OU in Cotton Bowl; OSU to face Purdue Jan. 1; TU in rematch with Iowa State in Liberty Bowl
BY ERIC BAILEY World Sports Writer
Sunday, December 02, 2012
12/03/12 at 6:24 AM
Oklahoma was serenaded by chants of “B-C-S” by its faithful fans following Saturday’s 24-17 victory at TCU.
But by Sunday night, OU’s hopes to play in a BCS bowl were extinguished by Northern Illinois, a Mid-American Conference school located in DeKalb, Ill.
The Sooners will face Texas A&M in the Cotton Bowl, which is played on Jan. 4 in Arlington, Texas.
Oklahoma State will take on Purdue in the Heart of Dallas Bowl on Jan. 1 in Dallas.
Conference USA champion Tulsa will meet Iowa State in the Dec. 31 Liberty Bowl, located in Memphis, Tenn. It is a rematch of the season opener for both. The Cyclones beat TU 38-23 on Sept. 1.
Oklahoma seemed destined for a BCS Bowl. The co-Big 12 champions with Kansas State was being targeted for either the Fiesta Bowl and Sugar Bowl by mid-afternoon Saturday.
OU slid out of BCS Bowl contention when Northern Illinois finished among the top 16 schools of the BCS rankings. The BCS rules allow non-automatic qualifying leagues (like the MAC) to send its champion when a member meets the first criteria and ends above a BCS conference champion.
Northern Illinois was No. 15 in the final BCS rankings and ended ahead of Big East champion Louisville and Big Ten champion Wisconsin.
OU’s game will be played on Jan. 4, a Friday 7 p.m. kickoff. It was be Oklahoma’s first game at the Cotton Bowl since a 10-3 win over Arkansas following the 2001 season.
The game is play at Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, where OU senior quarterback Landry Jones made his college debut taking over for an injured Sam Bradford.
Texas A&M (10-2) is paced by Heisman Trophy candidate Johnny Manzeil.
OSU will face Purdue for the first time since a 33-20 win over the Cowboys in the 1997 Alamo Bowl.
The Cowboys (7-5) have struggled down the stretch. OSU has lost three of five games heading into the Heart of Dallas Bowl, which is played at the Cotton Bowl in Dallas.
Kickoff is scheduled for 11 a.m. on New Year’s Day.
Tulsa (10-3) will get another shot at Iowa State, which handed the Hurricane one of three losses this season. Iowa State finished its season at 6-6.
The Hurricane — playing a second opponent for a second time this season — captured a rematch victory over UCF in Saturday’s Conference USA championship game.
Tulsa last played in the Liberty Bowl in 2005, when it defeated Fresno State 31-24.
Kickoff is scheduled for 2:30 p.m. on New Year’s Eve.
Associated Images:
OSU's QB Clint Chelf runs from OU defenders in Norman on Nov. 24. STEPHEN PINGRY/Tulsa World
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