1987–88 NCAA football bowl games explained

Season:1987
Number Of Bowls:18
Bowl Start:December 13, 1987
Bowl End:
January 2, 1988
Championship Bowl:Orange Bowl
Championship Location:Miami, Florida
Champions:Miami Hurricanes
Conference1:Independent
Conference1 Teams:9
Conference1 Wins:2
Conference1 Losses:6
Conference1 Ties:1
Conference1 Ap Poll:5
Conference2:SEC
Conference2 Teams:6
Conference2 Wins:3
Conference2 Losses:2
Conference2 Ties:1
Conference2 Ap Poll:4
Conference3:Big Ten
Conference3 Teams:4
Conference3 Wins:3
Conference3 Losses:1
Conference3 Ap Poll:3
Conference4:Pac-10
Conference4 Teams:4
Conference4 Wins:3
Conference4 Losses:1
Conference4 Ap Poll:3
Conference5:Big 8
Conference5 Teams:3
Conference5 Wins:1
Conference5 Losses:2
Conference5 Ap Poll:3
Conference6:SWC
Conference6 Teams:3
Conference6 Wins:2
Conference6 Losses:1
Conference6 Ap Poll:1
Conference7:WAC
Conference7 Teams:3
Conference7 Wins:0
Conference7 Losses:3
Conference7 Ap Poll:0
Conference8:ACC
Conference8 Teams:2
Conference8 Wins:2
Conference8 Losses:0
Conference8 Ap Poll:1
Conference9:MAC
Conference9 Teams:1
Conference9 Wins:1
Conference9 Losses:0
Conference9 Ap Poll:0
Conference10:PCAA
Conference10 Teams:1
Conference10 Wins:0
Conference10 Losses:1
Conference10 Ap Poll:0

The 1987–88 NCAA football bowl games concluded the 1987 NCAA Division I-A football season, featuring 18 games. Twenty ranked teams participated, and seven of the eighteen matchups were between two ranked teams.[1] The Miami Hurricanes were declared the national champions, after upsetting #1 Oklahoma in the Orange Bowl.[2] [3]

Seventeen of the bowl games ended with a winner, while there was a lone tie (Auburn vs Syracuse in the Sugar Bowl).

Nine independent teams competed, along with six SEC teams, four Big Ten, four Pac-10, three WAC, three Big 8, three SWC, two ACC, one MAC, and one PCAA.

The largest margin of victory occurred twice; Clemson beat Penn State and Texas A&M beat Notre Dame, both 35-10.

The "bowl week" started on December 13 with the California Bowl, and concluded on January 2, 1988 with the Hall of Fame Bowl and the Peach Bowl.

