CollegeFootballDigestfrom CooperSearch

2011: Bowls & playoff

35 games. Nine ranked teams lost. Nine games matched two ranked teams. Winners are listed first; numbers before names are AP ranks going in.

The week in review

Ranked against ranked

Jan 9, 20122Alabama 21, 1LSU 0upsetBCS National ChampionshipBox score
Jan 2, 20123Oklahoma State 41, 4Stanford 38Fiesta BowlBox score
Jan 2, 20126Oregon 45, 9Wisconsin 38Rose BowlBox score
Jan 6, 20127Arkansas 29, 11Kansas State 16Cotton BowlBox score
Jan 2, 201212Michigan State 33, 18Georgia 30Outback BowlBox score
Jan 3, 201213Michigan 23, 17Virginia Tech 20Sugar BowlBox score

Upsets

Jan 9, 20122Alabama 21, 1LSU 0upsetBCS National ChampionshipBox score
Jan 4, 201223West Virginia 70, 14Clemson 33upsetOrange BowlBox score

A ranked team beaten as the betting favorite, or, where no line is on file, by an unranked or lower-ranked team.

Big days

Passing

Case Keenum45 of 69, 532 yards, 3 TDHouston vs. Penn State
  1. Geno Smith West Virginia32 of 43, 407 yards, 6 TD
  2. Keith Price Washington23 of 37, 438 yards, 4 TD

Rushing

Terrance Ganaway21 carries, 200 yards, 5 TDBaylor vs. Washington
  1. Lampford Mark Nevada29 carries, 183 yards, 2 TD
  2. Vick Ballard Mississippi State14 carries, 180 yards, 2 TD

Receiving

Jordan White13 catches, 265 yards, 1 TDWestern Michigan vs. Purdue
  1. Patrick Edwards Houston10 catches, 228 yards, 2 TD
  2. Gerell Robinson Arizona State13 catches, 241 yards, 1 TD
Ranked by a points score for each kind of game (yards, touchdowns, tackles, sacks).
How we rankRanked by yards plus 20 for each touchdown (passing: less 20 for each interception); defense (from 2016, when the box scores carry tackles) by points: 8 a tackle, 12 a tackle for loss, 30 a sack (a sack is also a tackle for loss, so 42 in all), 40 an interception, 60 a touchdown.
Photos: Wikimedia Commons, free licenses; credits on each player’s page.

The week’s biggest individual games by FBS players, from CollegeFootballData box scores.

FBS vs. FBS

Dec 17, 2011Temple 37, Wyoming 15New Mexico BowlBox score
Dec 17, 2011Ohio 24, Utah State 23Famous Idaho Potato BowlBox score
Dec 17, 2011Louisiana 32, San Diego State 30upsetNew Orleans BowlBox score
Dec 20, 2011Marshall 20, Florida International 10Beef ‘O’ Brady’s Bowl St. PetersburgBox score
Dec 21, 201116TCU 31, Louisiana Tech 24Poinsettia BowlBox score
Dec 22, 20118Boise State 56, Arizona State 24Maaco Bowl Las VegasBox score
Dec 24, 201122Southern Miss 24, Nevada 17Hawai’i BowlBox score
Dec 26, 2011Missouri 41, North Carolina 24Independence BowlBox score
Dec 27, 2011Purdue 37, Western Michigan 32Little Caesars BowlBox score
Dec 27, 2011NC State 31, Louisville 24Belk BowlBox score
Dec 28, 2011Toledo 42, Air Force 41Military BowlBox score
Dec 28, 2011Texas 21, California 10Holiday BowlBox score
Dec 29, 201125Florida State 18, Notre Dame 14Champs Sports BowlBox score
Dec 29, 201115Baylor 67, Washington 56Alamo BowlBox score
Dec 30, 2011BYU 24, Tulsa 21Armed Forces BowlBox score
Dec 30, 2011Rutgers 27, Iowa State 13Pinstripe BowlBox score
Dec 30, 2011Mississippi State 23, Wake Forest 17Music City BowlBox score
Dec 30, 201119Oklahoma 31, Iowa 14Insight BowlBox score
Dec 31, 2011Texas A&M 33, Northwestern 22Meineke Car Care Bowl of TexasBox score
Dec 31, 2011Utah 30, Georgia Tech 27Sun BowlBox score
Dec 31, 2011Illinois 20, UCLA 14Fight Hunger BowlBox score
Dec 31, 2011Cincinnati 31, Vanderbilt 24Liberty BowlBox score
Dec 31, 2011Auburn 43, Virginia 24Chick-fil-A BowlBox score
Jan 2, 201220Houston 30, 24Penn State 14TicketCity BowlBox score
Jan 2, 2012Florida 24, Ohio State 17Gator BowlBox score
Jan 2, 201212Michigan State 33, 18Georgia 30Outback BowlBox score
Jan 2, 201210South Carolina 30, 21Nebraska 13Capital One BowlBox score
Jan 2, 20126Oregon 45, 9Wisconsin 38Rose BowlBox score
Jan 2, 20123Oklahoma State 41, 4Stanford 38Fiesta BowlBox score
Jan 3, 201213Michigan 23, 17Virginia Tech 20Sugar BowlBox score
Jan 4, 201223West Virginia 70, 14Clemson 33upsetOrange BowlBox score
Jan 6, 20127Arkansas 29, 11Kansas State 16Cotton BowlBox score
Jan 7, 2012SMU 28, Pittsburgh 6BBVA Compass BowlBox score
Jan 8, 2012Northern Illinois 38, Arkansas State 20GoDaddy.com BowlBox score
Jan 9, 20122Alabama 21, 1LSU 0upsetBCS National ChampionshipBox score