After taking a bit of a Christmas Holiday, there are bowl games today again and honestly it feels like these bowls are when the bowl season begins in earnest. While there aren't a ton of big teams playing yet, the games tend to feature more Power 5 teams than the last few games have seen.
The bowl games today are starting in the afternoon, despite that most of the workforce is going back to their jobs after getting a day or two off for the holiday.
For those who are looking for reasons to watch the bowl games today, there's a storyline in each game that could draw people in. And now just because it's something to have on in the background while they try and focus back in on work.
Quick Lane Bowl is the weirdest of the bowl games today
The first game of the day features the only team in the bowl season that actually has a losing record entering the game. Minnesota comes in 5-7 thanks to there not being enough teams that won at least 6 games this season.
The Golden Gophers take on Bowling Green at 1pm Central Time on Tuesday. Nebraska football fans can root hard against the Gophers and hope they finish 5-8 simply because that would be rather funny. Or, they can root for Minnesota since they beat NU to open the season.
Editors Note: Minnesota was able to outlast Bowling Green 30-24 after building up a 23-10 lead in the first half. Freshman running back Darius Taylor was the workhorse for the Golden Gophers as he ran for 208 yards on 35 carries.
SERVPRO First Responder Bowl
In the second of the bowl games today, Rice takes on Texas State in the SERVPRO First Responder Bowl at 4:30pm on ESPN and ESPN+ in what has turned into a state rivalry game.
Nebraska football fans might want to watch this game just to see if former Husker quarterback Luke McCaffrey can continue what has been an insane season. He leads the Owls with 68 catches for 963 yards and 12 touchdowns.
Editor's Note: McCaffrey did have a touchdown, but he didn't do much else. His Rice team was manhandled in the second half and Texas State ended up winning 45-21.
Guaranteed Rate Bowl
The night cap for today's bowl games features the Kansas Jayhawks facing off against UNLV at 8pm.
Considering how long the Jayhawks went bowless it's worth watching make their second bowl in a row. They're also facing off against an interesting team in UNLV who has one of the most explosive offenses in the country. This game should be the best of today's bowls.