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Master
- Joined
- Jul 12, 2007
- Messages
- 2,565
Eh, why not? It's something to talk about since the regular season is over.
BCS GAMES
FedEx BCS National Championship
Oklahoma vs. Florida
-This was the matchup I predicted at the beginning of the season (toot). Now that it's here, I can't decide which team the matchups favor. My original pick was Oklahoma, so I'll stick with them. But it should be a tight game.
Tostitos Fiesta Bowl
Texas vs. Ohio State
-Ohio State does still have top notch players at every position. Except Quarterback. I have no faith in Big 12 defenses. Tressel is smart. He'll keep it simple and just play ball control and field position. Ohio State wins a dull and frustrating game.
Allstate Sugar Bowl
Alabama vs. Utah
-Alabama never should've been so high this season. They played above themselves and faced opponents who were down. I've seen Utah play thrice this season. They were never really challenged, but nothing they do looks spectacular. I'll credit great coaching for their results. Unfortunately for them, lines full of 4 and 5 star players typically negate great coaching. Alabama wins easily.
FedEx Orange Bowl
Virginia Tech vs. Cincinnati
Most even matchup of the bowl season, imo. Nation's hottest coaching property versus devoted caste whore. Cincy looked bad against the large Hawaii linemen. And I don't think their defense is good enough to stop a talented ACC team for four quarters. VT wins.
Rose Bowl presented by Citi
USC vs. Penn State
-Pete's teams have been guilty of sleepwalking through their late season schedules for the past couple of years. But he always gets them up for the bowl games. That being said, they don't seem as wide open on offense as they used to be. And a wretched UCLA team defended them well for a while. I known almost nothing about Penn State. I'm picking against the Big Ten in this one. USC wins.
The Rest
EagleBank Bowl
Wake Forest vs. Navy
-They already played this game. And if the schedule had lined up, they would've played it twice already (Wake vs GT). Navy won the first meeting in a close game. They're on fire right now. But the triple option is only tricky when you're not used to it. Wake has the edge due to getting a second time to gameplan. Wake wins.
New Mexico Bowl
Colorado State vs. Fresno State
Colorado State improved over the season, but still needed a final victory to acheive bowl eligibility. Fresno is the better team, but Pat Hill's mind is otherwise occupied with job searches. Fresno wins a poorly coached game on both sides.
Pioneer Las Vegas Bowl
BYU vs. Arizona
-My knowledge of Arizona is limited. I know that all their losses were close. I watched their last game against ASU and they looked good. BYU is too polished to fall to a team from a weak Pac 10. BYU wins.
St. Petersburg Bowl
South Florida vs. Memphis
I watched one Memphis game this year. They looked like a lucky bunch of idiots on fire. I don't know how they won a single game. South Florida wins in a blowout.
R&L Carriers New Orleans Bowl
Troy vs. Southern Miss
I wish I had something interesting to say about this game. Two rookie coaches in a bowl game. Troy is a better team, Southern Miss has the better players. I'll go with Troy.
San Diego County Credit Union Poinsettia Bowl
TCU vs. Boise State
-TCU's defense doesn't stand for gimmicky shenanigans like hype-machine Boise State runs. The Horned Frogs punish the Broncos and make Petersen wish he had taken one of those job offers.
Sheraton Hawaii Bowl
Notre Dame vs. Hawaii
Maybe the most intriguing matchup of the bowl season. These two teams are about as far apart as you can get, in every possible way. Jones left behind a capable team, but without his coaching acumen to manage it. Weis doesn't seem to know what he's doing, but he has great players all over. With time to prepare, I think Notre Dame's defense gets the job done. Irish win.
Motor City Bowl
Florida Atlantic vs. Central Michigan
A crappy Sun Belt team (that I'm very familiar with) versus a good, but underachieving MAC squad. I don't think FAU has played in a dome... ever. I'll go with CMU.
Champs Sports Bowl
Florida State vs. Wisconsin
-Florida State sucks. So does Wisconsin. Both have about equal talent, which is considerable. But Bowden provides experience and stability. Wisconsin hasn't yet defined themselves in the post-Alvarez era. Seminoles win in a low scoring game.
Emerald Bowl
Miami vs. California
-Two more teams that I'm not terribly familiar with. And I really don't care to research it. I'll just take a guess. ACC over Pac 10. Miami wins.
Meineke Car Care Bowl
North Carolina vs. West Virginia
-Tough call. North Carolina shouldn't have been this good this year. West Virginia probably should've have been this bad. I've changed my mind since starting this paragraph. I'll go with West Virginia, which seems to play up during bowl games.
PapaJohn's.com Bowl
Rutgers vs. NC State
-What was that last weekend? Since when does Rutgers blow anybody out like that? I'm calling it a fluke. NC State wins.
