There will be no ambushes in today's Independence Bowl, though. The Yellow Jackets and Falcons instead might feel like they're looking into a mirror. (On TV: 8 p.m., ESPN)
Georgia Tech (6-6) is the nation's top rushing team, averaging 327 yards per game, while Air Force (8-4) is right behind at more than 317 yards per game. There are some subtle differences to each team's scheme -- both coaches agree that Air Force likes to take a zone-read approach -- but there's no doubt that there will be very few surprises.
"There's probably more similarities than there are differences," Georgia Tech coach Paul Johnson said. "The bottom line is it doesn't really matter what you do, it really comes down to execution."
Air Force coach Troy Calhoun agreed, but said with both teams so familiar with each other, it might come down to which team is able to strike through the air at the perfect moment.
"The key part is what happens in the passing game," Calhoun said. "How efficient are you going to be when you do end up throwing the football? And then defensively, how well do you defend the big play?"
In that regard, it appears the Falcons would have an advantage.
Georgia Tech will be playing without its star quarterback Joshua Nesbitt, who is out with a broken right arm. The veteran is the most prolific running quarterback in ACC history, and even though his completion percentage (37.1 percent) wasn't pretty, he had thrown seven touchdown passes this season.
Johnson announced Sunday that starting defensive end Anthony Egbuniwe and reserve defensive backs Louis Young and Michael Peterson won't be allowed to play until the second half.
The Yellow Jackets will be missing four other players for the entire game, including receiver Stephen Hill and safety Mario Edwards. They were declared ineligible for the bowl because of academic problems.
SOUTH BEND, Ind. | Notre Dame's president says the university acted with integrity in its handling of sexual misconduct allegations against a football player by a St. Mary's College student who later committed suicide.
The Rev. John I. Jenkins tells the South Bend Tribune that campus police conducted a "thorough and judicious investigation that followed the facts where they led."
St. Joseph County Prosecutor Michael Dvorak said Dec. 16 that his office won't pursue criminal charges in the case.
Nineteen-year-old Elizabeth Seeberg died of a suspected drug overdose Sept. 10. Dvorak says Seeberg accused a student-athlete of touching her breasts on Aug. 31.
Tom and Mary Seeberg of Northbrook, Ill., have criticized Notre Dame's handling of their daughter's death, telling the Chicago Tribune that the school's investigation was superficial.
PHOENIX | Oklahoma and Connecticut have landed in the desert for the Fiesta Bowl.
Oklahoma has been through this before, playing here in 2007 and 2008. The Sooners lost both, so they decided to change things up a bit by switching hotels and practice sites.
For UConn, this is new territory.
An FBS team for less than a decade, the Huskies are making their inaugural appearance in a BCS bowl. Connecticut won its final five games to win the Big East, but are 17-point underdogs to the Big 12 champion Sooners for the New Year's Day bowl.
UConn has won three bowls in four straight postseason appearances, while Oklahoma has lost five straight BCS bowls, with a win over Stanford in last year's Sun Bowl.
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