Indiana Football: Ranking the Hoosiers possible bowl destinations
By Adam Childs
1. Gator Bowl – Jacksonville, FL
January 2 vs SEC opponent
When you think bowl season probably the first you thing you think of is New Years Day and Florida. Yes, bowl games are everywhere now and start in the middle of December and work through a week into January, but there is something about bowl games to kick off the new year.
The Gator Bowl might not be the marquee bowl in Florida or even the second-best bowl, but there is still something special about playing in the Sunshine State. And I know the schedule has it on January 2 this year, but again it is still the beginning of the New Year.
The best part about playing in Florida for Indiana for a bowl game is that they have never done it before. If they are selected for the Gator Bowl it would bet the first time in the program’s history to play a bowl game in Florida. If you don’t think that means something to the Hoosiers and their fans you are crazy. They might say it publicly but they definitely want to play in Florida.
What makes it even better would be that the Hoosiers would be playing an SEC opponent and while it would be one in the middle of the pack, it still means a lot to beat a team from that conference.
To top it off, even more, they could play Tennessee or Kentucky, two teams that could be a big draw because of how close the schools are together. Kentucky would be great as they have battled before but mostly in basketball. Tennessee would also be fun and the fans would love it.
Next. Way to early look at 2020 schedule. dark
Lastly, Indiana currently has 25 players on the roster that are from Florida and with Tom Allen’s ties to the state, it would be a tremendous recruiting tool for the future as well.
There is not much to say negatively about the Hoosiers heading to the Gator Bowl. They get to play in Florida, against and SEC opponent and play on January 2. What’s not to like about that?
Again Indiana is happy to be going to a bowl and will accept wherever they get invited to play but playing in the Gator Bowl is by far the best opportunity for the Hoosiers. Now we just have to wait until Sunday to find out.