Bowl foes look to close on high note

NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- Auburn and Wisconsin know they can't fix their once promising seasons with one bowl victory. That doesn't mean they won't try.

"I think we could make a statement," Auburn running back Carnell "Cadillac" Williams said. "This is what could have been."

Wisconsin linebacker Jeff Mack said, "It can't alleviate all of it, but some of it. You want the last thing you remember to be a win."

Auburn (7-5) and Wisconsin (7-5) get that opportunity today in the Music City Bowl, far from where either team expected to finish when the season began.

Auburn was No. 6 in the preseason before struggling through a schedule that included both LSU and USC, teams about to play for a national title.

"I just remember at the beginning of the season, every magazine you had, they were all on the cover," Mack said. "Like us, they had a couple losses where maybe they should have won, or they didn't play up to their capabilities."

Wisconsin started 6-1, snapped Ohio State's 19-game winning streak and was ranked 12th in the country. Running back Anthony Davis was an early favorite for the Heisman Trophy after running for 247 yards against Akron.

Then came a string of injuries, and the banged-up Badgers lost four of their last five games by a total of 21 points. They finished seventh in the Big Ten with a 7-5 record.

"A couple of big plays here and there, and they could easily have been 9-3 or 10-2," Auburn quarterback Jason Campbell said. "That's the same way with us."

Wisconsin coach Barry Alvarez is looking for his 100th victory and that would tie him with John Robinson for the best bowl winning percentage at 8-1 and .889 for at least seven bowl appearances.

SUN BOWL: Oregon coach Mike Bellotti liked the result the last time the Ducks faced Minnesota in the Sun Bowl. In 1999, quarterback Joey Harrington threw the winning touchdown with 1:32 remaining on the clock to give Oregon a 24-20 win over the Golden Gophers.

"We had a great game about four years ago in the 1999 Sun Bowl," Bellotti said Tuesday. "A tremendous fan game that was exciting right down to the end. The best part about it was that Oregon pulled that one out. I'm hoping for a repeat."

In order for Bellotti and the Ducks to leave El Paso happy again, they'll need to contain Minnesota's high-powered running game.

The Gophers (9-3, 5-3 Big Ten) have the nation's third-ranked running attack, averaging 293.2 yards a game. Of course, they'll be going up against the 12th-ranked run defense of Oregon (8-4, 5-3 Pac- 10). The Ducks. The Ducks give up 95.9 yards rushing a game.

"It's strength against strength," Bellotti said.

INDEPENDENCE DAY: When Arkansas coach Houston Nutt sees Missouri play, it's almost as if he's watching his own team. Missouri coach Gary Pinkel probably feels the same way. The participants in tonight's Independence Bowl have loads of similarities. Both are 8-4 after 4-0 starts. Both were in the Top 25, but aren't now. Both are among the best rushing teams in the nation, a yard apart in production.

And both lean on big-play quarterbacks.

"They're not the biggest, we're not the biggest, but both of us play with a lot of emotion and play fast," Nutt said.

Independence Bowl

Missouri (8-4) vs. Arkansas (8-4)

Today, 5:30 p.m.

TV: ESPN

Sun Bowl

Minnesota (9-3) vs. Oregon (8-4)

Today, Noon

TV: CBS

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