Bowl schedule

DateGameSiteTelevisionTeamsAffiliationsResults
style=white-space:nowrap Dec. 13California BowlBulldog Stadium
Fresno, California
ESPNEastern Michigan Hurons (9–2)
San Jose State Spartans (10–1)
MAC
PCAA
Eastern Michigan 30
San Jose State 27
style=white-space:nowrap Dec. 19Independence BowlIndependence Stadium
Shreveport, Louisiana
MizlouWashington Huskies (6–4–1)
Tulane Green Wave (6–5)
Pac-10
Independent
Washington 24
Tulane 12
style=white-space:nowrap Dec. 22All-American BowlLegion Field
Birmingham, Alabama
RaycomBYU Cougars (9–3)
Virginia Cavaliers (7–4)
WAC
ACC
Virginia 22
BYU 16
Dec. 25Jeep Eagle Aloha BowlAloha Stadium
Honolulu, HI
ABC
  1. 10 UCLA Bruins (9–2)
    Florida Gators (6–5)
Pac-10
SEC
UCLA 20
Florida 16
John Hancock Sun BowlSun Bowl Stadium
El Paso, Texas
CBSWest Virginia Mountaineers (6–5)
#11 Oklahoma State Cowboys (9–2)
Independent
Big 8
Oklahoma State 35
West Virginia 33
style=white-space:nowrap Dec. 29Liberty BowlLiberty Bowl Memorial Stadium
Memphis, Tennessee
RaycomArkansas Razorbacks (9–3)
#15 Georgia Bulldogs (8–3)
SWC
SEC
Georgia 20
Arkansas 17
Dec. 30Freedom BowlAnaheim Stadium
Anaheim, California
MizlouAir Force Falcons (9–3)
Arizona State Sun Devils (6–4–1)
WAC
Pac-10
Arizona State 33
Air Force 28
SeaWorld Holiday BowlJack Murphy Stadium
San Diego
ESPN
  1. 18 Iowa Hawkeyes (9–3)
    Wyoming Cowboys (10–2)
Big Ten
WAC
Iowa 20
Wyoming 19
Dec. 31Mazda Gator BowlGator Bowl Stadium
Jacksonville, Florida
CBS
  1. 9 South Carolina Gamecocks (8–3)
    #7 LSU Tigers (9–1–1)
Independent
SEC
LSU 30
South Carolina 13
Astro-Bluebonnet BowlAstrodome
Houston
Mizlou
  1. 19 Pittsburgh Panthers (8–3)
    Texas Longhorns (6–5)
Independent
SWC
Texas 32
Pittsburgh 27
Jan. 1Rose BowlRose Bowl
Pasadena, California
NBC
  1. 16 USC Trojans (8–3)
    #8 Michigan State Spartans (8–2–1)
Pac-10
Big Ten
Michigan State 20
USC 17
Orange Bowl
National Championship
Orange Bowl
Miami
NBC
  1. 2 Miami Hurricanes (11–0)
    #1 Oklahoma Sooners (11–0)
Independent
Big 8
Miami 20
Oklahoma 14
Florida Citrus BowlFlorida Citrus Bowl
Orlando, Florida
ABC
  1. 14 Clemson Tigers (9–2)
    #20 Penn State Nittany Lions (8–3)
ACC
Independent
Clemson 35
Penn State 10
Sunkist Fiesta BowlSun Devil Stadium
Tempe, Arizona
NBC
  1. 3 Florida State Seminoles (10–1)
    #5 Nebraska Cornhuskers (10–1)
Independent
Big 8
Florida State 31
Nebraska 28
Cotton Bowl ClassicCotton Bowl
Dallas
CBS
  1. 12 Notre Dame Fighting Irish (8–3)
    #13 Texas A&M Aggies (9–2)
Independent
SWC
Texas A&M 35
Notre Dame 10
USF&G Sugar BowlLouisiana Superdome
New Orleans
ABC
  1. 6 Auburn Tigers (9–1–1)
    #4 Syracuse Orangemen (11–0)
SEC
Independent
Auburn 16
Syracuse 16
Jan. 2Hall of Fame BowlTampa Stadium
Tampa, Florida
NBCMichigan Wolverines (7–4)
Alabama Crimson Tide (7–4)
Big Ten
SEC
Michigan 28
Alabama 24
Peach BowlAtlanta–Fulton County Stadium
Atlanta
Mizlou
  1. 17 Tennessee Volunteers (9–2–1)
    Indiana Hoosiers (8–3)
SEC
Big Ten
Tennessee 27
Indiana 22

Notes and References

  1. Web site: AP and Coaches Yearly Final Polls. cfbdatawarehouse.com. 2016-11-19. 2017-03-19. https://web.archive.org/web/20170319042020/http://cfbdatawarehouse.com/data/national_championships/poll_results.php?year=1985. dead.
  2. Web site: Recognized National Championships by Year. cfbdatawarehouse.com. 2016-11-19. https://web.archive.org/web/20161015173918/http://www.cfbdatawarehouse.com/data/national_championships/nchamps_year.php. 2016-10-15. dead.
  3. Web site: 1987 Oklahoma at Miami (FL) Game Recap - SoonerStats - Oklahoma Sooners Football, Basketball, Baseball, and Softball Scores, Records, and Stats. Keith Meador. soonerstats.com. 2016-11-19.