Penn State showed character and courage in carving out a 9-3 mark this season, winning seven games by a total of 44 points.

Three of the Nittany Lions' most impressive wins came at the expense of Iowa (7-5), Ohio State (6-6) and Northwestern (6-6.

But that mattered little to bowl organizers on selection Sunday in the wake of the Jerry Sandusky scandal that cost coaching icon Joe Paterno his job.

Three bowls with Big Ten ties, the Insight, Gator and Meineke Car Care bowls, all passed on No. 24 Penn State during a process that saw the Lions slip all the way to the TicketCity Bowl in Dallas. The game, to be played Jan. 2 at noon (EST) in the historic 92,000-seat Cotton Bowl, will feature an interesting style clash between PSU's stingy defense and the prolific Houston Cougars' passing game.

Iowa, a 13-3 loser to Penn State, wound up in the Insight Bowl and Ohio State, a 20-14 PSU victim, was gobbled up by the Gator, eager to pit Urban Meyer's new program against his old one (Florida). Northwestern, a team the Lions beat 34-24 in Evanston, went to the Meineke Car Care Bowl. Finally, the TicketCity Bowl, in its second year of existence, stepped in.

"We believe our Penn State-Houston matchup is one of the best of this year's bowl lineup,'' said TicketCity Bowl president Tom Starr.

ESPNU will televise the game and the Lions, coached in the interim by former defensive coordinator Tom Bradley while the university's ongoing search for a permanent head man continues, aren't the only side looking to rebound from an end of season disappointment.

The No. 20 Cougars (12-1) were all set to make a BCS bowl splash until they were upset by Southern Mississippi in the Conference USA title game Saturday. Southern Miss, a two-touchdown underdog, drubbed Houston 49-28, setting the stage for a PSU-Cougars meeting.

The Lions closed out their regular season by getting crushed by Wisconsin 45-7 in Madison on Nov. 26. PSU would have advanced to the Big Ten championship game with a win.

"We're excited to go play Houston,'' said Bradley, who called into ESPN Sunday night.

"They struggled a little bit at the end there but, obviously, they can put a lot of points up. It will be a real challenge for our defense.''

The Cougars are led by record-setting quarterback Case Keenum. Houston is first in the nation in passing offense, averaging 443.8 yards per game. The Lions boast the country's No. 5 scoring defense, allowing just 15.7 points per game.

"We'll be trying to hold the ball [on offense] a little bit and not give them the ball,'' Bradley joked on ESPN.

Bradley said he would like to be considered for the role of PSUs permanent football coach. He was asked by ESPN's Rece Davis to state his case for the permanent job.

"You know what, I don't worry about that,'' Bradley said.

"Anybody that knows me, knows what I'm all about. Players play, coaches coach and administrators administrate. I just do my job. I've been asked to do a job by the university and I plan on doing that job until they tell me otherwise.''

The Cougars are coached by Kevin Sumlin, a former Purdue linebacker who has been in the coaching business since 1989. Sumlin, a 47-year-old who took the job in 2008, is a former Oklahoma offensive coordinator and a Texas A&M assistant head coach.

During a Sunday night conference call, Sumlin talked about the challenge of facing a Big Ten defense and his relationship with Bradley.

"For us, it will be real challenge,'' Sumlin said.

"[It's] a different style of football, that's what bowl games are all about, matchups and styles and people not being very familiar with each other.

''I've known Tom Bradley for a long time,'' Sumlin added.

"He's taken over a difficult situation. I watched his press conference when he took over. I think Tom did a fantastic job in dealing with everything that was going on. … He'll have them prepared and they'll be ready to play, I know that.''