|
GAMECOCKS DRAWS NEBRASKA IN CAPITAL ONE BOWL
Game Set for Monday, January 2, 2012 in Orlando
ORLANDO,
FLA. -- On behalf of its Selection Committee, Florida Citrus Sports’
Chairman Michel Champagne and CEO Steve Hogan announced today that the
South Carolina Gamecocks and Nebraska Cornhuskers have been selected to
play in the 2012 Capital One Bowl. The New Year’s classic will
kick off at 1:00 p.m. on January 2 from Florida Citrus Bowl Stadium in
Orlando and will be televised nationally by ESPN.
The meeting
will be the first between the two schools since 1987. Nebraska holds a
3-0 edge in the all-time series with the closest contest coming in the
lone game played in Columbia, S.C., a 27-24 ‘Husker win.
The
matchup is not without some interesting side notes, however, as South
Carolina head coach Steve Spurrier and Nebraska Athletics Director Tom
Osborne squared off in the 1996 Fiesta Bowl for that season’s national
championship. While South Carolina’s lone appearance in Orlando came in
the 1975 Tangerine Bowl, Nebraska’s 1991 appearance against Georgia
Tech in the City Beautiful featured the only game with national title
implications to be played in the Citrus Bowl.
South Carolina
makes its first trip to the Capital One Bowl by way of a 10-2 record
(6-2 SEC). Despite the reputation of Coach Spurrier as the head of an
offensive aerial attack, it’s the Carolina defense that is stout
against the pass, boasting the No. 2 pass defense in the country.
The Gamecocks allow a mere 133.0 yards per game through the air and
feature the fourth-ranked overall defense in the country, giving up
just 268.9 yards per game.
Nebraska (9-3, 5-3 Big Ten) had an
excellent first season as a member of the Big Ten Conference. The
Cornhuskers also have one of the nation’s top defenses against the pass
(18th, 189.1 ypg) while bringing with it its traditionally-strong
rushing attack, averaging 223.9 yards per game (13th nationally). Head
coach Bo Pelini will now have taken Nebraska to bowl appearances in
each of his four seasons as head coach, posting a 2-1 mark prior to
this year’s game.
|
