Players want to experience them. Recruits choose where to play based on how often a school appears in them. Thousands of fans plan their vacations around them, while others spend the holiday season watching them on television.
"They" are postseason bowls in which 70 of the 120 teams in the NCAA's Football Bowl Subdivision will participate. Nobody wants to be one of the 50 who don't get invitations to the postseason festivities, and that makes the final three weeks of the regular season a critical time for at least three in-state programs.
East Carolina, N.C. State and Wake Forest are all within reach of becoming bowl eligible with three games to play. The Pirates and Wolfpack need to win two of their final three games to qualify, while the Deacons must be victorious in one of their last three.
North Carolina, at 6-4, has already qualified with two games remaining, while Duke (3-6) is a long shot that would have to beat Virginia, Georgia Tech and the Tar Heels over the final three weeks to be considered.
"We have three games left," ECU coach Ruffin McNeill said. "There is a lot of season remaining. There are a lot of things we have on the line. We want to make sure we're bowl eligible and finish strong."
The Pirates (4-5) are trying to reach the postseason for the fifth consecutive year. They are favored to earn a fifth win today against UTEP, but then must knock off either Central Florida or Marshall in the final two games to qualify.
By winning its final three games, a 7-5 ECU team would be in position for one of Conference USA's secondary bowl tie-ins behind Houston and Southern Miss. The Pirates' destination would also be affected by how C-USA members Tulsa and SMU finish because both could potentially end up with nine wins.
ESPN football analyst Mark Schlabach projects the Pirates for a Dec. 17 matchup in the R+L Carriers New Orleans Bowl against Louisiana-Lafayette from the Sun Belt Conference.
Despite its 5-4 overall record, N.C. State still needs to win two of three to qualify because two of its victories are over Football Championship Subdivision teams. FBS schools can only count one of those wins each year toward bowl eligibility.
The Wolfpack must get two wins out of games at Boston College today, then home outings against nationally ranked Clemson and long-time nemesis Maryland. A 7-5 N.C. State squad would likely head to Charlotte for postseason play in the Belk Bowl, formerly called the Meineke Car Care Bowl.
But N.C. State coach Tom O'Brien isn't looking past today's game against the Eagles, where he once was head coach.
"We've got to beat BC, that's the first thing we have to do," O'Brien said. "We still have three games. We need to win two to get there (bowl). But the best chance we have is Saturday because that's the only chance we have. We have to take care of business Saturday, and then count it up after that."
Wake Forest (5-4) could still gain a share of the Atlantic Coast Conference's Atlantic Division title by winning out. But to make that happen the Deacons will have to beat Clemson on its home field today.
"It's nice to still be in the running for the ACC championship this late in the season," Wake linebacker Scott Betros said. "Not many teams can say that. But that could end real fast if we're not focused on Clemson this weekend."
The Deacons will face Maryland and Vanderbilt in their final regular-season games. Defeat those two and a 7-5 finish could send Wake to the Military Bowl presented by Northrop Grumman in Washington, D.C., or the Kraft Fight Hunger Bowl in San Francisco.
If UNC can split its final two games with Virginia Tech and Duke, the Tar Heels are likely to wind up in the AdvoCare V100 Independence Bowl in Shreveport, La.
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