn't won the Granddaddy of Them All since 1958.
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