College Football: 5 breakout candidates from 2017 opening bowl weekend

In all, 10 teams opened up the college football bowl season on Saturday, and there were plenty of incredible performances all around.

From Troy putting up 50 on North Texas in the R+L Carriers New Orleans Bowl, to Middle Tennessee downing Arkansas State in the Raycom Media Camellia Bowl to close out the night, the chance to shine in the postseason is one that nobody involved will soon forget.

For these 10 teams, the season is now complete. But, the added bonus of extra practices and that all-important bowl game could be a huge springboard into something even more in 2018.

Here’s five candidates to have breakout seasons next fall that took to the gridiron this past Saturday in bowl games:

Mason Fine is a name to remember, and not just because it is pretty catchy – especially for a quarterback.

The sophomore finished off his season with the Mean Green by throwing for 303 yards. Fine completed 30-of-54 passes, throwing three touchdowns and sporting a quarterback rating of 113.6. It marked his 11th consecutive game with a passing touchdown and the seventh time this year he has gone over the 300-yard mark.

Fine finished the season with 4,052 yards passing and 31 touchdowns. He completed over 60 percent of his passes, marked improvements on a freshman season that saw him throw for just under 1,600 yards with six scores.

On the year, Fine set a new single-season school-record with 329 completions and broke Derek Thompson’s record for 300-yard passing games in a career with eight. Both his yardage total and touchdown passes are records for the Mean Green, who posted a record of 9-5 this season.