Ranking the 10 best non-College Football Playoff bowl games

10. Birmingham Bowl: Georgia Tech vs. Vanderbilt

A matchup between Georgia Tech and Vanderbilt might not look appealing on paper, but the Birmingham Bowl on Dec. 27 could be one of the best contests of the postseason. This is also the reunion of an old rivalry as the two programs played annually in the early 1900s and have faced off 38 times overall, with the Yellow Jackets holding a 20-15-3 advantage.

The first matchup in the series since 2016 pits Georgia Tech as slight favorites coming off a strong regular season where it beat Duke and Miami, and probably should’ve defeated Georgia in an eight-overtime loss. Outside of wideout Eric Singleton Jr., Georgia Tech should have most of its offensive weapons available, including Haynes King, Jamal Haynes and Malik Rutherford. Vanderbilt should also have many of its key players led by dual-threat quarterback Diego Pavia. Pavia helped the Commodores beat Alabama and almost led them to multiple wins against ranked SEC foes. He will create an interesting matchup for a middling Yellow Jackets defense.