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DALLAS (FWAA) – With their 30-11 win over Rutgers, the
Cincinnati Bearcats (6-5) are the
Tostitos Fiesta Bowl National Team of the Week, as selected
by the pollsters of the FWAA's Grantland Rice Super 16 Poll for
games of the weekend of Nov. 18.
 Senior
quarterback Nick Davila completed 11-of-15 passes for 277 yards
and a touchdown in his first career start and DeAngelo Smith
returned an interception 84 yards for another score to spark the
upset.
Rutgers, last week's national team of the week, lost for the
first time this season after a 9-0 start. While the win for
Cincinnati makes the Bearcats bowl eligible, it also drops
Rutgers into a virtual first-place tie in the Big East with
Louisville and West Virginia. Rutgers, ranked No. 7 in the AP
poll, is also the highest-ranked team to be beaten by
Cincinnati.
"It was a tremendous atmosphere," said Cincinnati head coach
Mark Dantonio after the game. "Our students came out. Bearcat
people came out. It was a great environment."
Other Tostitos Fiesta Bowl National Team of the Week nominees
for the weekend of Nov. 18 included:
• Ohio State (12-0): The Buckeyes completed an
unbeaten regular season, won the Big Ten title and virtually
assured themselves of a berth in the BCS Championship game
with a 42-39 win over Michigan.
The FWAA has named a national team of the week since the 2002
season. This is the second season that the award has been sponsored
by the Tostitos Fiesta Bowl.
The 16 pollsters of the Grantland Rice Super 16 Poll decide the
weekly honor. Each Monday during the 2006 college football season,
the FWAA will name the Tostitos Bowl National Team of the Week through
Nov. 27.
The Grantland Rice Super 16 Poll, released each
Tuesday, has resumed this season. The top-ranked team in the final poll will be
awarded the Grantland Rice Trophy as the FWAA's national champion.
The FWAA has awarded the trophy each season since 1954. Texas is
the defending FWAA national champion and Ohio State is ranked No.
1 in the most current 2006 poll.
Since 1971, the Tostitos Fiesta Bowl has hosted five games
that have decided the college football national championship, including
two Bowl Championship Series title games. The 2007 game will be
played on Jan. 1. The Tostitos Fiesta Bowl, along with the new Tostitos
BCS Championship Game, moves to the new Cardinals Stadium in Glendale,
Ariz., and will be played on Jan. 8.
For more information on the Tostitos Fiesta Bowl National Team
of the Week, go to
www.footballwriters.com
or www.fiestabowl.org.
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