The Notre Dame Fighting Irish will face the Miami Hurricanes this afternoon in the 2010 Hyundai Sun Bowl. The two 7-5 squads are scheduled to kickoff at 2:00pm ET at the Sun Bowl in El Paso, Texas; the game will be broadcast live on CBS. 2010 Sun Bowl Odds have Miami listed as a -2.5 against the spread favorite and the Over/Under set at 47.
The Brian Kelly era at Notre Dame got off 
to an inauspicious beginning with the team losing three of its first four games. The Irish survived that ill fated start, which included meetings with BCS Bowl bound teams Michigan State and Stanford, by winning six of their last eight to finish 7-5.
Notre Dame closed out the regular season on a three game win streak, posting wins over Utah, Army, and USC. The Irish defense, which returned nine starters from last year's squad, really hit its stride during the team's season ending run, giving up just 22 points and 700 total yards to the Utes, Knights, and Trojans.
If Notre Dame can keep that momentum rolling, it will garner just its second bowl win in the last 17 years. The Fighting Irish did not participate in postseason play last year, despite posting a 6-6 record, but they recorded their first bowl win since 1993 (beat Texas A&M 24-21 in the Cotton Bowl) with a 49-21 victory over Hawaii in the 2008 Hawaii Bowl.
Miami, which also enters today's contest with a 7-5 record, will have an interim head coach on the sidelines in Jeff Stoutland. Stoutland is filling in for the fired Randy Shannon (28-22 in four seasons), but he will relinquish his duties to new Head Coach Al Golden at the conclusion of the Sun Bowl.
The Hurricanes got off to a 3-1 start this season, but they lacked consistency, never winning more than two games in a row. They also lost to in-state rivals Florida State and South Florida and closed out the season with back-to-back losses.
Miami's defense played well most of the season, giving up just 19.7 points per game; however, it could not make up for the team's offensive struggles. Junior quarterback Jacory Harris, who missed three of Miami's last four games, did not approach the numbers he produced as a sophomore and the Hurricanes averaged 3.2 fewer points per game this season as a result.
The Hurricanes are 0-2 in their last two bowl appearances, suffering a 17-24 loss to Cal in the 2008 Emerald Bowl and 14-20 loss to Wisconsin in last year's Champs Sports Bowl.
2010 Sun Bowl Betting Trend: Notre Dame is 8-2 straight up and against the spread in its last 10 games as an underdog with a spread between 0 and 3.5.
2010 Sun Bowl Notre Dame vs Miami Odds:
Notre Dame Fighting Irish +2.5 (-110), Over 47 (-110)
Miami Hurricanes -2.5 (-110), Under 47 (-110)
