Ninth-ranked Auburn and Minnesota to meet in Outback Bowl

No. 9 Auburn (9-3, SEC) vs. No. 16 Minnesota (10-2, Big Ten), Jan. 1, 1 p.m.

   LOCATION: Tampa

   TOP PLAYERS

   Auburn: QB Bo Nix, 2,366 yards passing, 15 TDs.

   Minnesota: WR Rashod Bateman, 1,170 yards receiving, 11 TDs.

   NOTABLE

   Auburn: The Tigers knocked rival Alabama out of the playoff with a 48-45 win in the Iron Bowl. Auburn's only losses came to ranked opponents; Florida, Georgia and LSU.

   Minnesota: The Gophers started 9-0 before losing to Iowa on the road, and Wisconsin throttled them 38-10 to steal the Big Ten West title on the last day of the regular season.

   BOWL HISTORY

   Auburn: This will be the Tigers' 44th bowl trip. They had dropped three straight before pummeling Purdue 63-14 in last year's Music City Bowl.

   Minnesota: The Gophers are 8-12 in bowl games. But they've won three of them since 2015.

Marshall faces UCF in Tampa's Gasparilla Bowl

UCF (9-3, AAC) vs. Marshall (8-4,Conference USA), Dec. 23, 2:30 p.m. ET, ESPN.

   LOCATION: Tampa, Florida

   TOP PLAYERS:

   UCF: QB Dillon Gabriel threw for 3,393 yards and 27 touchdowns. The freshman from Hawaii averaged 283 passing yards per game. 

   Marshall: RB Brenden Knox rushed for 1,284 yards and 11 touchdowns. 

   NOTABLE:

   UCF: The Knights finished second to Cincinnati in the AAC East, losing in conference play to the Bearcats and Tulsa. The bowl game in Tampa should be a virtual home game for UCF, which is located in Orlando.

   Marshall: The Herd finished second to FAU in the Conference USA East division after beating the Owls in the regular season. They lost a tough one to Boise State 14-7 on Sept. 6.

   LAST TIME

   The teams have never met.

   BOWL HISTORY

   UCF: A short but interesting bowl history. UCF is 4-6 in bowl games but played in high-profile New Year's Day games the past two seasons. In 2018 the Knights beat Auburn in the Peach Bowl before falling to LSU 40-32 in last year's Fiesta Bowl.

   Marshall: The Herd are 12-3 in bowl games and have won in their last seven appearances. They are playing in the Gasparilla Bowl for the second straight year after beating South Florida 38-20 last Dec. 20.