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Big Ten Bowl Games 2011: Schedule, Dates, Times And More

Ten Big Ten schools received bowl bids in 2011, including Illinois and Northwestern.

By Steven Muma
Getty Images

Ten of 12 Big Ten teams received bowl bids this year, setting a new record for the conference; two teams will play in BCS bowls, headlined by Wisconsin's matchup with Oregon in the Rose Bowl. That game features a couple of teams with high-powered offenses that came into the season with national title aspirations.

Michigan will play Virginia Tech in a rather surprising Sugar Bowl matchup. The Hokies are coming off a decisive loss in the ACC championship game.

There could be a lot offense in the Meineke Car Care Bowl of Texas, which features Northwestern and Texas A&M. Illinois drew UCLA in the Kraft Fight Hunger Bowl, a matchup of two teams in the market for new head coaches.

Purdue kicks off the Big Ten slate in the Little Caesars Bowl against Western Michigan on Dec. 27. A few days later, Iowa gets the tough task of facing Oklahoma in the Insight Bowl, and from there the schedule gets crowded. Two Big Ten teams play on New Year's Eve and five play on Jan. 2; four of those Jan. 2 games will all be in progress at the same time.

The full 2011 Big Ten bowl schedule, with kickoff times and television information:

Little Caesars Bowl (Dec. 27, 3:30 p.m. CT, ESPN): Purdue Boilermakers (6-6) vs. Western Michigan Broncos

Insight Bowl (Dec. 30, 9:00 p.m. CT, ESPN): Iowa Hawkeyes (7-5) vs. Oklahoma Sooners (9-3)

Meineke Car Care Bowl of Texas (Dec. 31, 11:00 a.m. CT, ESPN): Northwestern Wildcats (6-6) vs. Texas A&M Aggies (6-6)

Kraft Fight Hunger Bowl (Dec. 31, 2:30 p.m. CT, ESPN): Illinois Fighting Illini (6-6)  vs. UCLA Bruins (6-7)

TicketCity Bowl (Jan. 2, 11:00 a.m. CT, ESPNU): Penn St. Nittany Lions (9-3) vs. Houston Cougars (12-1)

Outback Bowl (Jan. 2, 12:00 p.m. CT, ABC): Michigan St. Spartans (10-3) vs. Georgia Bulldogs (10-3)

Capital One Bowl (Jan. 2, 12:00 p.m. CT, ESPN): Nebraska Cornhuskers (9-3) vs. South Carolina Gamecocks (10-2)

TaxSlayer.com Gator Bowl (Jan. 2, 12:00 p.m. CT, ESPN2): Ohio St. Buckeyes (6-6) vs. Florida Gators (6-6)

Rose Bowl (Jan. 2, 4:00 p.m. CT, ESPN): Wisconsin Badgers (11-2) vs. Oregon Ducks (11-2)

Sugar Bowl (Jan. 3, 7:30 p.m. CT, ESPN): Michigan Wolverines (10-2) vs. Virginia Tech Hokies (11-2)

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