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The ACC parlayed its competitive balance into 10 bowl bids on Sunday -- a first for any conference -- when the league office found a home for an N.C. State team that began the year injured and ended it invigorated.

State will play Rutgers in the Dec. 29 Papajohns.com Bowl in Birmingham, Ala., and it will have plenty of company in postseason play.

In other deals finalized Sunday, North Carolina will face West Virginia in the Meineke Car Care Bowl in Charlotte on Dec. 27 and Wake Forest will reprise its regular-season game with Navy when it faces the Midshipmen in the inaugural EagleBank Bowl in Washington, D.C., on Dec. 20.

In the end, the SEC's strength at the top created an abundance of opportunity for the ACC, in which 10 of 12 teams finished at 5-3 or 4-4 in conference play.

The Wolfpack's placement in the Papajohns.com Bowl against Rutgers became possible when the SEC placed two teams in the BCS and was ultimately unable to take its spot in Birmingham.

The game then turned to the Pack (6-6) as a replacement, having been won over by State's four-game winning streak.

The Sun Belt Conference struck an arrangement with the Papajohns game to fill any void left by the SEC or Big East, but when the Sun Belt failed to provide candidates with seven or more wins, the deal was effectively invalidated by an NCAA rule. That policy says contingency plans can't guarantee bowl spots to 6-6 teams.

The game was then freed from obligation to the Sun Belt and was able to choose any 6-6 team available to it.

"We are honored to have been invited to compete in the Papajohns.com Bowl and feel that it is an excellent way to end an exciting season for NC State," Wolfpack coach Tom O'Brien said. "Our football team has worked extremely hard to earn a chance to play in this game. Rutgers is a great opponent and we are very happy that Birmingham is our destination because it will give the Wolfpack nation an opportunity to travel to see us play. Our fans' support for the bowl game will be just as important to our team's success as it has been all year long."

Perhaps it should be renamed the Renaissance Bowl. Like the Wolfpack, the Scarlet Knights (7-5) began the season at 1-5. They got hot down the stretch, averaging 46 points per game over their final five contests.

The Deacons (7-5) didn't really plan on their assignment in August but will have to accept it.

Rematches of regular-season meetings are rare, and even then, they're generally made to settle a late-season score of national magnitude. The Midshipmen defeated the Deacons 24-17 on Sept. 27 in a game Wake would probably rather forget than amend. Quarterback Riley Skinner threw four interceptions and lost a fumble.

While the Deacons had considerable trouble moving the ball, they finished the season at plus-16 in turnover margin.

The Deacs won the turnover department against nine of their 12 games, were even in one and lost only twice: to Navy and Miami. The Midshipmen (8-4) locked up the Commander-In-Chief's Trophy for the sixth straight year with a 34-0 defeat of Army.

Carolina (8-4) will make its second trip to the game in Charlotte and will face a West Virginia team that entered the year with national title hopes. Those died early, and a home loss to Cincinnati, the eventual league champion, eradicated Big East championship aspirations.

In 2004, the Heels and Boston College, then making its final appearance while affiliated with the Big East, played to a sellout crowd. The Eagles won 37-24 and moved on to the ACC the following year.

"I'm thrilled for the opportunity to continue our season and play in the Meineke Car Care Bowl," UNC coach Butch Davis said.

"Charlotte is an outstanding city and is a great location for our fans to watch us play. I'm proud of our players for their hard work and effort this year against a difficult schedule."

Conference USA champion East Carolina (9-4) will play in the Liberty Bowl against Kentucky (6-6) on Jan. 2.

Contact Rob Daniels at 373-7028 or rob.daniels @news-record.com