TicketCity Bowl Preview:  Penn State vs Houston

The TicketCity Bowl organizers did what no one else was willing to do.  Invite Penn State to play in their bowl game.  Kudos to the organizers for having the courage to take the gamble.  The off the field stuff does not involve these players and they should not be penalized for it.  As for their opponent, well the organizers stumbled into that one.  Houston appeared to be on the verge of a BCS game until their conference championship collapse.  Now they are thrust into a lesser bowl but against a historic program that is sure to test their passing game.   Read the rest of this entry →

AKA: We need a new Coach Bowl

Both Illinois and UCLA come in to this came with records near the 500 mark.  That explains why both teams will have new coaches come next season and the men that coached them through 2011 won’t be on the sidelines for this game.  Illinois finished the year at 6-6 but suffered through a brutal 2-6 Big Ten Conference record.  UCLA brings a 6-7 record into this Bowl game and finished the year with a 5-4 record in the Pac-12.  Neither team particularly stands out for this one so this may just be one of those bowl games that turns into a nice surprise with a great game.  Then again it could be just what it looks like.  Two middle of the pack teams getting a bowl invite so their alums could spend money on a trip and the universities could do a little recruiting.  I suspect the latter and have already reserved my tee time.   Read the rest of this entry →

Hyundai Sun Bowl – 2pm 12/31 El Paso, TX

Predicted Finish:  Georgia Tech 42 vs. Utah 24

The Yellow jackets led all of the NCAA in points scored through the first half of the season, which is a huge deal considering some of the extremely potent offenses out there in the college landscape. The thing that is even more impressive about that feat is the fact that they were getting it done through the air as often as they were on the ground. The Utes on the other hand were the complete opposite of that. They struggled to score earlier in the season, but found their stride by mid-season and averaged just over 30 points per game during the second half of the year.

Tech still runs the triple option, which means that we will see somewhere around 50 – 55 run plays divided pretty evenly between RB Orwin Smith, RB Roddy Jones, and field General, QB Tevin Washington. The aerial assault will most likely focus around WR Stephen Hill who started the year with back-to-back breakout performances. Utah runs a much more balanced attack on offense led by juniors QB Jon Hayes and RB John White IV.

Georgia Tech’s defense has been hit or miss this season under Al Groh, but when they have been on, they have played lights out. Utah’s defense is average at best and will have a hard time stopping the run.

Franklin American Mortgage Music City Bowl – 6:40pm 12/30 Nashville, TN

Predicted finish:  Mississippi State 30 vs. Wake Forest 28

This is a matchup that could provide some excitement. With both teams having a 6-6 record, they barely met their bowl eligibility, but both teams have a unique offense that could be fun to watch. Both teams are better than their records show, which is why I think this could be the best bowl game that no one watches.

Wake’s QB Tanner Price made tremendous strides in just his sophomore year, keeping his team in all but two games. The defense is what really let this team down. The running game, lead by Brandon Pendergrass, should find some decent running lanes in this one, and watch for stud WR Chris Givens to give the Bulldogs fits all day long.

Mississippi State’s QB Chris Relf is a dual-threat QB that is better at running than he is throwing, so we will most certainly see some heavy doses of QB Tyler Russell on obvious passing downs. Mississippi State’s biggest threat on offense is senior running back Vick Ballard, who ran for 1,009 yards this season and has scored 29 total touchdowns over the past two years.

I see this one coming down to a last minute drive ending in a long field goal attempt for the win. Whether that is Miss. St making it for the win or Wake Forest missing it for the loss is what we all will have to watch and see.

Twenty-one years ago, a boy was born in the Okinawa Prefecture in the distant land of Japan. His parents, both sergeants in the United States Army, raised him to be strong, tough, wily — a survivor. At age 7, he killed his first bear, the skin of which he would use to stay warm during the coldest of winter nights. By the time he was 12, he had taught himself to break the code used by the Japanese military and used it to launch guerrilla raids on their supply lines, stealing vital medical supplies that he would use to treat his family as they waited for the 61st division to return to find them. Help never came.

In 2008, on the 4th of July, that boy began his pilgrimage to his homeland. The Pacific Ocean was a long swim, but he had been preparing for this for his whole life. Two months later, he arrived in Waco, Texas.

Robert Griffin III is the perfect hipster. When he listens to a band, everyone else forgets they ever existed. He has the ability to turn water into wine, but he prefers to drink PBR. His favorite number is the number J. Superman wears an entire outfit modeled after the socks RG3 wore to receive his Heisman Trophy. Read the rest of this entry →