Independence Bowl
Louisiana Tech vs. Northern Illinois
-Northern Illinois didn't deserve a bowl slot. Louisiana Tech underperformed at times this season. This is an easy one. Tech wins big.
Alamo Bowl
Northwestern vs. Missouri
-Northwestern lost their mojo somewhere around mid-season. They held on for dear life to land in this bowl. Missouri is looking for someone to take out their frustrations on again. This will be ugly. Missouri in a blowout.
Texas Bowl
Western Michigan vs. Rice
-I wanted to be impressed with WMU, but when I saw them against Ball State, they looked like another nouveau spread passing team with a few tricks in the running game. Rice plays against better competition all season long. Rice wins easily.
Pacific Life Holiday Bowl
Oklahoma State vs. Oregon
-Oversight on my part: I didn't watch Oregon play a single game this season. I can't believe they would pose much of a challenge to the Cowboys, though. OSU wins.
Roady's Humanitarian Bowl
Maryland vs. Nevada
-Maryland is a surprisingly jekyll and hyde team. No telling who is going to show up in the bowl game. But Kaepernick is a ball-hogging drive destroyer for Nevada. So I'll go with the Terps.
Bell Helicopter Armed Forces Bowl
Air Force vs. Houston
-Rematch #2. Falcons won a close game the first time. Briles left a good team in Houston. Sumlin hasn't done too much to mess that up. But they played over their heads in a couple of games this season. Air Force should've been much worse this season. Experience diminishes the effectiveness of the triple option. Houston wins.
Sun Bowl
Pitt vs. Oregon State
-Pitt has great players, but weak coaching. With Rhodes gone, the defense isn't as effective. Oregon State is a good team, but only if they have key players back. I'm not gonna make any conditional picks, so I'll just assume that Oregon State is healthy in time for the game. Beavers win.
Gaylord Hotels Music City Bowl
Boston College vs. Vanderbilt
-This is taking WAY longer than I thought it would. Ok, BC is last year's great team but without their leader. Vanderbilt is a lucky and mismanaged team. They don't belong in a bowl game. BC wins big.
Chick-fil-A Bowl
Georgia Tech vs. LSU
-Probably the game that the most college football fans want to see, just out of sheer morbid curiosity. Georgia Tech has had a big turnaround with an offense that's not supposed to work any more in the big conferences. LSU won the national championship last year, but they failed to get their QB situation sorted out before the year started. I refuse to believe that Miles is stupid enough to start Jefferson in the bowl game. LSU's defense won't be impressed with option football. They'll just blow it all back on the lines. LSU wins.
Insight Bowl
Minnesota vs. Kansas
-Uh, Minnesota still has a football team? And they made it to a bowl? This shouldn't be close. Jayhawks win easily.
Outback Bowl
Iowa vs. South Carolina
-One of several White vs Black bowl games, although this one is the most extreme. I saw Iowa play Penn State, but no other game. It looked like PSU gave it to them. South Carolina is bungle-headed on offense, but they have serious talent on defense (and even better coaching). I'll pick the Gamewieners.
Konica Minolta Gator Bowl
Clemson vs. Nebraska
I'll call this the "Disgruntled Fanbase Bowl". Clemson should've been much better than they have for the past several years. Nebraska shouldn't have been as bad as they have been for the past several years. I think the Huskers are still a year away from a return to prominence, though. Clemson wins.
Capital One Bowl
Michigan State vs. Georgia
-Haven't seen Michigan State play this year. I've seen several Georgia games. The Bulldogs are major underachievers this year. The Big Ten stinks. Georgia wins easily.
AutoZone Liberty Bowl
East Carolina vs. Kentucky
-This game shouldn't be. East Carolina got in on luck. Kentucky has a hare-brained coach, but the toughening of playing in the SEC every week gives them a big edge in preparation. Wildcats win.
AT&T Cotton Bowl
Texas Tech vs. Ole Miss
-Fatty McVillain gets exposed for the sh*tty coach he is. Tech annihilates the Fightin' Nutts and Houston is forced to give back his recently signed bonus.
International Bowl
Connecticut vs. Buffalo
-Wanna see a whuppin'? This is the game for you. Buffalo is the worst bowl team of the past decade. UConn isn't a great team, but they will stomp the Cows into a bloody mess.
GMAC Bowl
Tulsa vs. Ball State
-Impossible to predict. Tulsa really does have a Science Fiction offense, but their play calling has gotten puckerifically conservative since losing to Arkansas. And I'm still not sure they have snapped out of it. I saw a lot of Ball State this year. They're a lot like Utah. They don't seem to do anything magical. Every play just seems to work. Again, good coaching. The loss in the MAC Championship was an unfathomable series of coincidental flukes. Play it again a hundred times and Ball State wins all of them. That Tulsa offense wears people out, when they're actually using it. I predict that they're still shell-shocked, though. Ball State wins.
