2009 Orange Bowl
The 2009 FedEx Orange Bowl was the 75th edition of the annual American college football bowl game known as the Orange Bowl. It pitted the 2008 Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) champion Virginia Tech Hokies against the Big East Conference champion Cincinnati Bearcats on January 1, 2009, at Dolphin Stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida. Virginia Tech defeated Cincinnati, 20–7. The game was the second contest in the 2008–2009 Bowl Championship Series (BCS) of the 2008 NCAA Division I FBS football season and was the concluding game of the season for both teams. The game was televised in the United States on FOX, and an estimated 9.3 million viewers watched the broadcast live.
2006–07 NCAA football bowl games
The third BCS game, the FedEx Orange Bowl, was played at Dolphin Stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida on January 2, 2007. The Big East Conference champions, the University of Louisville Cardinals, beat the Wake Forest University Demon Deacons, winners of the ACC, 24–13. Louisville entered the game as heavy favorites, but their offense sputtered early and the game was tied 10–10 at halftime. Wake Forest took a 13–10 lead in the fourth quarter but Louisville scored two unanswered touchdowns on drives of 81 and 72 yards to take an 11-point lead, after which Wake Forest was unable to score. Brian Brohm completed 24 of 34 passes and was named the game's MVP. Brohm's 311 passing yards were the third most in Orange Bowl history, behind only Tom Brady (in 2000 for Michigan against Alabama) and Matt Leinart (in 2005 for Southern California against Oklahoma). In addition, the Cardinals' win clinched the ESPN-sponsored Bowl Challenge Cup as the much-maligned Big East, who were in their second year of their new football alignment, had a 4–0 record with one game remaining passing the Mountain West and Western Athletic Conferences, who had 3–1 records and completed their games.