Ryan: December brings the end to another great college football
season. Each year, it seems like college football is able to encase many
storylines, upsets, and heartbreak. This year proved no different. However, the
end to the season brings us to Bowl Season. This time of year is special to all
college athletes competing. The games are on national television which gives
players the opportunity to play in front of all the country. One thing that the
bowl games have done is diluted themselves with the additions of new bowl
games. Since college athletics is more about money than anything else, anyone
with a wallet can get their own bowl game. With 35 bowl games, more than half
the teams in FBS make it to the post season. A stat like that means making a
bowl game really doesn’t mean much anymore unless it’s the championship game,
which is sad. But, enough of that, time for predictions
Matt: Well, the regular season is over and now comes one of the most exciting times of the year, BOWL SEASON! Now while we would love to cover every bowl in detail, some of them just aren’t of interest to us (see AdvoCare V100 Bowl), but we will be covering most of the bowls that include top 25 teams and covering all the BCS bowls, of course. There are a few games that we will be looking into before the New Year is upon us and here they are
Matt: Well, the regular season is over and now comes one of the most exciting times of the year, BOWL SEASON! Now while we would love to cover every bowl in detail, some of them just aren’t of interest to us (see AdvoCare V100 Bowl), but we will be covering most of the bowls that include top 25 teams and covering all the BCS bowls, of course. There are a few games that we will be looking into before the New Year is upon us and here they are
Fresno State vs USC, Royal Purple Las Vegas Bowl, December 21st, 5:30 EST ABC
Matt: The winners of the Mountain West Conference, Fresno State versus the at-large bid out of the Pac 12, USC in the Royal Purple Las Vegas Bowl. Fresno State was one game away from being undeafted and possibly being a BCS-buster. However, with a loss to San Jose State in the last week of the regular season, Fresno State lost any hopes of finding themselves in a BCS bowl and now find themselves in a pre-2014 bowl against a interesting opponent out of the Pac 12. USC came into the season ranked 24th in the preseason poll, and after firing their head coach after a 4-3 start, they went 5-1 and ended the season ranked 25th. This should be an interesting bowl game to start the bowl season off. Fresno State has the number one passing offense in the nation while USC has one of the better defenses in the nation at 21st. I think this will be a tightly contested bowl game, but in the end I think Fresno State’s still reeling from that loss against San Jose State and is able to take that rage and channel it into a win in this one.
Winner: Fresno State
Winner: Fresno State
Ryan: The Las Vegas Bowl is one of the better bowl matchups of the
season, and it will jump start the entire bowl season. USC struggled in the
early part of the season, dropping three of its first seven games. After the
firing of coach Lane Kiffin, the Trojans turned it around to finish the season
5-1. Cody Kessler has taken over the starting quarterback role and hasn’t
thrown an interception in his last four games. The Trojans are going to look
for a big play to ignite an offense that has been lack luster much of the
season. That big spark will most likely come from Marquis Lee. Lee has not had
the year he hoped with the lack of production from the quarterback position,
but he is looking to increase draft stock on national television. Fresno State
also has a player looking to make a big impression. Quarterback Derek Carr has
turned the Bulldogs into the best passing team in the country, throwing for
over 4800 yards and 48 touchdowns. Now, the Bulldogs haven’t played many
competitive games being in the Mountain West Conference. The only
non-conference games they played were against Cal Poly, Idaho, and a one point
win against Rutgers. The increase of talent the Trojans face and the fact that
they haven’t lost two straight games all year gives them the edge. Trojans in a
close one.
Winner: USC
Syracuse vs Minnesota, Texas Bowl, December 27th, 6:00 EST ESPN
Matt: The only reason we look at this one is because our loyalties to the Big Ten. For Minnesota, this is their first bowl game since 2009 Insight Bowl where they lost to Iowa State. For Syracuse, the Orange find themselves in a bowl for the second straight year, a feat that hasn’t happened since the Orange went to three back to back bowls between 1996 and 1998. Neither of these schools pop out to me as football schools, in fact, as a Indiana fan, I always wanted to play Minnesota because they seem to be just as bad as us at football. However, Minnesota was able to rally around the fact their coach was sidelined after facing another seizure on game day and finish with a record of 8-4. Both of these schools are average in terms of numbers overall, both sitting in the 30s for rushing nationally and 100s for passing nationally in terms of offense. Minnesota carries the slight edge on the defensive side, and in my opinion benefit from a bit tougher schedule in the Big Ten compared to the ACC. I think this will be another tightly contested bowl game, but in the end I think I’ll have to stay loyal to my conference and loyal to my hatred for Syracuse (see NCAA Tournament 2013). Minnesota wins this one.
