December 29th & 30th - 4 bowls

Now we get into the meat of the bowl season with 16 games in the next four days. Let's recap the bowls thus far...

Of the 11 games that have been played, 7 have been decided by a touchdown or less, and 5 of those seven were by a field goal or less. Even though the matchups haven't seemed glamourous on paper, the games themselves are proving to be pretty damn entertaining.

The Mountain West is 4-0, already beginning to run away with the title of most successful bowl season, and the conference runner-up Air Force hasn't even played yet.

As far as my predictions go, I'm a blistering 10 of 11 straight up and an average 6 of 11 against the spread. Let's try to keep that up, shall we?

the Meineke Car Care Bowl Saturday, December 29th, 1:00pm Charlotte, North Carolina
Connecticut (9-3)_____Big East____232.43				Wake Forest (8-4)______ACC_____245.34
Week	Opponent	oPts	Res, Score	Week	Opponent	oPts	Res, Score
9	South Florida	316.42	W, 22-15	7	Florida State	200.76	W, 24-21
10	Rutgers	146.23	W, 38-19	4	Maryland	134.68	W, 31-24
8	Louisville	106.21	W, 21-17	8	@ Navy	111.26	W, 44-24
4	@ Pittsburgh	76.94	W, 34-14	13	@ Vanderbilt	81.36	W, 31-17
5	Akron	-140.28	W, 44-10	12	North Carolina State	34.24	W, 38-18
3	Temple	-154.46	W, 22-17	9	North Carolina	7.58	W, 37-10
12	Syracuse	-156.53	W, 30-7	3	Army	-176.10	W, 21-10
1	@ Duke	-205.27	W, 45-14	6	@ Duke	-205.27	W, 41-36
2	Maine	-	W, 38-0	1	@ Boston College	313.79	L, 28-38
13	@ West Virginia	364.93	L, 21-66	11	@ Clemson	293.25	L, 10-44
11	@ Cincinnati	298.97	L, 3-27	10	@ Virginia	254.75	L, 16-17
7	@ Virginia	254.75	L, 16-17	2	Nebraska	29.14	L, 17-20

The Huskies & Demon Deacons are pretty evenly matched with their schedules. Wake might have a slight edge in having beaten tougher competition, but Connecticut's 3 losses were to teams at the top of the rankings.

Wake struggled at the beginning of the season, Connecticut at the end. Advantage Wake.

Intangibles: The game is in Charlotte, less than 2 hours from Wake Forest.

The Line: Connecticut +2

The Story: This has been a great season for the Huskies, and though it's not as good as last season's BCS appearance for Wake, 8-4 is nothing to frown at. Who will get the boost heading into next season?

The Call: Wake Forest by 6

The Result: Wake Forest 24-10 = Nice adjustment in the second half by the Demon Deacons - solid game overall.

the Liberty Bowl Saturday, December 29th, 4:30pm Memphis, Tennessee
Mississippi State (7-5)______SEC_____191.93				UCF (10-3)_____Conf USA____266.42
Week	Opponent	oPts	Res, Score	Week	Opponent	oPts	Res, Score
3	@ Auburn	294.68	W, 19-14	8	Tulsa	164.04	W, 44-23
9	@ Kentucky	208.61	W, 31-14	14	Tulsa	164.04	W, 44-25
11	Alabama	183.77	W, 17-12	9	@ Southern Mississippi	53.31	W, 34-17
13	Mississippi	-39.22	W, 17-14	1	@ North Carolina State	34.24	W, 25-23
2	@ Tulane	-144.98	W, 38-17	4	Memphis	21.53	W, 56-20
6	Alabama-Birmingham	-232.53	W, 30-13	13	Texas-El Paso	-110.58	W, 36-20
4	Gardner-Webb	-	W, 31-15	10	Marshall	-158.83	W, 47-13
1	Louisiana State	460.13	L, 0-45	5	Louisiana-Lafayette	-210.36	W, 37-19
8	@ West Virginia	364.93	L, 13-38	11	@ Alabama-Birmingham	-232.53	W, 45-31
7	Tennessee	349.37	L, 21-33	12	@ Southern Methodist	-292.91	W, 49-20
12	Arkansas	294.50	L, 31-45	7	@ South Florida	316.42	L, 12-64
5	@ South Carolina	163.22	L, 21-38	3	Texas	275.96	L, 32-35
				6	@ East Carolina	89.72	L, 38-52

It's been a solid year for the Bulldogs, and even more so for the Golden Knights. Neither team has a real bad loss (UCF's to East Carolina might have looked bad in the middle of the season, but those Pirates just beat up on 10-2 Boise State). Mississippi State has the edge in wins, beating Auburn & Kentucky.

