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College bowl schedule 2012: Virginia Tech's bowl highlights Friday

The Virginia Tech Hokies will try to take down a team that can claim a Big East title, as they face the Rutgers Scarlet Knights in one of three bowl games on Friday.

By Rodger Sherman
Peter Casey-USA TODAY Sports

Three postseason matchups highlight Friday in college football, including Virginia Tech's 19th consecutive bowl game. Here's a look at the day's action, all of which will be broadcast on ESPN:

AdvoCare V100 Independence Bowl, Shreveport, Louisiana, 2 p.m., Ohio (8-4) vs. Louisiana-Monroe (8-4): Not the most marquee matchup by name, but remember that both of these teams made a stir nationally earlier this season. Ohio was the No. 24 team in the BCS rankings after starting the year 7-0, including a season-opening win over Penn State, while the Warhawks knocked off No. 8 Arkansas in their first game of the year before coming up just short in overtime against Auburn and losing, 47-42, against Baylor. Arkansas and Auburn would turn out to be two of the worst teams in the SEC, but that doesn't mean Louisiana-Monroe was a bad squad, as they would win seven of their last nine after their tough start to the year. Beau Blankenship had 1,500 yards rushing on the dot for Ohio, while Kolton Browning had nearly 3,000 yards passing while leading Louisiana-Monroe in rushing.

Russell Athletic Bowl, Orlando, 5:30 p.m., Rutgers (9-3) vs. Virginia Tech (6-6): The Scarlet Knights started 7-0 and managed to get a share of their conference title with a 5-2 Big East record, but closed the year with a pair of losses, while the Hokies sprung back from a bad stretch of play to squeak into bowl eligibility with an overtime win over Boston College and a three-point win over Virginia. Now, Logan Thomas' squad has a chance to snap back from losses in two straight bowl games and close the season on a positive note. Rutgers has the No. 5 scoring defense in the nation, allowing just 14.8 points per game.

Meineke Car Care Bowl of Texas, Houston, 9 p.m., Minnesota (6-6) vs. Texas Tech (7-5): Texas Tech's air raid takes on a methodical Big Ten squad in Minnesota. Seth Doege completed over 70 percent of his passes for 3,934 yards to give the Red Raiders the No. 2 passing attack in the nation by yards per game. This matchup is probably an argument against the way teams schedule non-conference games, as both team swept their out-of-league slates but stumbled to below .500 records, with Minnesota going 2-6 in Big Ten play.