Coastal Carolina emerged as the darling of this college football season, with mullets flowing from their helmets, a swashbuckling ethos and an undefeated season that captured the country’s attention.
Coastal Carolina is in just its fourth season of FBS football. And the school will play in its first-ever bowl game, the Cure Bowl, against Liberty in Orlando on Saturday.
But the conclusion of the Coastal Carolina’s 11-0 season brought with it some of the cruel realities that accompany the top levels of college football. Despite its record and a high-profile upset of BYU, Coastal finished No. 12 in the College Football Playoff rankings and got boxed out of the New Year’s Six Bowl games in favor of more traditional teams.