BCS GAMES
FedEx BCS National Championship
Oklahoma vs. Florida
-This was the matchup I predicted at the beginning of the season (toot). Now that it's here, I can't decide which team the matchups favor. My original pick was Oklahoma, so I'll stick with them. But it should be a tight game.
Tostitos Fiesta Bowl
Texas vs. Ohio State
-Ohio State does still have top notch players at every position. Except Quarterback. I have no faith in Big 12 defenses. Tressel is smart. He'll keep it simple and just play ball control and field position. Ohio State wins a dull and frustrating game.
Allstate Sugar Bowl
Alabama vs. Utah
-Alabama never should've been so high this season. They played above themselves and faced opponents who were down. I've seen Utah play thrice this season. They were never really challenged, but nothing they do looks spectacular. I'll credit great coaching for their results. Unfortunately for them, lines full of 4 and 5 star players typically negate great coaching. Alabama wins easily.
FedEx Orange Bowl
Virginia Tech vs. Cincinnati
Most even matchup of the bowl season, imo. Nation's hottest coaching property versus devoted caste whore. Cincy looked bad against the large Hawaii linemen. And I don't think their defense is good enough to stop a talented ACC team for four quarters. VT wins.
Rose Bowl presented by Citi
USC vs. Penn State
-Pete's teams have been guilty of sleepwalking through their late season schedules for the past couple of years. But he always gets them up for the bowl games. That being said, they don't seem as wide open on offense as they used to be. And a wretched UCLA team defended them well for a while. I known almost nothing about Penn State. I'm picking against the Big Ten in this one. USC wins.
The Rest
EagleBank Bowl
Wake Forest vs. Navy
-They already played this game. And if the schedule had lined up, they would've played it twice already (Wake vs GT). Navy won the first meeting in a close game. They're on fire right now. But the triple option is only tricky when you're not used to it. Wake has the edge due to getting a second time to gameplan. Wake wins.
New Mexico Bowl
Colorado State vs. Fresno State
Colorado State improved over the season, but still needed a final victory to acheive bowl eligibility. Fresno is the better team, but Pat Hill's mind is otherwise occupied with job searches. Fresno wins a poorly coached game on both sides.
Pioneer Las Vegas Bowl
BYU vs. Arizona
-My knowledge of Arizona is limited. I know that all their losses were close. I watched their last game against ASU and they looked good. BYU is too polished to fall to a team from a weak Pac 10. BYU wins.
St. Petersburg Bowl
South Florida vs. Memphis
I watched one Memphis game this year. They looked like a lucky bunch of idiots on fire. I don't know how they won a single game. South Florida wins in a blowout.
R&L Carriers New Orleans Bowl
Troy vs. Southern Miss
I wish I had something interesting to say about this game. Two rookie coaches in a bowl game. Troy is a better team, Southern Miss has the better players. I'll go with Troy.
San Diego County Credit Union Poinsettia Bowl
TCU vs. Boise State
-TCU's defense doesn't stand for gimmicky shenanigans like hype-machine Boise State runs. The Horned Frogs punish the Broncos and make Petersen wish he had taken one of those job offers.
Sheraton Hawaii Bowl
Notre Dame vs. Hawaii
Maybe the most intriguing matchup of the bowl season. These two teams are about as far apart as you can get, in every possible way. Jones left behind a capable team, but without his coaching acumen to manage it. Weis doesn't seem to know what he's doing, but he has great players all over. With time to prepare, I think Notre Dame's defense gets the job done. Irish win.
Motor City Bowl
Florida Atlantic vs. Central Michigan
A crappy Sun Belt team (that I'm very familiar with) versus a good, but underachieving MAC squad. I don't think FAU has played in a dome... ever. I'll go with CMU.
Champs Sports Bowl
Florida State vs. Wisconsin
-Florida State sucks. So does Wisconsin. Both have about equal talent, which is considerable. But Bowden provides experience and stability. Wisconsin hasn't yet defined themselves in the post-Alvarez era. Seminoles win in a low scoring game.
Emerald Bowl
Miami vs. California
-Two more teams that I'm not terribly familiar with. And I really don't care to research it. I'll just take a guess. ACC over Pac 10. Miami wins.
Meineke Car Care Bowl
North Carolina vs. West Virginia
-Tough call. North Carolina shouldn't have been this good this year. West Virginia probably should've have been this bad. I've changed my mind since starting this paragraph. I'll go with West Virginia, which seems to play up during bowl games.
PapaJohn's.com Bowl
Rutgers vs. NC State
-What was that last weekend? Since when does Rutgers blow anybody out like that? I'm calling it a fluke. NC State wins.