Winner: Minnesota
Winner: Minnesota
Ryan: The Texas Bowl pits two cold weather teams against each
other. Oh, and these two both play in domes. What that has to do with anything,
probably nothing. I just thought I would mention it. Minnesota has had an up
and down year, winning four then losing two, twice this year. If we were going
by pattern, they would obviously win the next game. Well we are which is why I
have Minnesota.
Winner: Minnesota
Rutgers vs Notre Dame, New Era Pinstripe Bowl, December 28th, Noon ESPN
Matt: Well, Ryan was totally wrong about Notre Dame, putting them in the National Championship, and I was right in thinking that they were just going to be alright. I think we can agree on that much. After losing to Alabama in the National Championship last year, Notre Dame did not come back on all cylinders and the loss of their starting quarterback really hurt them this year. They did have a solid win against Michigan State, but other than that, the Irish weren’t able to perform in big games, losing three of their four games to ranked opponents. Rutgers on the other hand, had much tougher year, finishing the season 6-6, only bowl eligible because they were able to beat South Florida in their last regular season game, after losing five out of their last six games before that. Rutgers joins the Big Ten next year, and they are going to find themselves in a world of hurt if they can’t beat teams like Connecticut, Houston, and Fresno State. Rutgers has a tough test here, against a decent Notre Dame team, and I don’t think they have what it will take to get past the Fightin’ Irish. Notre Dame wins this one, perhaps easily.
Winner: Notre Dame
Winner: Notre Dame
Ryan: My Fighting Irish made me look silly by picking them to run
the tables again. Was it just my love for them, or could they have done it. Let
us take a closer look. The Irish lost to three ranked teams this year and a
close game in Pittsburgh. The Irish could have won all those games. The game
against Michigan was close the entire game, Oklahoma forced three quick
turnovers which game them a lead they almost blew in the second half, the refs
screwed Stephon Tuitt on an ejection call against Pitt, and a few bad calls
late helped Stanford regain the lead. Now, all this is part of the game, and
the Irish didn’t do what they needed to pull those games out. Now, they have
one final game to pave the way for Everett Golson’s return. Notre Dame will
travel to New York to play a Rutgers team that is flat out outmatched. Notre
Dame’s front seven, even with the injuries it has suffered, will have its way
with the Scarlet Knight’s offensive line. Quarterback Tommy Rees has played well
this year, throwing for over 250 yards six times this year. Playing against a
weak defense, he may just make it seven. I see the Irish destroying the
Knights.
Winner: Notre Dame
Michigan vs Kansas State, Buffalo Wild Wings Bowl, December 28th, 10:15 EST ESPN
Matt: Whew, what a season for Michigan. Coming into the season ranked 17th, predicated as maybe the one team that could stop Ohio State and come out of the Big Ten instead of them. High hopes for Devin Gardner as he takes over the QB position. All in all, none of these things happened and it was a rather disappointing season for Michigan, finishing 7-5 overall, and only winning 3 Big Ten games, two of them coming from the bottom of the Big Ten. Gardner’s numbers were nothing to write home about at 2960 yards, 21 touchdowns, and 11 interceptions with only 60.3% completion on his passes, and battling injury all season long. I’m sure it wasn’t the season that Michigan hopefully were looking for, once again losing to Michigan State and finally losing at home under Brady Hoke. On the other side of the ball, Kansas State did exactly what I thought they were going to do, finish in the middle of the Big 12. No real impressive wins for either of these teams, and their numbers are average. This game is a toss-up for me, but I’m once again going to go with my conference and have Michigan coming out to win this one and salvage some of their pride after a disappointing season.
