The North Carolina football team will get one more shot at winning a school-record 12 games this season.
Less than 24 hours removed from falling to top-ranked Clemson in the ACC Championship, the Tar Heels accepted an invitation to play in the Russell Athletic Bowl against Baylor at 5:30 p.m. on Dec. 29. The game will be held at Citrus Bowl Stadium in Orlando.
“I can tell you that the North Carolina Tar Heel football team is extremely excited to play in the Russell Athletic Bowl in Orlando,” Coach Larry Fedora said during a teleconference call on Sunday. “And then to be able to play a great opponent like Baylor University and a team that Art Briles is coaching makes it even that more special.”
Earlier in the day, UNC came in at No. 10 in the final College Football Playoff rankings, putting the Tar Heels in contention for a berth in a New Year's Six bowl game.
But because Big-12 champion Oklahoma and SEC champion Alabama were included in the College Football Playoff, No. 12 Ole Miss and No. 16 Oklahoma State earned a trip to the Sugar Bowl because of the conferences' tie-ins with the game.
No. 18 Houston secured a bid to the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl as the highest-ranked Group of 5 team. The teams ranked highest by playoff selection committee were then assigned to the remaining New Year's Six bowl games.
"Our team is not going to be disappointed to be in the Russell Athletic Bowl in Orlando, because it's a great place to be and against a great opponent," Fedora said. "So there will be no worry that we didn't get into a New Year's Six game. Our guys are excited to play. We're anxious to get the opportunity to play one more game with this team."
UNC's game against the Bears (9-3, 6-3 Big-12) will mark the first meeting between the two teams. But Fedora's familiar with the program.
His first college coaching job came at Baylor in 1991, and he stayed with the team through the 1996 season, serving as the tight ends, wide receivers and running backs coach.
