gpikeNew Years Day Bowl Games
December 31st 2010 00:38
Six bowl games on New Years day this year. Starting off the action is the TicketCity Bowl, with the Fiesta Bowl finishing the day.
TicketCity Bowl: Northwestern(7-5) versus Texas Tech (7-5) to kickstart the day and year. Texas Tech loves to throw the football even with new coach Tommy Tuberville at the helm. Northwestern will have their hands full.
Texas Tech quarterback Taylor Potts leads the way with 31 touchdowns and nine interceptions. Potts has 3,357 yards on the year for the prolific Red Raiders offense. Lyle Leuong and Detron Lewis are the two main threats Potts uses. Lewis has 79 catches and Leuong 64 for the offense. An somewhat balanced attack begins with Baron Batch who went for 809 yards.
Redshirt Freshman quarterback Evan Watkins leads the Wildcats out onto the field. Watkins stepped in for starter Dan Persa after he went down with an achilles injury. Watkins has three touchdowns and five interceptions in the last three games of the year. Leading Big-10 receiver Jeremy Ebert is the number one target. Ebert has 59 catches for 919 yards. Northwestern may play without their top three running backs in the game who are all down with injury. This puts more pressure on Watkins.
The Red Raiders are used to outscoring their opponents, here they play a team who is lacking players on the offensive side. The Red Raiders win easily and add to the Wildcats dismay of not winning a bowl game ever.
Capital One Bowl: A classic Big-10 and SEC matchup with Michigan State (11-1) and Alabama (9-3) facing off. The Spartans just lost out on winning the Big-10 on criteria to Wisconsin. Ohio State also tied, and earned a Sugar Bowl berth. Alabama had some struggles on the year after winning it all. But nearly everyone remains on the team from last years club. This game has the makings of being one to watch.
Michigan State quarterback Kirk Cousins was a big part of the teams success early on in the season. A slump to end the year includes five interceptions in the teams final four games. Cousins has still thrown for 2,705 yards this year. Running back Edwin Baker is third in the Big-10 in rushing with 1.187 yards. B.J. Cunningham and Mark Dell are Cousins favorite targets, both guys have 50 catches. Cunningham is out for the game after breaking his foot in practice, hampering the Spartans even more.
Alabama's rushing defense is one of the best in the country. Quarterback Greg McElroy has 29 touchdowns on the year, and running backs Mark Ingram and Trent Richardson make up the balanced attack. Ingram has rushed for 816 yards and Richardson 658 on the season. Receiver Julio Jones is the go-to guy threw the air, leading Alabama with 75 catches on 1,084 yards.
Michigan State needs something out of Baker to compete here. Putting too much pressure on Cousins isn't something the Spartans want to do. Alabama will rebound after a tough loss to Auburn and get that 10th win on the year.
Outback Bowl: Two great coaches in NCAA history face off. Florida coach Urban Meyer and Penn State coach Joe Paterno. Both teams have struggled this season with 7-5 marks on the season. Florida's losing Tim Tebow to graduation hurt the team all season long. Penn State didn't have too much expected out of them.
The Nittany Lions attack begins with running back Evan Royster who has 916 yards on the year. Sophomore quarterback Matt McGloin threw for 13 touchdowns after coming in for ineffective Robert Boldin midway through the season.
Quarterback John Brantley had problems living up to his
billing and replacing Tebow was just too much for anyone to ask. Brantley was okay for Florida, but not good enough as other guys have gotten some looks for the Gators. Brantley has 20 touchdowns on the year. Running back Jeff Demps has 516 yards on the year.
Neither team has really spectacular players which is something of an oddity for their storied traditions. Florida is coming into the game giving up 67 points in the last two games while going getting 21 out of their offense. This game promises to be low scoring with defenses being the key. Florida won't want Meyer to leave on a losing note as he is stepping down after this contest. Florida wins.
Gator Bowl: The Michigan Wolverines and Rich Rodrieguz return to bowl game action taking on Mississippi State from the SEC in Florida. Michigan (7-5) began the year looking like a team to beat, only to begin Big-10 play and once again come down to life. Mississippi State has hovered around the top-25 all year, and will provide a stiff test for the Wolverines.
Michigan lives and dies with Denard Robinson. At the start of the season, Robinson was the main reason the Wolverines cracked the top-25. He was mentioned as the top Heisman canidate. But this quickly evaporated. Robinson can beat you with his arms or legs going for 2,316 yards passing and 1,643 yards rushing on the year. Roy Roundtree has 63 catches on the year tops for Michigan. The Wolverines defense has been their acchiles on the year, which doesn't bode well for the team here.
Mississippi State features a great ground attack with quarterback Chris Relf and Vick Ballard as key players. Relf also has ten touchdowns passing on the year. The Mississippi State defense has the guys who can contain Robinson, as they shut down Auburn quarterback Cam Newton earlier this year.
Mississippi State needs to somewhat contain Robinson to get a good headstart on the game. They have the guys to do this. Mississippi State earns a good win here. Michigan will fight to the end.