Winner: Michigan
Winner: Michigan
Ryan: This bowl is one of my favorites just because it is
sponsored by Buffalo Wild Wings. Kansas State and Michigan both lost star
quarterbacks last year and have struggled because of it. The Wolverines looked
to be a BCS contender early in the year, but a loss to Penn State in overtime
started a streak of losing, losing five of their last seven games. A lack of
talent at the coaching position as well as at quarterback proved to be too much
adversity to overcome. Kansas State had a different start to the season,
opening up with a loss to North Dakota State, and then losing three in a row to
start Big 12 play. The Wildcats turned it around to win five of their last six
games. Wide receiver Tyler Lockett is the big play man for the Wildcats, with
over 1000 yards and 8 touchdowns. Neither of these teams are defensive threats,
so this will be a high scoring game. The rushing attack of Michigan will be key
for this game. If the Wolverines are able to pound the rock, then they win. I
believe they will.
Winner: Michigan
Duke vs Texas A&M, Chick-fil-A Bowl, December 31st, 8:00 EST ESPN
Matt: The last bowl we’ll cover before the New Year is the Chick-fil-A bowl, where no gays are allowed. Just jokes. This one should be interesting. How the mighty have fallen though. In what, I’m sure, is Johnny Football’s last game in an Aggies uniform, he’ll face the 2nd place ACC Duke Blue Devils, one of the biggest surprises of the year. Once again, as an Indiana fan, I always assumed that Duke was just as bad at football as us, and I was partially right. This year is the first time that Duke has ever been ranked in the BCS standings, and their first appearance in the polls since 1994. Before last year’s Belk Bowl, they hadn’t been to a bowl since 1995, but now they find themselves in their second straight bowl game and this time as a ranked team going against another ranked team. After getting stomped by Florida State in the ACC championship, I think Duke’s spirits are a little down. And I don’t think their spirits are going to get any better as they take on the Aggies. I think Johnny Football is going to go out with a bang, after a disappointing season in which they were the one team that most people thought could contend against Alabama for the SEC title, they now find themselves in a bit less glorious spot, but I don’t think that’ll stop Johnny and Texas A&M from getting the job done, Texas A&M wins this one.
Winner: Texas A&M
Winner: Texas A&M
Ryan: The Chick-Fil-A Bowl is a little misleading. Sure, both
teams are ranked, but should they be. Texas A&M has a high flying offense
that is tough to stop. The games they lost this year, they scored over 20 in
all but one. With Johnny Manziel and Mike Evans on your team, there aren’t many
college defenses that are able to contend. All four losses were to ranked teams
as well. On the other side, there is Duke. Duke was a nice Cinderella story
from the ACC, battling all year and making it to the ACC championship game.
However, they just don’t have a great team. Florida State proved that by
scoring 45 points on them and shutting them out (Duke scored on FSU second
string defense.) Now the Blue Devils have to play on the big stage against
another offensive juggernaut. I fear this Cinderella has day dreamed too long
and is about to get smashed. Aggies BIG.
Winner: Texas A&M
Ryan: Well there are some of my predictions. PopcornKnife and I
have nine different winners in this bowl season, so someone will definitely
win. I, of course, won the regular season battle and will win this one as well.
Stay tuned for more bowl game predictions after the holidays. Merry Christmas
to all.
Matt: There you have it, our winners for some of the key bowl matchups before the New Year is rung in, make sure you tune in next time for our preview of the bowl games that take place in 2014. Here is a complete list of our predicted winners of the bowls.