UCF is on a streak, not having lost since week 7.

The Line: Mississippi State +3

The Story: Can Kevin Smith break the season rushing record? If he does, the Knights should have the game easily in hand. If the Bulldogs can slow him down, their experience should help them keep it close.

The Call: UCF by 7

The Result: Mississippi State 10-3 = You can't help but feel good for Sylvester Croom & the Bulldogs. Not the most exciting game, as most of theirs have been this season, but they got the job done.

the Alamo Bowl Saturday, December 29th, 8:00pm San Antonia, Texas
Penn State (8-4)______Big 10_____238.54				Texas A&M (7-5)______Big 12_____130.38
Week	Opponent	oPts	Res, Score	Week	Opponent	oPts	Res, Score
7	Wisconsin	234.68	W, 38-7	13	Texas	275.96	W, 38-30
8	@ Indiana	133.65	W, 36-31	2	Fresno State	151.92	W, 47-45
10	Purdue	126.73	W, 26-19	6	Oklahoma State	112.55	W, 24-23
6	Iowa	72.08	W, 27-7	8	@ Nebraska	29.14	W, 36-14
3	Buffalo	-89.68	W, 45-24	3	Louisiana-Monroe	-29.37	W, 54-14
2	Notre Dame	-135.92	W, 31-10	5	Baylor	-139.20	W, 34-10
11	@ Temple	-154.46	W, 31-0	1	Montana State	-	W, 38-7
1	Florida International	-322.15	W, 59-0	10	@ Oklahoma	409.00	L, 14-42
9	Ohio State	403.68	L, 17-37	11	@ Missouri	331.01	L, 26-40
5	@ Illinois	331.14	L, 20-27	9	Kansas	322.17	L, 11-19
4	@ Michigan	235.72	L, 9-14	7	@ Texas Tech	195.22	L, 7-35
12	@ Michigan State	196.40	L, 31-35	4	@ Miami (Florida)	46.59	L, 17-34

Pretty similar records. The Aggies loss to Miami is the only blemish.

Both teams have had an up and down year, but the Nittany Lions are finishing on top.

Intangibles: Texas A&M is interim'd, but losing Fran might not be a bad thing. Has a weight been lifted? Which A&M team will show up?

The Line: Texas A&M +5.5

The Story: JoPa's 500th game. That's quite a few.

The Call: Penn State by 10

The Result: Penn State 24-17 = The Big 10 is holding their own so far this bowl season.

the Independence Bowl Sunday, December 30th, 8:00pm Shreveport, Louisiana
Colorado (6-6)______Big 12_____93.37				Alabama (6-6)______SEC_____183.77
Week	Opponent	oPts	Res, Score	Week	Opponent	oPts	Res, Score
5	Oklahoma	409.00	W, 27-24	8	Tennessee	349.37	W, 41-17
9	@ Texas Tech	195.22	W, 31-26	3	Arkansas	294.50	W, 41-38
13	Nebraska	29.14	W, 65-51	6	Houston	111.86	W, 30-24
4	Miami (Ohio)	-62.84	W, 42-0	2	@ Vanderbilt	81.36	W, 24-10
1	Colorado State	-109.69	W, 31-28	7	@ Mississippi	-39.22	W, 27-24
6	@ Baylor	-139.20	W, 43-23	1	Western Carolina	-	W, 52-6
10	Missouri	331.01	L, 10-55	10	Louisiana State	460.13	L, 34-41
8	Kansas	322.17	L, 14-19	4	Georgia	412.72	L, 23-26
2	Arizona State	241.74	L, 14-33	13	@ Auburn	294.68	L, 10-17
3	Florida State	200.76	L, 6-16	5	Florida State	200.76	L, 14-21
7	@ Kansas State	43.11	L, 20-47	11	@ Mississippi State	191.93	L, 12-17
11	@ Iowa State	-155.31	L, 28-31	12	Louisiana-Monroe	-29.37	L, 14-21

This matchup looks good in name recognition, but it's been a real down year for both these teams. Well, Colorado improved on their 2-10 season from last year. I guess that's something. Losses to Iowa State and Louisiana-Monroe, respectively, are pathetic.

Don't let that even red line in the last few weeks of the season fool you - the Crimson Tide dropped their last 4 games of the season. (The reason they didn't drop more is because the teams they played earlier in the season kept winning and the SEC as a whole won games.)

Intangibles: Saban. Back in Louisiana. This should be good.

The Line: Colorado +3.5

The Story: Can the Buffs pull together the magic that helped them beat Oklahoma? Or will Bama set up a solid start to next season?

The Call: Alabama by 7

The Result: Alabama 30-24 = Right on the money.