UK Football: Music City Here We Come!

(Screen captures from Madden 04.)

Kentucky football accepted a bid to play in the Music City Bowl, played at LP Field - home of the Tennessee Titans in Nashville where they will take on the ACs Clemson Tigers on December 29. I don't even think Kentucky would have declined playing in a bowl newly created so that Kentucky can play in a bowl. But it's official nevertheless at least, and this Kentucky football team is well deserved of a bowl matchup against Clemson. The last time these two teams met Clemson won 14-13 in the '93 Peach Bowl. But hey this is Music City Baby! Miracles happen at this field. Or do they?



If you're Kentucky who is revisiting a bowl trip they last played in or a member of the SEC accepting a bid to play in the Music City Bowl, Music City Miracles is just plain myth, well unless you're the Tennessee Titans or the Auburn Tigers who beat Wisconsin in 2003 here 28-14. Since the creation of this bowl in 1998, the SEC simply put has had bad luck winning this thing. Last year, the SEC didn't have enough bowl eligible teams to accept a bid to Nashville ( Virginia 34 Minnesota 31 ). The SEC is 1-6 in the Music City Bowl, Auburn being the only SEC team to win back in '03. Ask Bama fans what they think of this bowl, they've been here twice and got routed by Virginia Tech by 31 in the very first game that was played in Vanderbilt Stadium. You'd think the SEC would have the advantage. And then they lost to Minnesota in '04 by 4. The SEC loses by an average score of 27-18 at the Music City Bowl. Kentucky's last trip here found them 7 point losers to Syracuse which is among only 3 one-score losses out of the 6 losses the SEC have here in December.

This year the SEC gets back to the Music City Bowl by way of the Kentucky Wildcats after the conference failed to send one of their own there last year, and if the trend stays its course, Kentucky will either lose by two scores or this might just be one heck of a game to watch 4 days after Christmas. And if miracles really do happen here in the Music City, I'd put all my faith in the Big Blue right now the way they've been playing. Clemson is about to get a BIG dose of LITTLE. This game could be one of those very special holiday bowl upsets that will stick in the minds of everyone who watches. I mean who knows Kentucky? The only time anyone mentions Kentucky is when they're talking hoops. But Clemson, now you're talking about a game that has potential to be an upset and a program builder for Kentucky and could stun just about nearly everyone who already has picked Clemson the winner.



The Music City Bowl - Kentucky vs Clemson - Dec 29th, 2006 on ESPN, 1 pm est.

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