DATE | TIME (ET) | MATCHUP | BOWL | Matt | Ryan |
12/21 | 2:00 PM | Washington State vs. Colorado State* | GILDAN NEW MEXICO BOWL | Washington State | Washington State |
12/21 | 3:30 PM | No. 20 Fresno State vs. No. 25 USC* | ROYAL PURPLE LAS VEGAS BOWL | Fresno State | USC |
12/21 | 5:30 PM | Buffalo vs. San Diego State* | FAMOUS IDAHO POTATO BOWL | San Diego State | San Diego State |
12/21 | 9:00 PM | Tulane vs. Louisiana-Lafayette* | R+L CARRIERS NEW ORLEANS BOWL | UL-Lafayette | UL-Lafayette |
12/23 | 2:00 PM | East Carolina vs. Ohio* | BEEF 'O' BRADY'S BOWL ST. PETERSBURG | East Carolina | East Carolina |
12/24 | 8:00 PM | Boise State vs. Oregon State* | SHERATON HAWAII BOWL | Oregon State | Oregon State |
12/26 | 6:00 PM | Pittsburgh vs. Bowling Green* | LITTLE CAESARS BOWL | Bowling Green | Bowling Green |
12/26 | 9:30 PM | Utah State vs. No. 23 Northern Illinois* | SAN DIEGO COUNTY CREDIT UNION POINSETTIA BOWL | Northern Illinois | Northern Illinois |
12/27 | 2:30 PM | Marshall vs. Maryland* | MILITARY BOWL - PRES. BY NORTHROP GRUMMAN | Maryland | Marshall |
12/27 | 6:00 PM | Syracuse vs. Minnesota* | TEXAS BOWL | Minnesota | Minnesota |
12/27 | 9:30 PM | Brigham Young vs. Washington* | FIGHT HUNGER BOWL | BYU | Washington |
12/28 | 12:00 PM | Rutgers vs. Notre Dame* | NEW ERA PINSTRIPE BOWL | Notre Dame | Notre Dame |
12/28 | 3:20 PM | Cincinnati vs. North Carolina* | BELK BOWL | Cincinnati | North Carolina |
12/28 | 6:45 PM | Miami (FL) vs. No. 18 Louisville* | RUSSELL ATHLETIC BOWL | Louisville | Louisville |
12/28 | 10:15 PM | Michigan vs. Kansas State* | BUFFALO WILD WINGS BOWL | Michigan | Michigan |
12/30 | 11:45 AM | Middle Tennessee vs. Navy* | BELL HELICOPTER ARMED FORCES BOWL | Navy | Navy |
12/30 | 3:15 PM | Ole Miss vs. Georgia Tech* | FRANKLIN AMERICAN MORTGAGE MUSIC CITY BOWL | Ole Miss | Ole Miss |
12/30 | 6:45 PM | No. 10 Oregon vs. Texas* | VALERO ALAMO BOWL | Oregon | Oregon |
12/30 | 10:15 PM | No. 14 Arizona State vs. Texas Tech* | NATIONAL UNIVERSITY HOLIDAY BOWL | Arizona State | Arizona State |
12/31 | 12:30 PM | Arizona vs. Boston College* | AdvoCare V100 BOWL | Arizona | Arizona |
12/31 | 2:00 PM | Virginia Tech vs. No. 17 UCLA* | HYUNDAI SUN BOWL | UCLA | UCLA |
12/31 | 4:00 PM | Rice vs. Mississippi State* | AutoZone LIBERTY BOWL | Mississippi State | Mississippi State |
12/31 | 8:00 PM | No. 24 Duke vs. No. 21 Texas A&M* | Chick-fil-A BOWL | Texas A&M | Texas A&M |
1/1 | 5:00 PM | No. 5 Stanford vs. No. 4 Michigan State* | ROSE BOWL GAME PRESENTED BY VIZIO | Michigan State | Stanford |
1/1 | 12:00 PM | Nebraska vs. No. 22 Georgia* | TAXSLAYER.com GATOR BOWL | Georgia | Nebraska |
1/1 | 12:00 PM | UNLV vs. North Texas* | HEART OF DALLAS BOWL - PRES. BY PLAINSCAPITAL BANK | North Texas | North Texas |
1/1 | 1:00 PM | No. 19 Wisconsin vs. No. 9 South Carolina* | CAPITAL ONE BOWL | Wisconsin | Wisconsin |
1/1 | 1:00 PM | Iowa vs. No. 16 LSU* | OUTBACK BOWL | LSU | LSU |
1/1 | 8:30 PM | No. 15 UCF vs. No. 6 Baylor* | TOSTITOS FIESTA BOWL | Baylor | UCF |
1/2 | 8:30 PM | No. 11 Oklahoma vs. No. 3 Alabama* | ALLSTATE SUGAR BOWL | Alabama | Alabama |
1/3 | 7:30 PM | No. 13 Oklahoma State vs. No. 8Missouri* | AT&T COTTON BOWL | Missouri | Oklahoma State |
1/3 | 8:30 PM | No. 12 Clemson vs. No. 7 Ohio State* | DISCOVER ORANGE BOWL | Ohio State | Ohio State |
1/4 | 1:00 PM | Vanderbilt vs. Houston* | BBVA COMPASS BOWL | Vanderbilt | Vanderbilt |
1/5 | 9:00 PM | Arkansas State vs. Ball State* | GODADDY BOWL | Ball State | Ball State |
1/6 | 8:30 PM | No. 1 Florida State vs. No. 2 Auburn* | VIZIO BCS NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP | Auburn | Florida State |