Independence Bowl 2012: Ailing Ohio can end season on positive note

The Ohio Bobcats will face Louisiana-Monroe in the 2012 AdvoCare V100 Independence Bowl, and they'd like to reverse their recent downward trend. The Bobcats lost the final three games of the regular season and they are so riddled with injuries that SB Nation's MAC blog, Hustle Belt, wondered if they might skip out on a bowl game despite their 8-4 record.

Ohio began the season 7-0 and started to generate some BCS buzz, but the injuries and the schedule eventually caught up to the Bobcats. Twelve of Ohio's 22 projected starters back in August were not able to play in all 12 regular season games. Fourteen players have had season-ending surgery, including numerous starters or key reserves.

Louisiana-Monroe, which is also 8-4, made headlines in September with an overtime win at Arkansas, and it also came close to beating both Auburn and Baylor.

The Independence Bowl is set for 2 p.m. ET on Dec. 28. ESPN will televise the contest.