Monday Tailgate: Ranking the BCS bowls by quarterback matchup
Tajh Boyd looks to cap off his illustrious Clemson career in the Orange Bowl. / Joshua S. Kelly, USA TODAY Sports 
With the BCS bowl matchups all set, there's plenty of star power when it comes to the 10 teams' quarterbacks. We take a look at the quarterback matchups in all five games and rank them by which we're most looking forward to.
1. Orange Bowl - Braxton Miller (Ohio State) vs. Tajh Boyd (Clemson): This is one of the best quarterback matchups you could possibly ask for in college football this season. Two Heisman frontrunners early in the season, Miller and Boyd are each out to finish the season on a high note after losing their final game. Boyd wraps up his illustrious career as the ACC's all-time leader in touchdown passes and looks to lead the Tigers to a BCS bowl win two years after their disastrous 70-33 loss to West Virginia. Miller had one of the worst games of his career in the Big Ten title game, and will try to bounce back against a Clemson defense that has been surprisingly strong this season.
2. BCS National Championship - Jameis Winston (Florida State) vs. Nick Marshall (Auburn): Florida State's presumed Heisman winner's past two games have been arguably his worst two of the season, but considering he's been nearly perfect, that's not really saying much. Winston was thrown straight into the fire from the first game of the season and has been electrifying each and every game. Marshall hasn't had to do much with arm, but has been solid when called upon, completing 63.3% of his passes in the last four games with five touchdown passes and run for 503 yards. It wouldn't surprise anybody if he ended up receiving a fair amount of Heisman votes. Make no mistake about it, these are two of the most exciting players in the country.
3. Fiesta Bowl - Bryce Petty (Baylor) vs. Blake Bortles (UCF): Petty has put up eye-popping numbers this season (30 touchdowns, 2 interceptions) and has received serious Heisman consideration. Bortles on the other hand, has quietly been one of the nation's most efficient passers, ninth in the country with a 68.1% completion rate. While he mulls whether or not to enter the NFL draft, this is an opportunity to shine on the national stage.
4. Rose Bowl - Connor Cook (Michigan State) vs. Kevin Hogan (Stanford): We're avoiding the term 'game manager,' but these two signal-callers play for teams that win with dominant defenses and running games. While they've both had good seasons, this has the potential to be one of the most vanilla quarterback duels in recent memory.
5. Sugar Bowl - AJ McCarron (Alabama) vs. Blake Bell/Trevor Knight/Kendal Thompson (Oklahoma): Any game featuring McCarron should be higher, but Oklahoma's uncertainty under center makes this the least appealing matchup. Trevor Knight suffered an injury against Oklahoma State, Kendal Thompson came in and then was replaced by Blake Bell. The extent of Knight's injury isn't yet known, but none of the three have been even remotely consistent in 2013.
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â?? In the BCS' final hurrah, there's little controversy surrounding the matchup in the national championship game. 'We all complained about the BCS and everything that goes on, but it's funny how many times they get it right, and how the history keeps repeating itself,' Florida State coach Jimbo Fisher said.
â?? Can Auburn's run game be stopped? Gus Malzahn doesn't think so: 'Right now, we can run the football on anybody.' Dan Wolken takes a look at the Tigers' dominant ground game.
â?? Urban Meyer is confident that 'heartbroken' Ohio State will bounce back in the Orange Bowl. It's oddly reminiscent of Meyer's 2009 Florida team that was undefeated until the SEC Championship Game, then destroyed Cincinnati in the Sugar Bowl.
â?? The season's final Playoff Projection produced an interesting result. No. 1 Florida State would take on No. 4 Michigan State and we'd get a rematch of the Iron Bowl between No. 2 Auburn and No. 3 Alabama.
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