[TomWilkinson]

No. 9 Miami (9-2) faces No. 10 LSU (10-2) in one of only three bowl games this season pitting two top-10 teams against one another in tonight’s Peach Bowl.

Miami is used to being in a New Year’s Day bowl game, but the Peach Bowl against LSU is not a bad substitute. "There's also a sense of pride," Miami quarterback Kyle Wright said. "I think people kind of lost confidence in us, especially down here and even around the country. ... People lost respect for us."

"This is, I think, the best team possible that we could have played," Wright said. "I think it's going to be awesome, going up against LSU."

Wright finished the regular season with 2,303 yards, completing 59.4 percent of his passes, including 18 touchdowns. He tied a school record with five touchdowns passes in a win over Wake Forest, threw for 15 scores over his last seven games and earned an honorable mention spot on the All-ACC team.

He has his work cut out for him against LSU, which ranks fifth nationally in pass efficiency defense. "Huge challenge," Wright said of facing LSU. "Very impressed with their front four guys. They do like to bring a lot of different blitzes and send different things, but honestly, they sometimes don't need to with the talent they have up front, with those four guys you see continually getting pressure without sending blitzes."

"Mentally, I think I've grown so much, understanding the offense and understanding the game and how to manage a game," Wright said. "I guess you can say it kind of feels like night and day."

LSU will be without starting quarterback Jamarcus Russell in this game, so it will be interesting to see if backup quarterback Matt Flynn can stay calm enough for LSU’s offense to move the ball.