College Football Fiesta Bowl Ohio St Buckeyes versus Texas Longhorns (-8 ½) January 5th (8:15PM ET)(FOX)
Ohio St has not had good bowls the past two years losing to Florida 41-14 two years ago and 38-24 last year. Ohio St versus 2 BCS Bowl teams this season put up only 3 to USC and 6 to Penn St. Longhorn quarterback Colt McCoy had an outstanding season hitting on 77% of his passes for over 3400 yards and 32 TD’s. McCoy’s accuracy will be key in this game as the Longhorns offense will move the ball effectively and maintain possession of the football. Note the game is being played in Glendale Arizona the home of the Arizona Cardinals so we will have a fast track which allows Texas to take full advantage of their speed and quickness. Terrelle Pryor has been inconsistent at quarterback for the Buckeyes and running back Beanie Wells has been hampered by injuries on the season. With the Longhorns explosive offense it will force Ohio St to play a game of comeback behind Pryor and that will not bode well for the Buckeyes. Ohio St’s defense will be on the field quite a bit in this game and will wear down giving us the cover in this one. Take Texas –8 ½.
College Football International Bowl Buffalo Bulls versus Connecticut Huskies (-4.5) January 3rd (12PM ET) (ESPN2)
Buffalo was the unlikely winner of the MAC Championship and plays UCONN in Toronto for the International Bowl. The Bulls beat Ball St a 12-0 team during the MAC title game by dominating the second half of that ball game. UCONN lost 5 of their last 7 games and ended the season 5th in the Big East. UCONN has struggled big time at the quarterback position as Tyler Lorenzen and Zach Frazier combined for 4 touchdowns and 14 interceptions. The Bulls have a good offense that averaged 31 points and 380 yards per game. They are also a perfect 7-0 against the spread as an underdog this season. UCONN did beat Cincinnati at home but quarterback Tony Pike was rusty and it was his first game back off an injury. You have to respect Buffalo’s last performance against Ball and they are the right side in this contest over the Huskies. Take Buffalo +4 ½.
College Football Sugar Bowl Utah Utes versus Alabama Crimson Tide (-10) January 2nd (8PM ET) (ABC)
The SEC has defended its turf well in this contest. They are 6-1 straight up in the past 7 Sugar Bowl games. Utah earned a spot here off a perfect season and Alabama was a 1-loss team falling to Florida in the title game. With the early polls it’s very important for Alabama to get a win in order to secure a nice ranking when the preseason polls come out in August. So there is motivation for Alabama to win and win big much like Georgia disposed of Hawaii last year. Alabama has a size and strength advantage on their offensive line. The Tide linemen have a 70-weight advantage over the Utes. Behind that mass Tide running back Glen Coffee will have a big game. And with Bama having success running it will open up big plays for John Parker Wilson the Tides senior quarterback in the passing game. People talk about Utah having speed on defense well everyone has speed on defense in the SEC. Nick Saban has set winning the Sugar Bowl an important crown to a 12-1 season. Alabama kicks off the 2009 season September 5th against Virginia Tech in the Georgia Dome. There will be tons of hype surrounding that game. Saban wants to send out his seniors on top and just as important position his 2009 team very well in the preseason rankings. You see the SEC coaches get it. Alabama will not allow for Utah to go back West with a morale victory. It will be a sound defeat. Alabama will pound Utah. Take Alabama –10.
East Carolina Pirates versus Kentucky Wildcats College Football Odds and Pick Gamblers Television
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College Football Liberty Bowl East Carolina Pirates versus Kentucky Wildcats (+2 1/2) January 2nd (5PM ET) (ESPN)
Kentucky is a cold team entering the Liberty Bowl losers of 6 of their past 8 games and are very fortunate to be playing in a bowl game. And both of those wins came by a measly 1 point against Mississippi St and Arkansas. Non Bowl teams and down programs. The Wildcats were 0-5 versus Bowl teams this season. 3 wins this season for Kentucky came against Norfolk St, Middle Tennessee St and Western Kentucky. What an poor resume for a bowl team. East Carolina are winners of 6 of their past 7 games. In the Conference USA Title game they held explosive Tulsa to only 24 points on their home field. Kentucky will start backup QB Mike Hartline who lost his job with poor performace. He gets his job back after starting quarterback Randall Cobb went under the knife with a knee surgery and was lost for the bowl game. East Carolina has wins over bowl bound West Virginia and Virginia Tech on the season. They have good balance on offense and give up only an average of 20 points per game. You can’t back Kentucky in this game. Take East Carolina –2 ½.
