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bowl games, Bruin Football, Bruins, Chargers, college football, College Football Playoff, Cotton Bowl, ESPN, football, Jimmy Kimmel L.A. Bowl, Los Angeles Chargers, Los Angeles Rams, National Football League, NFL, Pac-12 Conference, postseason, pro football, Rams, Rose Bowl, SoFi Stadium, Sun Bowl, Trojan Football, Trojans, UCLA Bruins, USC Trojans
UCLA quarterback Dorian Thompson-Robinson gaining yardage against USC. Photo courtesy of si.com
FOOTBALL SEASON IN SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA IS ABOUT TO REACH ITS PEAK!
And I thought it would be a good idea to offer this guide to all the gridiron events that this greater Los Angeles area will be involved in during these next few weeks,
Including the postseason bowl games that our two college football programs, USC and UCLA, will partake in.
All told,
There will be six games either being held in SoCal or involving teams from SoCal,
So football fans in this area will be quite busy this holiday season.
Let’s not waste any time;
Let’s start with this traditional bowl that will serve as a consolation prize for the Trojan Family in lieu of not winning the Pac-12 Conference crown…
GOODYEAR COTTON BOWL CLASSIC
USC Trojans (11-2) vs Tulane Green Wave (11-2)
Date: Monday, January 2, 2023
Place: AT&T Stadium, Arlington, TX
Time: 10:00 a.m. PST
TV: ESPN
Rank (College Football Playoff): USC – 8th, Tulane – 14th
Key Players:
USC
- Caleb Williams, QB (Heisman Trophy finalist) – 66.7% completions, 4,075 pass yards, 37 TD, 4 INT // 372 rush yards, 10 rush TD
- Travis Dye, RB (injured, will not play) – 884 rush yards, 6.9 ypc, 9 TD
- Austin Jones, RB – 644 rush yards, 5.7 ypc, 5 TD
- Jordan Addison, WR – 63 receptions, 908 yards, 8 TD
- Tahj Washington, WR – 45 receptions, 676 yards, 6 TD
- Tuli Tuipulotu, DL – 44 tackles, 21.0 TFL, 12.5 sacks
- Calen Bullock, DB – 47 tackles, 5 INT, 1 TD
- Shane Lee, LB – 76 tackles, 6.5 TFL, 2.5 sacks
TONY THE TIGER SUN BOWL
UCLA Bruins (9-3) vs Pittsburgh Panthers (8-4)
Date: Friday, December 30, 2022
Place: Sun Bowl, El Paso, TX
Time: 11:00 a.m. PST
TV: ESPN
Rank (College Football Playoff): UCLA – 18th, Pittsburgh – none
Key Players:
UCLA
- Dorian Thompson-Robinson, QB – 69.8% completions, 2,883 pass yards, 25 TD, 7 INT // 631 rush yards, 5.6 ypc, 11 TD
- Zach Carbonnet, RB – 1,359 rush yards, 7.0 ypc, 14 TD
- Jake Bobo, WR – 54 receptions, 789 yards, 7 TD
- Mo Ostling III, DB – 82 tackles
- Laiatu Latu, LB – 33 tackles, 11.0 TFL, 9.5 sacks
- Grayson Murphy, DL – 26 tackles, 9.0 TFL, 5.0 sacks
ROSE BOWL GAME
Utah Utes (10-3) vs Penn State Nittany Lions (10-2)
Date: Monday, January 2, 2023
Place: Rose Bowl, Pasadena, CA
Time: 2:00 p.m. PST
TV: ESPN
Rank (College Football Playoff): Utah – 7th, Penn State – 9th
Notes:
- Utah won their second straight Pac-12 championship in beating USC, 47-24, in Las Vegas on December 2nd
- Utah will be playing in their second straight Rose Bowl Game
JIMMY KIMMEL LOS ANGELES BOWL
Washington State Cougars (7-5) vs Fresno State Bulldogs (9-4)
Date: Saturday, December 17, 2022
Place: SoFi Stadium, Inglewood, CA
Time: 3:30 p.m. PST
TV: ESPN
Note:
- Fresno State won the Mountain West Conference championship in beating Boise State, 28-16, on December 3rd
LOS ANGELES RAMS vs LOS ANGELES CHARGERS
Date: Sunday, January 1st, 2023
Place: SoFi Stadium, Inglewood, CA
Time: 5:20 p.m. PST
TV: NBC Channel 4
Records:
- RAMS: 3-9, fourth place in the NFC West
- CHARGERS: 6-6, second place in the AFC West
Key Players (active):
RAMS
- Cam Akers, RB – 334 rush yards, 3.3 ypc, 3 TD
- Tyler Higbee, TE – 50 receptions, 444 yards
- Jalen Ramsey, DB – 63 tackles, 4 TFL, 2 sacks, 1 INT
- Leonard Floyd, LB – 43 tackles, 6 TFL 5 sacks
CHARGERS
- Justin Herbert, QB – 66.7% completions, 3,339 pass yards, 20 TD, 7 INT
- Austin Ekeler, RB – 589 rush yards, 4.3 ypc, 7 TD // 85 receptions, 564 yards, 5 TD
- Josh Palmer, WR – 57 receptions, 612 yards, 3 TD
- Gerald Everett, TE – 43 receptions, 462 yards, 2 TD
- Drue Tranquill, LB – 103 tackles, 6 TFL, 3 sacks
- Derwin James, S – 106 tackles, 5 TFL, 4 sacks, 1 INT
- Khalil Mack, LB – 37 tackles, 10 TFL, 7 sacks
- Bryce Callahan, CB – 40 tackles, 2 TFL, 3 INT, 1 TD
Note: Rams QB Matthew Stafford, DL Aaron Donald and WR Cooper Kupp are all on Injured Reserve and (as of this writing) are inactive and unable to play
COLLEGE FOOTBALL PLAYOFF NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP GAME
Georgia Bulldogs (12-0) / Ohio State Buckeyes (11-1) vs Michigan Wolverines (13-0) / TCU Horned Frogs (12-1)
Date: Monday, January 9, 2023
Place: SoFi Stadium, Inglewood, CA
Time: 4:30 p.m. PST
TV: ESPN
Rank (College Football Playoff):
- Georgia – 1st
- Michigan – 2nd
- TCU – 3rd
- Ohio State – 4th
Notes:
- Georgia is the defending national champion, won the Southeastern Conference in beating LSU 50-30 in the SEC Championship Game on December 3rd, and has been the top-ranked team in the nation all season
- Michigan won their second straight Big Ten Conference championship, beating Purdue 43-22 in the Big Ten Championship Game on December 3rd
- TCU, after going undefeated in the regular season, lost to Kansas State in the Big 12 Championship Game, 31-28 in overtime, on December 3rd
- Ohio State, after having been undefeated and ranked 2nd for most of the year, was beaten by Michigan in their big rivalry game, 45-23, in Columbus, OH on November 26th
- This is the ninth year of the College Football Playoff; it will expand from four to twelve teams in 2024
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