Northwestern's reward for winning seven straight games is a trip to Nashville, Tenn.
The Wildcats will play in the Dec. 29 Music City Bowl. The opponent will be 7-5 Kentucky, which is coming off back-to-back blowout losses to Georgia and Louisville and went 4-4 in SEC play.
Northwestern athletic director Jim Phillips spent much of last week working the phones to lobby on behalf of the 9-3 Wildcats. NU officials pushed for San Diego as a reward for their players but suspected the easier path to a 10-win season would go through Nashville.
That turned out to be right. Michigan State landed in the Holiday Bowl and its opponent will be 18th-ranked Washington State.
