Hey everyone, I hope you're all ready for another great couple days of football as we lead up to the New Year's Eve Semifinals and other big bowl games! This post has my picks for today's 4 bowl games. I plan to have my reflection of the Husker Game and tomorrow's picks up later today/early tomorrow. Comment if you'd like my reflection on any team and how their bowl game/season went. Thank you & GO BIG RED!
Lockheed Martin Armed Forces Bowl
California (7-5) vs. Air Force (8-5)
This match-up puts Jared Goff's "Golden Arm" against the Falcons rushing attack. Cal's season seemed to crash and burn for a while after the Utah loss where Goff threw 5 interceptions (a few of them tipped). The Golden Bear's lost 4 straight including the Utah loss, and Goff had 8 picks over those 4 games. However, he has thrown for over 4200 yards this season along with a 37:13 TD to INT ratio. Neither defense is going to be able to stop the other team's offense in this one, so I think there will be a good amount of points in this game. Air Force's best chance to win is to keep the ball away from Jared Goff. Their ground attack can cause havoc for teams, and Cal doesn't have the defense to stop them. I think that this one will be fairly close, but I have the Golden Bears winning this game 38-31.
Russel Athletic Bowl
10 North Carolina (10-2) vs. 17 Baylor (9-3)
This game will be a very fun one to watch. I had Baylor as my Dark Horse to sneak into the playoffs with Seth Russel at the helm, and even while Jared Stidham was playing, but losing all of their QBs has caused problems for the Bears. Their defense has fallen off the past few games as well, and it seems like they just broke after the Oklahoma loss. UNC has been fighting all season to prove that they should be in the big bowl conversation. They nearly knocked off Clemson in the ACC championship, but a bad offsides call cost them the chance for a big upset. These two teams are very high-powered on offense and struggle to stop much of anything on defense. I expect a lot of points to be scored in this game, especially being played in Orlando. I would love to see the Bears fight back and prove their season wasn't a complete fluke, but I think they'll have to wait until Seth Russel comes back next season. There is going to be a lot of yards in this game, but Tar Heels squeek by in this one 52-44.
Nova Home Loans Arizona Bowl
Nevada (6-6) vs. Colorado State (7-5)
I'm not really a fan of putting two teams from the same conference against each other in the bowl game together, but since they haven't played this season, I'll let it go. I was disappointed with Rashard Higgins this season as he only caught 66 passes for 933 and 8 TDs. I thought that he was going to have a much bigger season after his Sophomore year where he 96 catches for 1750 yards and 17 TDs. Apparently Jim McElwain took a lot of the passing game with him down to Gainesville. Nevada really doesn't have much to talk about with their team. They have a very strong rushing attack, and will look to control the clock. Their secondary is very young though, so CSU can easily get Higgins going. If they get Higgins the ball, they should win this game without too many problems. I have the Rams winning 35-21.
Advocare V100 Texas Bowl
20 LSU (9-3) vs. Texas Tech (7-5)
I have had a tough time deciding who to pick in this game. This is a very interesting match up as LSU's ground game and sturdy defense go against the Red Raiders' high-flying air attack and Swiss Cheese defense. Leonard Fournette should have a field day running all over, around, and through Tech's defense. However, I expect TTU to put up some points as well. LSU's defense gave up around 200 yards per game in their three losses, and 2/3 of those teams are run heavy. Tech's passing attack is second in the country with just under 400 yards per game. LSU's secondary will be tested like they have never been before this season. Tech will keep it close for a while, but I think the ground game of Leonard Fournette will be too much. Tigers 42, Red Raiders 31.
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