Liberty Bowl 2011: Key Matchups for Vanderbilt vs. Cincinnati

This year's Liberty Bowl matchup will pit the Vanderbilt Commodores against the Cincinnati Bearcats in Memphis, TN on Dec. 31.

Both teams are coming off successful seasons as the Bearcats went 9-3 and Vanderbilt finished with a 6-6 record. Although Vanderbilt's record may not be as good, the Commodores really took a big step forward this season under new head coach James Franklin.

Vanderbilt quarterback Jordan Rodgers was the rising star of this Vanderbilt team, helping them to become much more competitive throughout the season.

Cincinnati earned a share of the Big East championship, tying Louisville and West Virginia atop the conference standings. The Bearcats were a lot to handle on offense this season, scoring 35 points or more in five games.

The Liberty Bowl will be an excellent bowl matchup between these two teams. Here are the four key matchups you need to be looking for when watching this bowl game. 

Zac Stacy was one of the best playmakers for the Vanderbilt offense throughout the season. Stacy ran for an impressive 13 touchdowns and 1,136 rushing yards. 

He was an explosive player all season in both the running and passing attacks. He has been one of the most reliable targets for Rodgers and this Vanderbilt offense.

It will be interesting to see how the Cincinnati defense looks to contain Stacy in the backfield. He'll be a key player for Vanderbilt if they expect to win the Liberty Bowl.

For the second straight season, running back Isaiah Pead ran for more than 1,000 yards as he led the Cincinnati rushing attack.

Much like Stacy, Pead has been a source of consistency for the Bearcats and one of the senior leaders of this offense. Pead will provide plenty of problems for the Vanderbilt defense and will test them throughout the game.

Pead is an excellent player that has a future in the NFL. He'll want to go out in style, and the Vanderbilt defense will have to make sure that won't happen.

Perhaps the highlight of this game will be the matchup between the two starting quarterbacks. Jordan Rodgers has shined this season for Vanderbilt while Munchie Legaux has taken over the starting job after Zach Collaros went down with an ankle injury.

Rodgers seemingly came out of nowhere, taking the starting quarterback job from Larry Smith after the first few weeks of the season. Although the Commodores still lost six games, Rodgers kept Vanderbilt competitive in several games this season, including games against Florida, Arkansas and Tennessee. He has developed into one of the best quarterbacks in the SEC and will shine in this Liberty Bowl matchup.

Legaux took over against West Virginia after Collaros broke his ankle and has done an admirable job so far. In the last two games, Legaux has thrown for five touchdowns and looks to be gaining some confidence heading into this bowl game.

I expect Rodgers to win this battle, but look out for Legaux to make it an interesting matchup.

Another key matchup in this bowl game will be between the two head coaches: James Franklin and Butch Jones. 

Franklin, who is a rising star in the coaching ranks, has impressed the masses this season through his no-nonsense and energetic coaching style. It seemed as if Franklin was able to instill some energy into this Vanderbilt team as they were much more competitive throughout the SEC schedule. Franklin has groomed Jordan Rodgers into an impressive player, along with the rest of the Vanderbilt squad.

Jones took over after Brian Kelly departed from Cincinnati in order to take the Notre Dame head coaching job. Since then, the Bearcats had a tough year in 2010, going 4-7, but have improved greatly in 2011. Jones, who has had a successful history as head coach in the past at Central Michigan, seems to have his team headed in the right direction as well.

This bowl game will be a clash of two young, high-energy head coaches, which should provide some fireworks throughout the 2011 Liberty Bowl.