The Courtesy Wave is down to the last 2 posts of previews and predictions. This one will cover the remaining games left except the final and most important game, the BCS National Championship which deserves to stand alone (despite my feelings on the BCS). The Orange and Sugar Bowls provided an offense blowout on one end and a close fought battle on the other. Leaving my predictions split down the middle as Ohio State bucked the Big Ten trend by actually winning a bowl game. So here we go again, at 16-14, the CW will try to stay above .500 on the college bowl season.
Thursday, January 6th
GODADDY.COM BOWL - Miami (OH) (9-4) vs. Middle Tennessee (6-6) 7p in Mobile
Tune in for: The commercials. You know what I'm talking about. Most people only know GoDaddy.com because they're commercials feature scantily clad women pitching...ok I already lost you. Check out Miami's WR Armand Robinson. His 90 receptions place him 10th in the nation and along with MTSU's QB Dwight Dasher (who's having a horrible senior season) are the 2 fringe NFL prospects in a meagerly talented game.
Shortest Drive: Middle Tennessee - An 8 hour drive separates Blue Raider fans from their bowl destination in Mobile. A doable and probably drive as flying probably isn't in the budget.
Local Connections: None
Courtesy Pick: On records and conference I suppose Miami stands out, but not by much. They're horrendous in the rush (96.8/game) and don't score enough points (20.5/game). They had the 107th toughest schedule in college football, but at least they have a conference championship game and ranked opponent win (same game) this year in their conquest over favored #25 Northern Illinois in the MAC title game. Middle Tennessee has to be thanking their lucky stars that they're even in a bowl game. At 6-6 and facing the 165th toughest schedule in the nation, there is no way they deserve a bowl game. 47 FCS teams finished with higher Sagarin rankings than MTSU. But the lack of other eligible teams and the Sun Belt's tie in to this game, gave the Blue Raiders an extra game. If you want to give any edge to MTSU, their biggest win came against Florida International, who did beat MAC's Toledo in the Little Caesar's Bowl. Not too mention the Sun Belt is undefeated in bowls this year with Troy beating another MAC team, Ohio, in the Little Caesar's bowl. Just can't see it happening here.
MIAMI (OH) 27-21
Friday, January 7th
COTTON BOWL - #11 LSU (10-2) vs #17 Texas A&M (9-3) 7p in Arlington, TX
Tune in for: A good ole fashioned southern brawl versus 2 storied programs, 2 top 25 defenses, and a couple 1,000 yard rushers, Stevan Ridley 1,042 (LSU) and Cyrus Gray 1,033 (TX A&M).
Shortest Drive: Texas A&M - A nice little 3.5 hour drive north from College Station will give Aggies fans a local home state advantage. LSU is not far away, but 8 hours is still more than double the drive.
Local Connections: None
Courtesy Pick: Up until their last game, the Tigers were in the discussion for the National Championship. But ultimately their hopes were dashed in the last game versus Arkansas. If LSU wants to look for support from that loss, they just need to look on the other side of the field, as the Aggies too lost to Arkansas this season. That loss was sandwiched by losses to Oklahoma State and Missouri in a 3 game losing streak that kept A&M from being a top 10 team this year. A&M won their last 6 games though, righting the ship, and beating 2 top 10 teams Oklahoma and Nebraska along the way. How LSU will respond after the long break between the tough loss to Arkansas and this game is somewhat of a mystery and harder to predict a win for them.
TEXAS A&M 32-29
Saturday, January 8th
COMPASS BOWL - Pittsburgh (7-5) vs. Kentucky (6-6) 11a in Birmingham
Tune in for: The ultimate Catfight. We will finally find out who wins in a duel between the Panthers and the Wildcats. Although each mascot is quite ambiguous, as a wild cat could literally be a cat that just roams the streets. A Panther can be ambiguous but is likely more ferocious. As far as on the field, I suppose you should check out Kentucky's QB Mike Hartline. His 3,178 yards rank 22nd. He'll have to fend off Pitt's Brandon Lindsey, who's 10 sacks were 2nd best among Big East players and 12th in the country. Kentucky also has wild-man Randall Cobb, a 3 pronged threat. Cobb who has thrown for 3 TD's, rushed for 5 TD's, and caught 7 TD's this season.
Shortest Drive: Kentucky - A 7 hour trek awaits Wildcat fans....that are dying to see their .500 team in this most prestigious of bowls.
Local Connections: None
Courtesy Pick: Pitt faced 1 ranked team this year and lost badly, to Miami (FL) 31-3. Miami went to a bowl, but finished 7-6 and nowhere near the top 25. Pitt's record isn't astonishing, but that goes for most Big East teams in a down season for the conference. The Panthers did finish out 4-2 with both losses coming against Big East 1 & 2 teams Connecticut & West Virginia. Kentucky has just a few quality wins, but they can hold something against Pitt, a win against a ranked team, and a top 10 team at the time in South Carolina. Out of their 6 losses, 5 came against bowl teams and 3 against ranked teams. Pitt actually had a tougher schedule because of the consistency of teams they faced, whereas 4 of Kentucky's wins came against Western Kentucky, Akron, Vanderbilt, and Charleston Southern. However, when it comes to conference strength, the Big East cannot hold a candle (at least this year) to the SEC.
KENTUCKY 33-26
Sunday, January 9th
FIGHT HUNGER BOWL - #15 Nevada (12-1) vs Boston College (7-5) 8p San Francisco
Tune in for: The nation's 3rd best rushing (Nevada) versus the best rushing defense (BC).
Nevada's Vaia Taua and Colin Kaepernick not only have weird names, but are one of the best 1-2 rushing combos in the country. Taua's 1,534 places him 9th, while Kaepernick's 1,184 puts him 28th. But wait, Kaepernick is Nevada's QB, who astonishly has the same number of rushing TD's as passing, 20 each. Furthermore, the game is being played in a baseball stadium, AT&T park, where the World Champion Giants play (wow that sounds odd).
Shortest Drive: Nevada - Just a 4 hour drive for the Wolfpack. A walk in the park considering the drive is shorter than the Boston College's flight.
Local Connections: Boston College - Jordan McMichael TE, Sr. Eden Prairie.
Courtesy Pick: Boston College is here because of their defense, they don't win many games by their offense, despite a 1,000 yard rusher in Montel Harris (21st in nation). A streaky team, BC won the games they we're supposed to and lost against superior competition, including a 5 game losing streak in the middle of the season to Virginia Tech, Notre Dame, NC State, Florida State, and Maryland. The Eagles finished up 5 straight wins, but against bottom ACC teams Clemson, Wake Forest, Duke, Virginia, and Syracuse. Nevada's sole loss came on the road at a place that can be distracting, Hawaii. A 6 point loss to the Warriors separates Nevada from an undefeated season so far. The Wolfpack proved their legitimacy by beating WAC juggernaut Boise State on November 26th 34-31 in OT. This game and their win against Fresno State 35-34 proved that they could win close games too. Their other 10 wins came by an average margin of 27 points.
I don't think they'll need to draw from the Boise State game in this one. It's not going to be close.
NEVADA 42-17
Well we're almost done, only the big one left to decide. Check back Sunday for the BCS National Championship Preview as Oregon takes on Auburn. Until then, take care of yourself and watch those icy steps.
bsv
the courtesy wave
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