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MINNEAPOLIS -- Last year, Minnesota took a losing record and winter clothes to the postseason.The Gophers will bring a better vibe to their bowl game this time, making sure to pack the flip-flops, too.After qualifying for the 2015 Quick Lane Bowl in Detroit at 5-7 on the strength of their graduation rate because there initially werent enough eligible NCAA FBS teams to fill all the slots, the Gophers (8-4) were picked for the Holiday Bowl in San Diego. The game is Dec. 27.Beautiful spot, wide receiver Drew Wolitarsky said. I think the guys will be pretty amped to go and be able to kind of free roam and hit the beach and enjoy ourselves. I think that the energy will be up and a lot more positive, for sure.When they lost the last game on their schedule last year to Wisconsin, the Gophers figured they were done. They had to rally to beat a non-power-conference opponent, Central Michigan, in an indoor stadium in a northern city.A lot of guys had checked out, having such a disappointing season, but our ability to come back and win that was big, Wolitarsky said. I think that can lead us to have some momentum to win this one too.The venue shift from drab to sunny sure helps, a selling point not lost on the university in the form of a Gophers helmet planted in the sand on the front page graphic on the athletic department website.Facing a daunting Pac-12 foe, Washington State, adds meaning. So does the opportunity to reach nine victories for the first time in 13 years and only the second time since 1905.We wanted it to be Pasadena, Wolitarsky said, referencing the Rose Bowl, but it didnt go as we planned, obviously. But were very fortunate to be here and get those nine wins.This will be the programs 14th appearance in a bowl game in the last 18 seasons, a stretch during which the lineup of postseason games has swelled considerably. Gophers fans have been presented with opportunities to visit Nashville, Tennessee, and Tempe, Arizona, three times each and El Paso, Texas, and Houston twice. Thats a glaring example of why the Big Ten recently shuffled the allocation process, and Minnesota this year will benefit. The Citrus Bowl two seasons ago on New Years Day is the only other bid in the last 15 years that Gophers fans were fired up for.For Wolitarsky, the senior from Santa Clarita, California, hell get to play in his home state in front of more than 100 family members and friends instead of the usual 10 or so at a regular-season game.So Ive got find some tickets, Wolitarsky said.For coach Tracy Claeys, the game is confirmation from athletic director Mark Coyle that hes staying on the job for the foreseeable future.Whenever you have a new boss you dont know how they feel and some of them, they want to bring in their own person, Claeys said. So I trust him and respect him an awful lot. He chose to come back here, and that was important to a lot of us. Wed like to have somebody in place whos not looking for the next job.---For more college football coverage: http://www.collegefootball.ap.org and http://www.twitter.com/AP-Top25 Tracy McGrady Jersey Large . 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Nine days before the opening ceremony, organizing committee chief Dmitry Chernyshenko said Wednesday that Sochi is "fully ready" and will deliver safe, friendly and well-run games that defy the grim reports that have overshadowed preparations. STILLWATER, Okla. -- Oklahoma State, which has boasted a strong offense all season, can now count on its defense.The defense produced three crucial turnovers that gave the offense the ball in the red zone each time, providing the difference Saturday in an eye-opening 37-20 victory over then-No. 10 West Virginia.After four consecutive wins, the Cowboys (6-2, 4-1 Big 12) have returned to the Top 25 for the first time since their controversial final-play loss to Central Michigan in Week 2, coming in at No. 22. They next face Kansas State (5-3, 3-2) on the road.I think (praise for) our defense was well-deserved, I think they played their best game, said Oklahoma State coach Mike Gundy, who earned his 100th career victory Saturday. Our football team is healthy and I feel like their attitude and their chemistry is top-notch and expect them to prepare well for the game against Kansas State.Oklahoma State managed to score 17 points off the three turnovers: a strip sack by Vincent Taylor, recovered by Cole Walterscheid on the West Virginia 8-yard-line early in the second quarter, a Ramon Richards interception returned 59 yards to the West Virginia 9-yard-line with 3:26 remaining in the third and a Kevin Henry interception returned 26 yards to the West Virginia 10 with just 4:17 remaining.The Cowboys now have forced 19 turnovers on the season, ranking fourth overall in the nation. They are seventh with nine fumble recoveries and 21st with 10 interceptions. All of those figures lead the Big 12, as does their overall turnover margin of plus-10.It might be more difficult this week, as Kansas State has turned the ball over just seven times, fewest in the Big 12.You coach it, you emphasize it, the more violently you play and the more hats you get aroound the ball, and the better you execute, the more turnovers you get, said offensive coordinator Glenn Spencer.dddddddddddd Thats a big challenge this week, because they typically dont give the ball to you. Its hard to get the ball back, thats why theyre so tough to beat.The Cowboys have surrendered just 30 total points in the fourth quarter of games this season, ranking 10th in the nation -- and 10 of those came against West Virginia. In five of their eight games, including three in a row prior to Saturday, the Cowboys shut out their opponent in the final period, outscoring foes 66-30.Its (due to) our conditioning, said junior linebacker Chad Whitener, who leads the team with 52 tackles and came up with his first sack of the season on Saturday. Were in really good shape at the end of games and were able to fly around the field and do what we still have to do. Were able to think because were not focused on being tired.Gundy attributes his teams late-game defensive success to its ability to rotate personnel in and out on a regular basis so that the guys on the field remain fresh and energized.I think that the rotation and the depth that we have has helped us up to this point, Gundy said. I mentioned in pre-season that this was the first time that we felt like we could play two defensive lines since Ive been head coach here. Thats been our goal from Day 1, its just taken us a long time to accomplish it. It goes back to the switch we made four years ago in scholarship numbers, allotting more on the defensive side, to try to get to this point. ... Active defensive linemen make a big difference late in the game. ' ' '