2012 college bowl game schedule: 4 Big 12 teams in action

Every Big 12 team but one will play in a bowl game this year, and four of them will be in action this weekend, with the BCS bowls still on the horizon.

The first matchup of the weekend comes Friday night when Texas Tech stays local to face Minnesota in Houston for the Meineke Car Care Bowl. The Red Raiders finished in a four-way tie in the BIg 12 with a 4-5 record. The 8 p.m. CT game will be televised on ESPN.

The West Virginia Mountaineers will get Saturday’s slate of Big 12 games started when they face old Big East foe Syracuse in the Bronx, N.Y., in the New Era Pinstripe Bowl. The Mountaineers went 7-5, 4-5 in the Big 12 in their first season in the conference. They’ll undoubtedly face a tough Orange team and a road environment with a well-traveled and local Syracuse fan base.

Like Texas Tech, the Texas Longhorns stay in the Lone Star State for the Valero Alamo Bowl in San Antonio. They’ll play Oregon State on ESPN. Texas finished tied for third in the Big 12 at 5-4.

TCU, also in its first Big 12 season, gets Michigan State in the Buffalo Wild Wings Bowl in Tempe, Ariz. The Horned Frogs were one of the teams tied with West Virginia at 4-5 in the conference.