College Football Cotton Bowl Mississippi Rebels versus Texas Tech Red Raiders January 2nd (O/U 69) (2PM ET) (FOX)
Head coach Mike Leach has won 5 of his past 6 bowl games at Texas Tech. The Red Raiders completed a successful regular season campaign finishing at 11-1. Don’t look for the Red Raiders to be flat here. They have been good in their previous bowl games. Both squads are explosive offensively as Tech averages 44 a game and Ole Miss 30. The Rebels put up 45 on Mississippi St and 31 at LSU to close the season. This is a different program since Houston Nutt took it over, as it was a program in the past was all defense and no offense. It will be difficult for Ole Miss to stop this high-powered offense from Texas Tech. The Cotton Bowl is a game with huge tradition and its played in the state of Texas. So I don’t expect any letdown from the Red Raiders from missing out on a BCS Bowl berth playing in their home state on January 2nd. With the Red Raiders explosive offense Ole Miss will put the ball in the air to keep up on the scoreboard. What will transpire will be a shootout here. Play Texas Tech and Mississippi over 69.
College Football Rose Bowl Penn St Nittany Lions versus USC Trojans (O/U 45) January 1st (5PM ET) (ABC)
Two great defenses face off in the Rose Bowl on New Year’s Day. Of course USC is getting all the publicity but hey Penn St is pretty good. Both teams stop the run as they allow less than 100 yards per game on the ground. USC struggled for points against the better defenses from the Pac 10. The Trojans put up only 17 against Cal and Arizona and 21 against Oregon St. Each game went well under the total. Now Joe Paterno has had great defensive efforts in his past bowl games. In Penn St’s past 6 bowl games they have allowed teams to score 17 points or less in 5 of them. The most scored on this team was just 23 points in that span. Defense will prevail in this game in what will be a low scoring Rose Bowl. Play Penn St and USC under 45.
College Football Capital One Bowl Michigan St Spartans versus Georgia Bulldogs (-7.5) January 1st (1PM ET) (ABC)
This is not where Georgia expected to be to start the season as many had the Bulldogs behind a senior quarterback and star running back playing in a BSC Bowl. Last year we saw the Florida Gators fail here 41-38 against Michigan in the 2007 Bowl Season’s most unlikely result. Michigan St is happy to play on New Years Day following a 9-3 season. Their best season since 1999. Georgia has failed to cover 4 straight pointspread and their disappointment from SEC conference play was evident in their performance against Georgia Tech to close the regular season. This game usually enters the #3 team from the SEC as the top 2 teams usually play in a BCS Bowl. Listen to this stat. Underdog Big 10 teams have won and covered the past 4 Capital One Bowls. Senior running back Javon Ringer has rushed the ball for nearly 1400 yards on the season. Georgia has not played good defense and this game sets up as another Big 10 team facing a disappointed participant. Take the motivated Michigan St +7.5
College Football Gator Bowl Clemson Tigers versus Nebraksa Cornhuskers (+2.5) January 1st (1PM ET) (CBS)
Both teams enter the Gator form with good late season form with Clemson winning four of their last five and Nebraska 5 of 6. But Nebraska has played 5 bowl teams from BCS conferences and was only able to beat one team and that was a Kansas team, which plays awful defense. Clemson is the better defensive team and they limited their last opponents to less than 100 yards rushing in each game. Clemson has responded well since the coaching change and will be motivated to play for head coach Dabo Swinney. Clemson will get more stops in this game and they are the right side here. Take Clemson –2 1/.2.
College Football Outback Bowl Iowa Hawkeyes versus South Carolina Gamecocks (O/U 42 1/2) January 1st (11AM ET) (ESPN)
We have two solid defenses in the Outback Bowl as Iowa allows 13 points per game and South Carolina 20. We will see if defense can hold form after the long layoff between the end of the regular season and New Year’s Day. This can be tough because it’s hard to simulate real game speed during practices when you are not going all out. Iowa are winners of 5 of their past 6 with the over going 5-1 in that stretch. Iowa is balanced on offense as they rushed for over 200 yards in 4 of they’re past 6 games. Steve Spurrier said he would take a more relaxed approach to this bowl game. It’s being held in a good weather site and I expect Spurrier to open up his offense enough to push this total over. This wont be a ball control type of game plan we see usually from Spurrier in conference play. Play Iowa and South Carolina over 42 ½.
College Football Chick Fil A Bowl LSU Tigers versus Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets (-4) (7:30PM ET) (ESPN)
Georgia Tech’s strength is their triple option running game and LSU has a solid front four and a defense that allows only 105 yards per game on the ground. Georgia Tech was able to beat rival Georgia from the SEC on the last regular season game of the season but Georgia’s defense was not very good this year. I feel LSU has an advantage playing Georgia Tech with enough time to prepare for the triple option. If this were a regular season game and only 1 week between opponents LSU might be in a bit tougher here. Even though many of the LSU players haven’t seen this style offense since their high school playing days they are good enough athletically to defend it. Georgia Tech gave up 29 points per game in their final 5 games and LSU has weapons offensively. The Tigers are led by running back Charles Scott had over 1100 yards rushing on the season. Teams beat up LSU through the air on the season and the Yellow Jackets aren’t very strong in that area passing for only an average of 95 yards per game. This matchup is favorable for the Tigers. Take LSU +4.
