Bowl season daily: Nevada celebrates with french fries and much more

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College football bowl season is here.

Despite several bowl games being canceled and many teams opting not to participate due to the COVID-19 pandemic, we bring you the best of the rest, from the Myrtle Beach Bowl through the College Football Playoff National Championship presented by AT&T on Jan. 11 (ESPN/ESPN App).

This is your go-to guide for analysis, predictions, big plays and the most memorable moments. And make sure to read these stories to ensure you sound smart on your family’s holiday Zoom calls.

Check back every day as this gets updated with each of the 28 bowl games and the national championship.

Jump to a section: Must-see moments | Bowl Season MVP | Bowl game analysis | Upcoming schedule

Must-See Moments

Who can resist a fry bath?

To celebrate winning the Famous Idaho Potato Bowl, Nevada players dumped french fries on head coach Jay Norvell before giving him a more traditional Gatorade bath.

FRY BATH TIME ? pic.twitter.com/lsaS3MBCOB

— ESPN College Football (@ESPNCFB) December 23, 2020

Beach brawl and … a golden plunger?

As most of them are, it was an interesting day in Myrtle Beach on Monday. Our beloved Marty & McGee were working the sidelines and enjoying the local flavor, while things got a little chippy on the field. In the end, North Texas was no match for Appalachian State and its, uh, unique sideline prop. Learn more about the plunger here.

North Texas quarterback Jason Bean gets hit late by an Appalachian State defender, and a scuffle breaks out between the teams.

The Appalachian State sideline waves their golden plunger after Camerun Peoples breaks free for a 62-yard touchdown.

Bowl Season MVP so far

Appalachian State RB Camerun Peoples

More like Can Run By People, right? We have a pretty simple rule here: If you set a record for most rushing yards in a bowl game in the first bowl game of the season, you’re in the clubhouse as Bowl Season MVP. Peoples was unstoppable against North Texas, rushing for 317 yards and five touchdowns on 22 carries as the Mountaineers walloped the Mean Green, 56-28 in the Myrtle Beach Bowl.

Bowl game analysis

Nevada 38, Tulane 27

After losing in the Famous Idaho Potato Bowl last year to Ohio, Nevada bounced back this season with an impressive season that saw the Wolf Pack finish with the Mountain West’s second-best winning percentage. Despite having a better record than Boise State, Nevada didn’t advance to the Mountain West championship as a result of the conference’s tiebreaker rules, setting up a return trip to the Potato Bowl. This time, Nevada got the job done, leading start-to-finish in a 38-27 win.

Nevada built a 26-7 lead by early in the second quarter and weathered a brief Tulane comeback as quarterback Carson Strong finished 22 of 28 for 271 yards with five touchdown passes. Both Devonte Lee (105 yards) and Toa Taua (102) rushed for over 100 yards.

For Tulane, which won four of its final five games during the regular season, the bowl appearance was its third straight — the first time it has ever done that in school history — but the first that ended with a loss. — Kyle Bonagura

Appalachian State 56, North Texas 28

Before the season, Appalachian State had its sights set on a New Year’s Six bowl. Fresh off a 13-1 campaign that culminated with a Sun Belt title, the Mountaineers certainly looked the part. But in the year of COVID-19, few things went as expected, and App State lost its second game of the year, against Marshall, then spent the bulk of October dealing with virus concerns.

But if the 2020 season never quite met expectations, the finale at least offered a reminder of how talented this team really was. The Mountaineers thrashed North Texas 56-28 in the Myrtle Beach Bowl, behind 502 yards on the ground, led by Camerun Peoples’ 319 yards and five touchdowns.

That UNT struggled wasn’t a shock. A handful of starters opted out of the bowl game. But the extent to which Peoples and the Mountaineers’ ground game ran roughshod over the UNT defense was still a sight to behold. App State now can turn its attention to 2021, with Shawn Clark comfortable in the head coach’s office, and Peoples set for a return. — David M. Hale