SEC coaches and fans have been saying all season they have the strongest conference in the country.

Actually, they say that every year. But this season, they have more supporting evidence than usual.

SEC champion Florida will play Ohio State for the national title Jan. 8. Two other SEC teams, LSU and Auburn, are ranked in the top 10, and Arkansas and Tennessee are in the top 20.

But having the best conference doesn't assure you of a dominant post-season. In the pre-New Year's day bowls, three of the four SEC teams are underdogs.

Here's my take on the rest of the pre-New Year's Day bowls:

Independence Bowl

Oklahoma State 30, Alabama 27: The Cowboys and Tide have something in common besides Christmas in Shreveport.

When Oklahoma State needed a coach, it hired an alum and former quarterback named Mike (Gundy). When Alabama needed a coach, it also hired an alum and former quarterback named Mike (Shula).

The difference: Oklahoma State still has its Mike. It also has too much offense for the Tide.

Holiday Bowl

Texas A&M 31, Cal 30: You thought the Golden Bears looked dreadful in the season opener at Neyland Stadium? They didn't look much better down the stretch, losing to Arizona and Southern Cal before struggling to beat 1-11 Stanford.

As for the Cal defense that was so highly touted in preseason, it finished the regular season ranked 90th nationally.

Listen closely and you still can hear the Neyland Stadium crowd: "Over-rated, over-rated."

Texas Bowl

Rutgers 31, Kansas State 20: New Mexico is playing in the New Mexico Bowl. Hawaii is playing in the Hawaii bowl.

So why isn't Texas playing in the Texas Bowl?

Because it lost to Kansas State?

Music City Bowl

Clemson 37, Kentucky 23: A classic match-up of underachievers vs. overachievers.

Clemson ranked 13th nationally in total offense and 12th in total defense. Yet it managed to lose four games.

Kentucky ranked 118th nationally in defense. Yet it won seven games and almost upset nationally ranked Tennessee in its last game.

Sun Bowl

Oregon State 37, Missouri 24: You have two teams headed in the opposite direction.

After starting 6-0, Missouri lost four of its last six games. Oregon State started 2-3 before winning seven of its last eight. Five of the seven victories came against winning teams.

Liberty Bowl

South Carolina 34, Houston 23: Neither team should be lacking motivation.

The Conference USA-champion Cougars would love to knock off an SEC team. South Carolina would love to knock off anybody after its last bowl.

The Gamecocks blew a 21-point lead in losing to Missouri last December.

Insight Bowl

Texas Tech 41, Minnesota 30: Here's some insight for you: Texas Tech ranks seventh nationally in total offense; Minnesota ranks 112th in defense.

More insight: Minnesota is 0-6 against Division I-A teams with winning records. It gave up an average of 36 points in the six losses.

Champ Sports Bowl

Maryland 23, Purdue 20: Few teams in the country are better than the Terrapins at winning close games.

After losing by four points to Georgia Tech, Maryland won its next five games by a total of 13 points. It won its last three by a total of five points.

Meineke Bowl

Boston College 29, Navy 20: Coach Tom O'Brien left BC for N.C. State. Imagine what that could do to a team's self-esteem.

It should feel better about itself after facing Navy's defense, which gave up 72 points in its last two losses.

Don't be misled by Navy's four-game winning streak. The four opponents had a combined record of 5-43.

Alamo Bowl

Texas 30, Iowa 17: The Longhorns had a disappointing regular-season finish, losing back-to-back games to Kansas State and Texas A&M by a total of eight points. But Iowa's finish was even worse.

The Hawkeyes, who were a top-10 pick in preseason, lost their last three games to Northwestern, Wisconsin and Minnesota to finish 6-6.

Chick-fil-A Bowl

Virginia Tech 20, Georgia 10: The Georgia Dome crowd will be pro-Bulldog, but the Virginia Tech defense will be decidedly anti-Bulldog.

The Hokies lead the country in defense, and they're improving by the game. In their last six games, they gave up only 29 points.

MPC Computers Bowl

Miami 23, Nevada 13: What's wrong with this picture: You live in Miami, but you're going to Idaho for a bowl game in December?

That's not even a good deal if you're from Miami, Ohio.