Adam Zobel

The upcoming holiday season signifies the postseason for Division I-A football teams as they participate in a series of 28 bowl games.

Some matchups this year are quite compelling while other bowls would be best served if they were eliminated from the scene.

The prime matchup of the bowl season is the Rose Bowl, which returns to its Big Ten/Pac-Ten traditions as Michigan faces USC.

The Trojans enter the game looking to prove themselves to be worthy of a split national title after being shutout of the championship game. The Wolverines will come into Pasadena looking to spoil the championships aspirations of the top-ranked Trojans.

The Sugar Bowl, the BCS title game, features LSU and Oklahoma in a matchup of tough defenses. The Sooners were shocked by Kansas State in the Big 12 title game and will be looking for redemption in New Orleans.

The Fiesta Bowl pits Ohio State, the defending champs, against Kansas State. The Buckeyes have struggled at times while the Wildcats recovered from a three-game losing skid and annihilated Nebraksa and Oklahoma en route to winning the Big 12.

The final BCS game is the clunker of the bunch as Florida State and Miami meet in a rematch of their game earlier this season. These teams will also play each other to begin the 2004 season.

Thus, the Hurricanes and Seminoles will be meeting three times in eleven months. Thankfully, both teams will be in the ACC next year, avoiding another disgraceful bowl matchup.

The best of the non-BCS games is probably the inagural Fort Worth Bowl and its showdown between Boise State and TCU. The Broncos and Horned Frogs only have one loss apiece and will be looking to prove that they are some of the best non-BCS conference teams in the college football.

Seeing Navy in a rare bowl game (the Houston Bowl versus Texas Tech) after winning only two games last season will be a treat for many fans.

Sadly, about a third of the bowls have teams that probably should not be in a bowl game, especially if the team is 6-6 or 7-6. These games are usually uneventful and the host city is the only party that really wins since most schools lose money playing in these lesser bowl games.