Bowl Blog Bash and Dash (Part 1)

Oh my, every year I seam to forget how many bowl games there are and try to do a bowl-by-bowl break down. I have yet to tackle that but I am going to try again this year... Each blog will have three bowl games per, each with a brief synopsis of the two teams, what stars to watch for in each game (some bowls maybe a stretch to do that) and finally what I am most known for, the Godfather of Sports final score projections. Let's kick it off with the New Mexico Bowl, uDrove Humanitarian Bowl and the R+L Carriers New Orleans Bowl (I did not elaborate or make those titles up).

New Mexico Bowl (Dec 18, 2pm, ESPN)
Of course the first few games are just so bad. This match up between 6-6 BYU and 6-6 UTEP, yahoo... These guys used to be WAC rivals and haven't played each other since 1998. BYU announced this year that they are trying to be a West Coast Notre Dame and go independent, oops. The Cougars, however, are 3-2 in their last 5 bowl games. And UTEP... well what can I really say about a .500 overall C-USA team? Nothing. Haven't been in the post season since 2005 and have lost their last four bowl games...

Who to watch for:
BYU Freshman QB Jake Heaps- He tossed for 2,052yds and 11TD but he is a far cry from now Arizona backup Max Hall who broke all BYU's passing records.  
UTEP Senior WR Kris Adams- Here is that guy that will be drafted mid-third round in the draft and will be a hidden gem for the team that drafts him. 44rec, 917yds and 11TD to close out his senior campaign.

Outcome? 
It's going to be a snooze but it's still college football. Both 1-5 on the road... both 6-6... both boring... BUT I like the UTEP Miners because of the chance that they spark every so often in the passing game: BYU- 17 UTEP- 27 


uDrove Humanitarian Bowl (Dec 18, 5:30pm, ESPN)
Yet another game that I am sure you are rushing to your TV to watch, and then channel surf, and then fall asleep... Northern Illinois 10-3 on the year and looking for a school record 11th win in this bowl game. The Huskies are 2-3 in bowl games and are entering their third straight bowl. They are 17th in the Nation in rushing and really light up the scoreboard. The Fresno State Bulldogs end the season at 8-4 and this is their 4th straight bowl game. Not really a lot of bells and whistles with this team...

Who to watch for:
NIL Senior RB Chad Spann- Remember that Husky RB that was supposed to light up the NFL? Yeah, neither do I. But, I do like Spann's ability to to grind it out but have enough explosion to rip off long gains. He ended his SR year with 1,293yds and 20TD, solid.
FST Senior QB Ryan Colburn- Like I said before not a lot of 'name brand' players on this Bulldog squad. But, look for their offense to lean on senior leader Colburn in the 4th quarter. He has a nice 21TD-to-9INT ratio this season and could lead Fresno State to a victory.

Outcome?
I hope you took a hint of how I was going predict the final outcome of this game. Somehow the Huskies are only 3pt favorites in this one. NIL have a great running attack and FST allows a terrible 29.2ppg... I'm not a math person by ANY MEANS but come on: NIL- 38 FST-20.


R+L Carriers New Orleans Bowl (Dec 18, 9pm, ESPN)
Two more over .500 teams will clash to maybe get your attention for at least a few seconds between OD'ing on Christmas cookies and trying to keep warm. This match up features Troy who comes in at 7-5 overall, playing in their 3rd R+L Bowl and Ohio whos is 8-4 trying to get the school's first bowl win (they are 0-4). This is the first bowl meeting between these MAC and Sunbelt teams and should be a 'okay' game overall. 

Who to watch for:
Ohio Senior WR Terrence McCrae- 32rec, 481yds and 9TD isn't really ground shattering by any means BUT his 9TD are more than 50% of the teams 16 total passing touchdowns. 
Troy Freshman QB Corey Robertson- 3,320yds, 24TD, 15INT is pretty solid for his freshman. This offense is 13th highest ranked passing attack in the NCAA. 

Outcome?
A hidden stat is that Corey Robertson has been sacked 23 times and if not protected you could watch Troy's offensive weapon implode before your eyes. So, for Ohio to win they need to control the clock and keep to their par rushing attack. Despite that very generic game plan I still think the outcome will be different: Ohio- 24 Troy- 31.   

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