Its all even steven at the Courtesy Wave after the first 4 bowls as my picks garnered a 2-2 record. It's early and there are several bowls to go and if the end result is a .500 record, well then I'd take it, just enough to stay afloat and maintain my "expert commentary" status.
Without further ado, lets keep bowling with today's game.
Wednesday, December 22nd
LAS VEGAS BOWL - 10 Boise State (11-1) vs. 19 Utah (10-2) 7p in Las Vegas
Tune in for: Quite possibly the best non-BCS matchup. These two teams represent the class of the WAC and MWC for the past decade. Both teams have fought vigourously for respect among the nation's elite programs despite playing in non-power conferences. However with the Big East crumbling and more parity in college football, these 2 teams likely could hold a candle in any power conference. This will be a swan song for each team as Boise State heads to the MWC and Utah to the PAC 10 next year.
Shortest Drive: Utah - Neither team is really close, but the drive from Salt Lake City is 4 hours less than from Boise (7 over 11 hours). However, it's likely Utah has a bunch of fans all over the state as the de facto state team and it's only a 2 hour drive to the Vegas from the border.
Local Connections: Boise State - Matt Slater is a senior Offensive Tackle and starter out of Cretin Derham Hall. At 290 he's not huge by offensive line standards, but he's quick and agile, a big plus for an offense like Boise State's.
Courtesy Pick: Boise State is a 3 point overtime loss on the road against #15 Nevada away from being in TCU's position and a BCS bowl game. Their 31 points in that game was the lowest scored on the season for an offense ranked 2nd in the country in points scored. Utah was 8-0 heading into their highly anticipated matchup with fellow undefeated TCU. They were utterly destroyed in that game 47-7, then embarrased the following week to a weak Notre Dame team 28-3. They rebounded, albeit not impressively with close wins over San Diego State (38-34) and BYU (17-16). Boise State rebounded much better demolishing Utah State 50-14. That and Heisman candidate Kellen Moore and not to mention a top 5 defense should push the Broncos past the Utes.
BOISE STATE 42-21
Thursday, December 23rd
POINSETTIA BOWL - Navy (9-3) vs San Diego State (8-4) 7p in San Diego
Tune in for: A great battle between 2 evenly matched teams as they were only .12 away from each other in the Sagarin ratings, SDSU 44th and Navy 46th. Furthermore both teams have huge area ties as the Naval Base Point Loma holds 22,000 Navy and civilian personal, giving Navy a home away from home (Annapolis, MD).
Shortest Drive: San Diego State. Naval Base aside, this is the Aztec's backyard, almost literally, San Diego State will have a 3 mile bus ride to the stadium. Fans can take a nice leisurely walk if they want. If Navy didn't have their base, this would be a huge advantage, but as it is, it's still a big swing for SDSU.
Local Connections: None
Courtesy Pick: It's a matchup of two teams who score nearly the same amount of points each game (31-35), but go about it 2 very different ways. Navy's 289 yards/game rushing attack easily double's their pass offense (118 yards/game). Whereas San Diego State's passing game (297 yards/game) nearly doubles their ground game (152 yards/game). The Aztec's WR's Vincent Brown and DeMarco Sampson are 8th and 10th in the country in receiving yards, which actually ranks them 2nd behind Hawaii's amazing 1st and 6th best WR in the nation. (I'll touch on that below)
SAN DIEGO STATE: 35-31
Friday, December 24th
HAWAII BOWL - 24 Hawaii (10-3) vs Tulsa (9-3) 7p in Honolulu
Tune in for: A passing frenzy! The Warriors of Hawaii are #1 in all of college football with a whopping 388 yards/game. QB Bryant Moniz leads the nation with 4,629 yards, just another great passer from Hawaii, following in the recent footsteps of Timmy Chang and Colt Brennan. The Warriors don't run a lot, but they do have a 1,000 yard rusher in Alex Green (26th in nation).
Shortest Drive: Hawaii - And you thought San Diego had a short trip. The Warriors actually have no trip, they will play on campus because of the Hawaii guarantee. If Hawaii is bowl eligible and not BCS eligible, they are guaranteed one of the 2 bowl spots. The Golden Hurricane will have a much longer trip. Actually if you Google map the trip between Tulsa and Honolulu, it'll only take you 16 days, that includes Kayaking for 2,750 miles. No really, try it yourself.
Local Connections: None
Courtesy Pick: Tulsa may not be as flashy as Hawaii, but they are consistent. They like to spread the ball around and have a top 20 offense in both the air and on the ground. Neither team has had a daunting schedule, but Hawaii can claim Nevada's only loss this season and since starting the season 1-2, the Warriors have gone 9-1. That and the obvious home field advantage play well into the hands of Hawaii.
HAWAII 42-31
Sunday, December 26th
LITTLE CAESAR'S BOWL-Toledo (8-4) vs. Florida International (6-6) 7:30p Detroit
Tune in for: The only bowl game on the 26th! It's Sunday and if you want a break from the NFL because your team (Vikings) are completely out of it, tune in to watch 2 teams fight for it in the Pizza Bowl. Actually, for these 2 teams, any Bowl game is special and a chance to win a trophy will be huge motivation for teams that get little to no attention or press all year (especially FIU).
Shortest Drive: Toledo. Figuratively by a mile. The Rockets will have a huge home advantage being only an hour away from their campus, whereas the Golden Panthers of FIU will be traveling by plane unless they want to sit in a bus for 23 hours.
Local Connections: None
Courtesy Pick: The MAC may not be a power conference, but when compared to the Sun Belt, it might as well be. The Sun Belt is by far the worst conference in FBS College Football, so winning it, as FIU did, isn't necessarily a big feat. However, it is for FIU which is playing in its first ever Bowl game. They should also get some credit for playing their first 4 games (all losses) against Rutgers, Texas A&M, Maryland, and Pittsburgh. Toledo did win on the road against Purdue, a tough thing to do regardless of Purdue's 4-8 record. The numbers aren't as far off as you think, but its tough to put a Sun Belt team on top.
TOLEDO 28-27
Monday, December 27th
INDEPENDENCE BOWL - Air Force (8-4) vs Georgia Tech (6-6) 4p in Shreveport, LA
Tune in for: AKA the Rushing/Ground Game Bowl! The #1 and #2 rushing attacks in the country face off in this game. Georgia Tech covers 327 yards/game on the ground and Air Force goes for 318/game. Usually when teams are so heavy in one facet they don't carry a tune in the other. Such is the case here too as these teams *combine* to average 207 yards per game and Georgia Tech is a pitiful 88 yards of that. The Yellow Jackets QB Josh Nesbitt actually ran for more yards than he passed this year (737 rush, 674 pass).
Shortest Drive: Georgia Tech - Neither team has much of an advantage. Air Force is out of Colorado Springs, but really they have bases all over the place and its hard rooting against the military (or is it?). The Yellow Jackets fans have a 10 hour plight from Atlanta, more doable (16 hrs from CO) but it'll take a lot of coffee and gumbo.
Local Connections: Air Force - Alex Means LB, Sophomore, Mankato. Wally Wykstrom (awesome name) DT, Senior, Saint Paul. Eric Soderberg WR, Junior, Eden Prairie.
Courtesy Pick: Georgia Tech is reeling having lost 4 of 5 with the one win against lowly Duke. In fact the Yellow Jackets cannot claim one of their wins against a team going to a bowl game. Air Force, however, can claim victories over bowl teams BYU, Navy, and Army. If they beat Air Force, they can pull off the military trifecta, beating all 3 military service teams (the Coast Guard and Salvation Army don't have teams).
AIR FORCE 32-28
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