Bowl lead-up continues with 4 Wednesday games … Just 5 more sleeps until Monday’s two national semi-final games, but the lead-up continues Wednesday with 4 bowls. And what a day it could have been. Except it won’t because neither of QBs Caleb Williams of USC nor North Carolina’s Drake Maye, the top two prospects at the position for the 2024 draft, will be playing when their respective teams play on Wednesday. For the record, the Trojans are scheduled to play Louisville in the Holiday Bowl (8 PM ET; FOX), while North Carolina meets West Virginia in the Mayo Bowl (5:30 PM ET; ESPN). And if that wasn’t quite enough, Tulane’s Michael Pratt, one of the top 2nd tier QBs this year, also won’t be playing with the Green Wave faces Virginia Tech in the Military Bowl (2 PM ET; ESPN). In fact, almost none of the leading prospects from any of the teams playing Wednesday will be playing. One exception is West Virginia All-American CB Beanie Bishop (#11, 5-10, 180), who led the country in passes defenced this fall, will dress when the Mountaineers face the Tar Heels; however, C Zach Frazier, WVU’s other All-American won’t play after undergoing surgery earlier this month. The guy to watch in that game, at least from a future’s perspective, is UNC All-American sophomore RB Omarion Hampton (#28, 6-0, 210). Same story in the TaxAct Texas Bowl match-up between Texas A&M and Oklahoma State as the Cowboys are also led by an All-American soph RB not eligible for the 2024 draft, in Ollie Gordon (#0. 6-1, 210) who led the country in rushing this season. (And for the record no bowl should ever have the word ‘Tax’ in it! Ever!)