Rose Bowl: The consolation prize or third place game with Wisconsin and TCU facing off. TCU is the other unbeaten team to go with Auburn and Oregon. Wisconsin at 11-1 dominated Big-10 play running the score up in games. Nows time for the game.
TCU (12-0) doesn't get the publicity that Oregon and Auburn get being in the Mountain West. But being unbeaten earns you a chance at something, and that something is the Big-10 champ. Quarterback Andy Dalton is the MVP for the Horned Frogs. If he struggles which he doesn't do often, TCU is in trouble. Dalton has thrown for 26 touchdowns and six interceptions for 2,638 yards. His favorite target is Jeremy Kerley who leads the Frogs in receptions with 50. Ed Wesley balances out the offense just topping the 1000 yard mark on the year. The TCU defense is number one in the country, going giving up an average of 11 points per game. Some gaudy numbers with the team only giving up 126 yards of passing a game and 215 total yards. TCU is winning by an average of 32 points per game.
Wisconsin is TCU's mirror image. Great defense, super good offense lead by star quarterback and running back. Scott Tolzien won the Unitas award as the nations top quarterback by going for 2,300 yards for the Badgers. He completes 74 percent of his passes, tops in the nation. Two running back machine of James White and John Clay are both around the 1000 yard rushing mark. Wisconsin scored 70 points twice this year and 83 points once.
This game promises to be a great game. Neither team has an clear advantage over the other. The TCU defense will be put to the test versus the high scoring Wisconsin offense. TCU offense will have to be the key here. If Dalton has a huge game, TCU wins, if he struggles a tad, Wisconsin wins.
Fiesta Bowl: Connecticut made it to the BCS by merit of winning the Big East. Oklahoma won the Big-12, the much stronger of the two conferences. On paper this game is a blowout. Lets break it down a little.
Connecticut's star on offense is running back Jordan Todman who is amongst the nations elite with 1,574 yards on the ground. Todman needs 200 yards for Connecticut to stand a chance. Quarterback Zack Fraser has only five touchdowns on the year for the Huskies who differ to Todman most of the time.
Oklahoma can beat you through the air or pass with quarterback Landry Jones going for 35 touchdowns on the year, and DeMarco Murray rushing for 1,121 yards. Wideout Ryan Broles has 118 receptions on the year as Jones's favorite target.
The Sooners on both sides of the ball should dominate Connecticut. The Huskies need Todman to have a big game and something from Fraser to stay close. Connecticut is happy to be at the Fiesta Bowl just making the jump to Division 1, in 2004. They are in for a nightmarish night in Arizona
TicketCity Bowl: Northwestern(7-5) versus Texas Tech (7-5) to kickstart the day and year. Texas Tech loves to throw the football even with new coach Tommy Tuberville at the helm. Northwestern will have their hands full.
Texas Tech quarterback Taylor Potts leads the way with 31 touchdowns and nine interceptions. Potts has 3,357 yards on the year for the prolific Red Raiders offense. Lyle Leuong and Detron Lewis are the two main threats Potts uses. Lewis has 79 catches and Leuong 64 for the offense. An somewhat balanced attack begins with Baron Batch who went for 809 yards.
Redshirt Freshman quarterback Evan Watkins leads the Wildcats out onto the field. Watkins stepped in for starter Dan Persa after he went down with an achilles injury. Watkins has three touchdowns and five interceptions in the last three games of the year. Leading Big-10 receiver Jeremy Ebert is the number one target. Ebert has 59 catches for 919 yards. Northwestern may play without their top three running backs in the game who are all down with injury. This puts more pressure on Watkins.
The Red Raiders are used to outscoring their opponents, here they play a team who is lacking players on the offensive side. The Red Raiders win easily and add to the Wildcats dismay of not winning a bowl game ever.
Capital One Bowl: A classic Big-10 and SEC matchup with Michigan State (11-1) and Alabama (9-3) facing off. The Spartans just lost out on winning the Big-10 on criteria to Wisconsin. Ohio State also tied, and earned a Sugar Bowl berth. Alabama had some struggles on the year after winning it all. But nearly everyone remains on the team from last years club. This game has the makings of being one to watch.
Michigan State quarterback Kirk Cousins was a big part of the teams success early on in the season. A slump to end the year includes five interceptions in the teams final four games. Cousins has still thrown for 2,705 yards this year. Running back Edwin Baker is third in the Big-10 in rushing with 1.187 yards. B.J. Cunningham and Mark Dell are Cousins favorite targets, both guys have 50 catches. Cunningham is out for the game after breaking his foot in practice, hampering the Spartans even more.
Alabama's rushing defense is one of the best in the country. Quarterback Greg McElroy has 29 touchdowns on the year, and running backs Mark Ingram and Trent Richardson make up the balanced attack. Ingram has rushed for 816 yards and Richardson 658 on the season. Receiver Julio Jones is the go-to guy threw the air, leading Alabama with 75 catches on 1,084 yards.
