The Birmingham Bowl has never been one of the premier bowl games, but this year’s matchup between Auburn and Memphis is fascinating.
On one side, you have an Auburn team that was expected to compete for the College Football Playoff. On the other, there’s a Memphis program that won just five games from 2009 to 2011 before Justin Fuente -- who recently left for Virginia Tech -- took over as head coach.
Here are three reasons to watch Wednesday’s Birmingham Bowl.
1. The top NFL quarterback prospect is playing.
A big reason behind the resurrection of this Memphis program is quarterback Paxton Lynch.