2011 Fiesta Bowl

The 2011 Tostitos Fiesta Bowl was a postseason college football bowl game between the Connecticut Huskies (UConn), co-champions of the Big East Conference, and the Oklahoma Sooners, champions of the Big 12 Conference, at University of Phoenix Stadium in Glendale, Arizona, on January 1, 2011. The game, part of the 2011 Bowl Championship Series and the 40th contest in Fiesta Bowl history, was the final game of the 2010 NCAA Division I-Football Bowl Subdivision (Division I-FBS) football season^{[Note 1]} for both teams. It ended in a 48–20 victory for Oklahoma.

Oklahoma was selected to participate in the Fiesta Bowl after an 11–2 regular season that culminated with a 23–20 win over Nebraska in the 2010 Big 12 Championship Game. Facing the Sooners were the Connecticut Huskies with a regular season record of 8–4; they earned the Big East's BCS berth by defeating fellow co-champions Pittsburgh and West Virginia in consecutive regular season games. Pregame coverage focused on Oklahoma's struggles in past BCS games dating back to the 2004 Sugar Bowl as well as Connecticut's difficulties in selling their designated ticket allotment from the Fiesta Bowl.

The Sooners scored on their first two possessions and held a 14–0 lead at the end of the first quarter. The Huskies responded with an interception return for a touchdown early in the second quarter; after an exchange of field goals the halftime score was 20–10 in favor of Oklahoma. In the second half, Oklahoma pulled away with multiple passing and interception-return touchdowns. While Connecticut responded with a 95-yard kickoff return for a touchdown, they failed to score a touchdown on offense at any point during the game.

Oklahoma quarterback Landry Jones was named the game's most valuable player on offense; defensive back Jamell Fleming was named the defensive most valuable player. Jones had a school bowl record of 429 passing yards; he completed three passes for touchdowns. Within 24 hours following the game Connecticut suffered two notable defections: running back Jordan Todman announced that he was leaving school early to enter the 2011 NFL draft and head coach Randy Edsall was hired as the new head coach at the University of Maryland. In the wake of the 2011 contest, the Fiesta Bowl released an internal report stating that several members illegally gave campaign contributions and were reimbursed for it.

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