No. 18 Liberty takes undefeated season into Fiesta Bowl against No. 8 Oregon
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. (AP) — Liberty’s undefeated season will take the Flames to the Fiesta Bowl to face Oregon.
Liberty (13-0) will play in a bowl game for the fifth straight season, but first under coach Jamey Chadwell. The Flames moved up to No. 18 in the AP Top 25 on Sunday and were No. 23 in the College Football Playoff rankings following their first conference title at the FBS level.
Liberty was the highest-ranked Group of Five conference champion after beating New Mexico State 49-35 in the Conference USA championship game.
The Flames are the first CUSA champion to clinch a New Year’s Six bid in the College Football Playoff era after earning a spot in the Jan. 1 Fiesta Bowl at State Farm Stadium in Glendale.
Liberty faces a huge test against the Ducks after playing one of the nation’s weakest schedules.
No. 8 Oregon (11-2) had a stellar season as quarterback Bo Nix put himself in the Heisman Trophy conversation, but couldn’t get past Washington.
The second-ranked Huskies beat the Ducks during the regular season and ended their College Football Playoff hopes with a 34-31 win in the Pac-12 championship on Friday night in Las Vegas.
Oregon was No. 8 in the final CFP rankings.
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AP college football: https://apnews.com/hub/college-football and https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-football-poll