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College football bowl games: Ranking every 2019-2020 bowl team

By Nicholas Ian Allen

Trevor Lawrence, Clemson Tigers. (Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images)
Trevor Lawrence, Clemson Tigers. (Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images) /
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CINCINNATI, OH – NOVEMBER 23: Cincinnati Bearcats head coach Luke Fickell and the Cincinnati Bearcats run onto the field before the game against the Temple Owls and the Cincinnati Bearcats on November 23rd 2019, at Nippert Stadium in Cincinnati, OH. (Photo by Ian Johnson/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
CINCINNATI, OH – NOVEMBER 23: Cincinnati Bearcats head coach Luke Fickell and the Cincinnati Bearcats run onto the field before the game against the Temple Owls and the Cincinnati Bearcats on November 23rd 2019, at Nippert Stadium in Cincinnati, OH. (Photo by Ian Johnson/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) /

34. Mississippi State Bulldogs, 84.11

  • Roster Strength: 87.17 (14)
  • Team Performance: 82.53 (45)
  • Head Coach Rating: 82.45 (49)

The college football landscape can change in an instant. If not for an unsportsmanlike celebration penalty, and subsequent failed extra point attempt by Ole Miss in the final seconds of the Egg Bowl, it’s possible Matt Luke would have kept his job as head coach of the Rebels, and the Lane Train would be headed to Fayetteville instead of Oxford.

In that scenario, it’s also possible Mississippi State head coach Joe Moorhead would be the one looking for a new gig. Instead, Moorhead will coach the Bulldogs against Louisville in the Music City Bowl. A win wouldn’t likely quiet Moorhead’s critics, but it would secure Mississippi State its eighth winning season in nine years.

33. Cincinnati Bearcats, 84.17

  • Roster Strength: 82.20 (66)
  • Team Performance: 83.86 (84)
  • Head Coach Rating: 86.19 (19)

We took a lot of heat for Cincinnati’s No. 51 ranking in our preseason power ratings, and the Bearcats proved us wrong by winning double-digit games for the second straight season under head coach Luke Farrell. Cincinnati knocked off two-time defending AAC champion UCF to claim the East Division title and played Memphis close in back-to-back weeks with the conference title on the line.

Fickell has done a tremendous job, and should a head coaching opportunity come open in the Big Ten after bowl season (Michigan State, perhaps?), he would be a terrific fit. But if Fickell stays with the Bearcats, there’s little chance we will underrate them in 2020.

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