The 2011-12 bowl season kicks off on Saturday with a tripleheader of action, so the National Football Post continues its extended bowl coverage.

On Wednesday we took a look at the five best non-BCS bowl games, so today let's take a peek at five of the most underrated bowl games on the schedule.

Holiday (Dec. 28): Cal (7-5) vs. Texas (7-5). With two Pac-12 teams in the BCS, Cal was elevated to the Holiday and will take on a Texas team coming off of a loss to Baylor. This will be the Longhorns’ first trip to San Diego since 2007 and the fifth trip overall under Mack Brown. The most memorable of their Holiday Bowl appearances was in 2001 against Washington when current co-offensive coordinator Major Applewhite quarterbacked the team to a wild 47-43 win over the Huskies. Longhorns quarterback Case McCoy struggled with turnovers his last outing, but it appears that Texas has found its quarterback of the future. Golden Bears coordinator Clancy Pendergast will try to shut down the Longhorns’ running game, which should be more productive after Malcolm Brown and Joe Bergeron were able to heal their injuries, and force McCoy to make plays. Meanwhile, since a 31-14 loss to UCLA in late October, Bears quarterback Zach Maynard has played much better as the team has relied on its running game and defense. The improvements showed in a close 31-28 loss at Stanford to close the regular season.

Player to Watch: Zach Maynard – The Buffalo transfer battled inconsistency early in his first season as Cal’s starting quarterback. But when helped by a sound defense and a strong rushing attack, he was able to find confidence in his play, completing 68 percent of his passes and tossing just one interception in his final three games. Longhorns defensive coordinator Manny Diaz, however, will give Maynard trouble with some unique looks.

ICONWe'll get one last chance to see Case Keenum go up against a stout Penn State defense.

TicketCity (Jan. 2): Houston (12-1) vs. Penn State (9-3). The Cougars missed out on a BCS bid with their loss in the Conference USA championship game, but we won’t miss one final opportunity to see Case Keenum go up against one of the finest defenses in the nation. Kevin Sumlin won't be leading Houston in this one, so Tony Levine has been named interim head coach. Will the Cougars be ready to play after losing out on a BCS bid and seeing their head coach take another job? Or will Levine keep the team focused? Meanwhile, the Cougars won't have to worry about Penn State lighting up the scoreboard, as subpar quarterback play arguably prevented the Nittany Lions from claiming a spot in the Big Ten title game. What Tom Bradley's squad relies on is defense, a unit led by Big Ten defensive player of the year Devon Still. PSU finished fifth nationally in scoring defense and 10th in yards allowed and will get challenged by a Houston offense that averaged an FBS-best 50.8 points per game this season.

Player to Watch: Anthony Fera – Because of Penn State's anemic offense, a punter is its player to watch. All kidding aside, Fera's strong leg could be crucial if the Nittany Lions struggle to move the football. Pinning the Cougars back as much as possible will be necessary because of their explosive offense.

MAACO Las Vegas (Dec. 22): Boise State (11-1) vs. Arizona State (6-6). The Sun Devils will be looking to send Dennis Erickson out with a win before beginning the Todd Graham era, but how seriously will they take Boise State? We've seen in the past what can happen to teams that doubt the Broncos. Kellen Moore will be playing his final game as a Bronco, which could have occurred in the BCS national championship game if a game-winning kick at home against TCU went through the uprights. One thing about Boise: Chris Petersen will have his team ready no matter the circumstances.

Player to Watch: Tyler Shoemaker – Many pointed to the losses of receivers Titus Young and Austin Pettis as a reason for concern entering this season for Boise State. But Shoemaker stepped up and helped fill the void in a big way, catching 15 touchdowns and racking up 959 receiving yards to help Boise maintain a strong vertical attack.

Champs Sports (Dec. 29): Florida State (8-4) vs. Notre Dame (8-4). These storied programs may not have lived up to expectations this fall, but it’s still Florida State-Notre Dame in a bowl game. The Seminoles were ranked No. 6 in the AP preseason poll, but their struggles offensively were too much to overcome. FSU is No. 99 in the country in rushing offense and No. 111 in sacks allowed. They will be tested by a Notre Dame front seven that has made big strides under coordinator Bob Diaco, but they have suffered some attrition on the defensive line. Meanwhile, Irish fans could see plenty of Andrew Hendrix in this one as Brian Kelly may begin his 2012 quarterback duel a little early.

Player to Watch: Tyler Eifert – Look for FSU to negate Irish receiver Michael Floyd as much as possible. Thus, Rees and Hendrix will need to find other options in the passing game. Eifert is their best option, as the tight end has caught 57 passes for 713 yards and five touchdowns this season.

Gator (Jan. 2): Florida (6-6) vs. Ohio State (6-6). The fact that these teams are a combined 12-12 and have seen their share of struggles on offense has let this game slip under the radar, but it will be fun to see the Gators and the Buckeyes square off in the Urban Meyer Bowl. And it will be fun to see Buckeyes quarterback Braxton Miller, who threw 11 touchdowns against 4 interceptions and rushed for at least 80 yards six times in his true freshman campaign.

Player to Watch: John Simon – The Buckeyes defensive end will be matched up with Gators left tackle Chaz Green, a redshirt freshman who struggled with an ankle injury late in the season. The 6-2, 270-pound Simon leads the Buckeyes with 7 sacks and 15 tackles for loss. As a team, Ohio State has recorded 23 sacks while Florida has given up 23.

Runner-up

GoDaddy.com (Jan. 8): Northern Illinois (10-3) vs. Arkansas State (10-2). The Red Wolves had a fantastic season under Hugh Freeze, who no longer is with the program after accepting the head job at Ole Miss. Interim head coach David Gunn will lead the team before Gus Malzahn takes over. Meanwhile, Dave Doeren won 10 games in his first season with the Huskies after coming over from Wisconsin, where he served as defensive coordinator. Chandler Harnish is NIU’s do-everything quarterback, and he’s a good one.

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