CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) -Wake Forest won't have to travel far for its second bowl game in as many seasons.

The Demon Deacons accepted a bid Sunday to play in the Meineke Bowl in Charlotte, 80 miles southwest of the school's Winston-Salem campus. Wake Forest (8-4) will face Connecticut (9-3) of the Big East on Dec. 29 at Bank of America Stadium.

It will mark the first time Wake Forest has played in consecutive bowls. The Demon Deacons were one of the biggest surprises in college football last season, when they went 11-3, won the Atlantic Coast Conference championship game and lost to Louisville in the Orange Bowl.

While Wake Forest didn't match the success of 2006, it still had an impressive season for a school that used to be the doormat of the ACC. Behind quarterback Riley Skinner and an opportunistic defense, the Demon Deacons had only their fifth eight-win season.

Wake Forest will face UConn, which ended up as the Big East co-champions after West Virginia's shocking loss to Pittsburgh on Saturday. The Huskies earned their first Top 25 ranking this season before losing to West Virginia last month, ending UConn's Bowl Championship Series hopes.

The Meineke Bowl will kick off at 1 p.m. and be televised by ESPN. The payout to both teams is $750,000.Copyright © 2005 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. The information contained in the AP News report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without the prior written authority of The Associated Press.