Michigan State needs something out of Baker to compete here. Putting too much pressure on Cousins isn't something the Spartans want to do. Alabama will rebound after a tough loss to Auburn and get that 10th win on the year.
Outback Bowl: Two great coaches in NCAA history face off. Florida coach Urban Meyer and Penn State coach Joe Paterno. Both teams have struggled this season with 7-5 marks on the season. Florida's losing Tim Tebow to graduation hurt the team all season long. Penn State didn't have too much expected out of them.
The Nittany Lions attack begins with running back Evan Royster who has 916 yards on the year. Sophomore quarterback Matt McGloin threw for 13 touchdowns after coming in for ineffective Robert Boldin midway through the season.
Quarterback John Brantley had problems living up to his
billing and replacing Tebow was just too much for anyone to ask. Brantley was okay for Florida, but not good enough as other guys have gotten some looks for the Gators. Brantley has 20 touchdowns on the year. Running back Jeff Demps has 516 yards on the year.
Neither team has really spectacular players which is something of an oddity for their storied traditions. Florida is coming into the game giving up 67 points in the last two games while going getting 21 out of their offense. This game promises to be low scoring with defenses being the key. Florida won't want Meyer to leave on a losing note as he is stepping down after this contest. Florida wins.
Gator Bowl: The Michigan Wolverines and Rich Rodrieguz return to bowl game action taking on Mississippi State from the SEC in Florida. Michigan (7-5) began the year looking like a team to beat, only to begin Big-10 play and once again come down to life. Mississippi State has hovered around the top-25 all year, and will provide a stiff test for the Wolverines.
Michigan lives and dies with Denard Robinson. At the start of the season, Robinson was the main reason the Wolverines cracked the top-25. He was mentioned as the top Heisman canidate. But this quickly evaporated. Robinson can beat you with his arms or legs going for 2,316 yards passing and 1,643 yards rushing on the year. Roy Roundtree has 63 catches on the year tops for Michigan. The Wolverines defense has been their acchiles on the year, which doesn't bode well for the team here.
Mississippi State features a great ground attack with quarterback Chris Relf and Vick Ballard as key players. Relf also has ten touchdowns passing on the year. The Mississippi State defense has the guys who can contain Robinson, as they shut down Auburn quarterback Cam Newton earlier this year.
Mississippi State needs to somewhat contain Robinson to get a good headstart on the game. They have the guys to do this. Mississippi State earns a good win here. Michigan will fight to the end.
Rose Bowl: The consolation prize or third place game with Wisconsin and TCU facing off. TCU is the other unbeaten team to go with Auburn and Oregon. Wisconsin at 11-1 dominated Big-10 play running the score up in games. Nows time for the game.
TCU (12-0) doesn't get the publicity that Oregon and Auburn get being in the Mountain West. But being unbeaten earns you a chance at something, and that something is the Big-10 champ. Quarterback Andy Dalton is the MVP for the Horned Frogs. If he struggles which he doesn't do often, TCU is in trouble. Dalton has thrown for 26 touchdowns and six interceptions for 2,638 yards. His favorite target is Jeremy Kerley who leads the Frogs in receptions with 50. Ed Wesley balances out the offense just topping the 1000 yard mark on the year. The TCU defense is number one in the country, going giving up an average of 11 points per game. Some gaudy numbers with the team only giving up 126 yards of passing a game and 215 total yards. TCU is winning by an average of 32 points per game.
Wisconsin is TCU's mirror image. Great defense, super good offense lead by star quarterback and running back. Scott Tolzien won the Unitas award as the nations top quarterback by going for 2,300 yards for the Badgers. He completes 74 percent of his passes, tops in the nation. Two running back machine of James White and John Clay are both around the 1000 yard rushing mark. Wisconsin scored 70 points twice this year and 83 points once.
This game promises to be a great game. Neither team has an clear advantage over the other. The TCU defense will be put to the test versus the high scoring Wisconsin offense. TCU offense will have to be the key here. If Dalton has a huge game, TCU wins, if he struggles a tad, Wisconsin wins.
Fiesta Bowl: Connecticut made it to the BCS by merit of winning the Big East. Oklahoma won the Big-12, the much stronger of the two conferences. On paper this game is a blowout. Lets break it down a little.
Connecticut's star on offense is running back Jordan Todman who is amongst the nations elite with 1,574 yards on the ground. Todman needs 200 yards for Connecticut to stand a chance. Quarterback Zack Fraser has only five touchdowns on the year for the Huskies who differ to Todman most of the time.
Oklahoma can beat you through the air or pass with quarterback Landry Jones going for 35 touchdowns on the year, and DeMarco Murray rushing for 1,121 yards. Wideout Ryan Broles has 118 receptions on the year as Jones's favorite target.
The Sooners on both sides of the ball should dominate Connecticut. The Huskies need Todman to have a big game and something from Fraser to stay close. Connecticut is happy to be at the Fiesta Bowl just making the jump to Division 1, in 2004. They are in for a nightmarish night in Arizona
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