Independence Bowl
Louisiana Tech vs. Northern Illinois
-Northern Illinois didn't deserve a bowl slot. Louisiana Tech underperformed at times this season. This is an easy one. Tech wins big.
Alamo Bowl
Northwestern vs. Missouri
-Northwestern lost their mojo somewhere around mid-season. They held on for dear life to land in this bowl. Missouri is looking for someone to take out their frustrations on again. This will be ugly. Missouri in a blowout.
Texas Bowl
Western Michigan vs. Rice
-I wanted to be impressed with WMU, but when I saw them against Ball State, they looked like another nouveau spread passing team with a few tricks in the running game. Rice plays against better competition all season long. Rice wins easily.
Pacific Life Holiday Bowl
Oklahoma State vs. Oregon
-Oversight on my part: I didn't watch Oregon play a single game this season. I can't believe they would pose much of a challenge to the Cowboys, though. OSU wins.
Roady's Humanitarian Bowl
Maryland vs. Nevada
-Maryland is a surprisingly jekyll and hyde team. No telling who is going to show up in the bowl game. But Kaepernick is a ball-hogging drive destroyer for Nevada. So I'll go with the Terps.
Bell Helicopter Armed Forces Bowl
Air Force vs. Houston
-Rematch #2. Falcons won a close game the first time. Briles left a good team in Houston. Sumlin hasn't done too much to mess that up. But they played over their heads in a couple of games this season. Air Force should've been much worse this season. Experience diminishes the effectiveness of the triple option. Houston wins.
Sun Bowl
Pitt vs. Oregon State
-Pitt has great players, but weak coaching. With Rhodes gone, the defense isn't as effective. Oregon State is a good team, but only if they have key players back. I'm not gonna make any conditional picks, so I'll just assume that Oregon State is healthy in time for the game. Beavers win.
Gaylord Hotels Music City Bowl
Boston College vs. Vanderbilt
-This is taking WAY longer than I thought it would. Ok, BC is last year's great team but without their leader. Vanderbilt is a lucky and mismanaged team. They don't belong in a bowl game. BC wins big.
Chick-fil-A Bowl
Georgia Tech vs. LSU
-Probably the game that the most college football fans want to see, just out of sheer morbid curiosity. Georgia Tech has had a big turnaround with an offense that's not supposed to work any more in the big conferences. LSU won the national championship last year, but they failed to get their QB situation sorted out before the year started. I refuse to believe that Miles is stupid enough to start Jefferson in the bowl game. LSU's defense won't be impressed with option football. They'll just blow it all back on the lines. LSU wins.
Insight Bowl
Minnesota vs. Kansas
-Uh, Minnesota still has a football team? And they made it to a bowl? This shouldn't be close. Jayhawks win easily.
Outback Bowl
Iowa vs. South Carolina
-One of several White vs Black bowl games, although this one is the most extreme. I saw Iowa play Penn State, but no other game. It looked like PSU gave it to them. South Carolina is bungle-headed on offense, but they have serious talent on defense (and even better coaching). I'll pick the Gamewieners.
Konica Minolta Gator Bowl
Clemson vs. Nebraska
I'll call this the "Disgruntled Fanbase Bowl". Clemson should've been much better than they have for the past several years. Nebraska shouldn't have been as bad as they have been for the past several years. I think the Huskers are still a year away from a return to prominence, though. Clemson wins.
Capital One Bowl
Michigan State vs. Georgia
-Haven't seen Michigan State play this year. I've seen several Georgia games. The Bulldogs are major underachievers this year. The Big Ten stinks. Georgia wins easily.
AutoZone Liberty Bowl
East Carolina vs. Kentucky
-This game shouldn't be. East Carolina got in on luck. Kentucky has a hare-brained coach, but the toughening of playing in the SEC every week gives them a big edge in preparation. Wildcats win.
AT&T Cotton Bowl
Texas Tech vs. Ole Miss
-Fatty McVillain gets exposed for the sh*tty coach he is. Tech annihilates the Fightin' Nutts and Houston is forced to give back his recently signed bonus.
International Bowl
Connecticut vs. Buffalo
-Wanna see a whuppin'? This is the game for you. Buffalo is the worst bowl team of the past decade. UConn isn't a great team, but they will stomp the Cows into a bloody mess.
GMAC Bowl
Tulsa vs. Ball State
-Impossible to predict. Tulsa really does have a Science Fiction offense, but their play calling has gotten puckerifically conservative since losing to Arkansas. And I'm still not sure they have snapped out of it. I saw a lot of Ball State this year. They're a lot like Utah. They don't seem to do anything magical. Every play just seems to work. Again, good coaching. The loss in the MAC Championship was an unfathomable series of coincidental flukes. Play it again a hundred times and Ball State wins all of them. That Tulsa offense wears people out, when they're actually using it. I predict that they're still shell-shocked, though. Ball State wins.