Cam Ward Is Ready to Risk It All With His Big Announcement for Pop Tarts Bowl

You know there was this long-time gag on X that Miami won’t cut it to the playoff and will end up playing in something called the ‘Pop Tarts’ Bowl? Yeah, that came true. Miami Hurricanes had one single job: Don’t choke your last game against an 8-3 Syracuse team, and boom, you are in the playoff picture. But you know what? Even fate didn’t want the Hurricanes in the bracket. Cam Ward had a massive game against the Orange, but it only lasted for a single quarter. Syracuse managed to blast off and caught on to that 21-point deficit and sealed the Hurricanes’ future with that one touchdown from LeQuint Allen.

But hey, no playoff is fine. At least they are getting a consolation prize with the Pop-Tarts Bowl, right? But most importantly, no matter what you say about Ward choking his important games against Georgia Tech or the Orange, one thing is for sure: this guy has some grit. Back on SportsCenter, Ward made it clear that he is coming back for the Canes for the Bowl game. “Yeah, still playing a bowl game,” Ward pointed out. Now, why is this so important? See, most of the time, after the season is over, senior athletes who are going to hit the NFL draft skip the Bowl Game.

The reasoning is simple and understandable. Any injuries sustained would cause massive problems with their draft stock. No one wants to risk that, right? Even last season, we saw massive names drop off. LSU Jayden Daniels called it off, and this was the Heisman winner of that year. Even Caleb Williams called off the Holiday Bowl., an important decision because Williams was the top overall pick in the 2024 NFL draft. If Ward doesn’t choke against Iowa State during the Bowl showdown, we might see his draft stock even further.

But what even is the ‘Pop-Tarts’ Bowl? This was started back in 1990 with the name ‘Blockbuster Bowl’. Fancy. However, it was in 2023 that the Bowl changed its name to Pop-Tarts. This is the 4th time Miami is appearing in this Bowl game. You might’ve even watched a few of the games from this specific Bowl when it was known as the Cheez-It Bowl.

Florida State went up against Oklahoma in the Cheez-It Bowl. It was in 2023 that the name was changed to Pop-Tarts. Kansas State and NC State ended up becoming the first teams to play under the new name, and now Miami and Iowa will be next. But hey, you know what? Ward ain’t the only Heisman finalist who has cleared his stance on his Bowl game appearance.

A final CFB game for Travis Hunter and Shedeur Sanders

Yeah, Deion Sanders pretty much managed to wipe the smirk off everyone’s face when the Buffs ended the year with a 9-3 run. Not only did they manage to snag a Bowl game entry, but they also ended the year as a ranked team on the CFP Top 25 list.

But now, let’s talk about the Alamo Bowl. It was easy for fans to assume that Shedeur Sanders and Heisman finalist Travis Hunter would be skipping out. They are the 2 most important players this season. Shedeur is easily the QB1 pick, and Hunter will be going for the No.1 WR pick.

Then again, these guys ain’t gonna leave their boys alone. Both Hunter and Shedeur have made it clear that they will be coming back for the Alamo Bowl. Doesn’t matter what ends up going down on that turf against BYU. All we know is that there are going to be a lot of interceptions and massive touchdowns.