Beginning with the San Diego County Credit Union Poinsettia Bowl between TCU and Northern Illinois next Tuesday, Dec. 19, just how many bowl games do you think are on tap this holiday season?

Would you believe 32, which just happens to be the number of teams in the NFL?

It’s an interesting coincidence, considering that nobody will be watching this year’s bowl games closer than the NFL scouts looking to add telling tapes of the most draft-worthy players featured in those games to their already extensive film libraries.

If there’s one bowl game that sticks out in terms of draft-related ramifications, it would have to be the Allstate Sugar Bowl the night of Jan. 3 in New Orleans between Notre Dame and LSU — an intriguing encounter that will feature four of the 10 players PFW has identified as the top 2007 draft prospects scheduled to appear in this season’s bowl games.

At the top of the list is Irish QB Brady Quinn, who will be hoping to bounce back from his losing bowl effort to Ohio State last season, when he was matched up against his brother-in-law, A.J. Hawk, who subsequently was selected fifth overall by the Packers.

Quinn’s signalcalling counterpart in the Sugar Bowl will be junior JaMarcus Russell, a Daunte Culpepper clone who also makes our top-10 list.

On the other side of the ball from Quinn will be a pair of top-10 defenders — junior DT Glenn Dorsey and senior FS LaRon Landry, in addition to a couple of young linebackers whom PFW projects to be first-day selections (sophomore Darry Beckwith and junior Ali Highsmith) and a sophomore defensive end (Tyson Jackson), who looks like a future first-rounder.

On the other side of the ball from Russell, senior DE Victor Abiamiri could easily fit into the first round, playing on an Irish D-line that is talented across the board and can bring plenty of heat, along with two solid interior defenders, senior Derek Landri and Trevor Laws, who has one year of eligibility left but may depart early.

What follows is a quick breakdown of PFW’s top-10 bowl-game draft prospects, presented in order of their bowl-game appearances (all times are Eastern; an asterisk designates a junior):

  Clemson DE Gaines Adams (Gaylord Hotels Music City Bowl vs. Kentucky, Dec. 29, 1 p.m., Nashville, Tenn., ESPN HD) — The best pure pass rusher in the draft, Adams really came on as a senior. Has the frame to bulk up and eventually compare to Julius Peppers.

  Georgia Tech WR Calvin Johnson* (Toyota Gator Bowl vs. West Virginia, Jan.1, 1 p.m., Jacksonville, Fla., CBS) — Closest thing to a sure bet there may ever be. It will be hard to believe if any team passes on this rare, humble physical specimen, who could become the first receiver taken No. 1 since Keyshawn Johnson in 1996.

  Wisconsin OT Joe Thomas (Capital One Bowl vs. Arkansas, Jan. 1, 1 p.m., Orlando, Fla., ABC HD) — A big, athletic finesse left tackle who would have been a top-10 pick a year ago. We hope Thomas will not play defense this year but will be fully recovered from the anterior cruciate ligament injury he suffered in last year’s Capitol One (while filling in on a depleted defensive line) in time for the Combine.

  Michigan DT Alan Branch* (Rose Bowl presented by Citi vs. USC, Jan. 1, 5 p.m., Pasadena Calif., ABC HD) — A very naturally athletic big man who will have 3-4 defenses salivating. Branch is loaded with upside and is a cross between Jaguars DTs John Henderson and Marcus Stroud.

  Michigan OT Jake Long* (Rose Bowl) — More of a natural right tackle than a left tackle, Long dropped 20 pounds in the offseason and has been lighter on his feet and has proven capable of manning the left side in the pros. Nastier than Wisconsin’s Joe Thomas.

  Oklahoma RB Adrian Peterson (Tostitos Fiesta Bowl vs. Boise State, Jan. 1, 8 p.m., Glendale, Ariz., Fox) — The only concern about Peterson is his durability in light of how violently he runs and whether he can stay healthy in the pros considering how competitive he is.

  Notre Dame QB Brady Quinn (Allstate Sugar Bowl vs. LSU, Jan. 3, 8 p.m., New Orleans, Fox) — Has a better arm and athletic ability than Matt Leinart and really played well down the stretch. Yet, in spite of how much he is being scrutinized, scouts are still not confident that he will be great. How he handles pressure on the big stage may determine whether he’s the first or second QB drafted.

  LSU QB JaMarcus Russell* (Sugar Bowl) — Baby Culpepper with a better brain and even more upside. Russell will battle Quinn to be the top thrower.

  LSU DT Glenn Dorsey* (Sugar Bowl) — A rolling ball of butcher knives, he’s in the same mold as Warren Sapp and Anthony “Booger” McFarland, only he possesses better intangibles.

  LSU FS LaRon Landry (Sugar Bowl) — Big, smart, physical, tough and instinctive. Landry has about everything you want and is the most gifted safety to come out since Sean Taylor.