'Tis The Bowl Season

After an exciting conference championship week, the bowl games are set. the BCS Bowl Games are listed below:

Rose Bowl: #4 Michigan State vs #5 Stanford January 1st, 5:00 PM
Fiesta Bowl: #15 UCF vs #6 Baylor January 1st, 8:30 PM
Sugar Bowl: #11 Oklahoma vs #3 Alabama January 3rd, 7:30 PM
Orange Bowl: #12 Clemson vs #7 Ohio State January 3rd, 8:30 PM
BCS National Championship: #2 Auburn vs #1 Florida State January 6th, 8:30 PM


The Rose Bowl pits two power football against each other. Michigan State comes off a statement win vs Ohio State in the Big Ten Championship Game. The Spartans have the top defense in the nation and are experts at bottling up running backs between the tackles. Stanford on the other hand has one of the most potent running games in the nation. They average around 200 rush yards per game (around 140 against BCS ranked teams). This game will come down to quarterback play. Both rushing attacks and defenses are solid. Whichever quarterback can limit turnovers and control the game will win the game. While many would argue The Spartans have the better front seven, Stanford has an edge since they won last years Rose Bowl. Their experienced roster will help them if the game is tight.

Prediction: Michigan State 27 Stanford: 31

The Fiesta Bowl has a match up with two great quarterbacks, Blake Bortles and Bryce Petty. UCF won the American Athletic Conference rather easily behind a methodical offense and a defense that produced turnovers and averaged 19.6 points per game. Baylor came off a big win against Texas. Baylor's up-tempo offense has made exceptional defenses look bad this year and have averaged 53.3 points per game. If Bryce Petty gets into a early rhythm, this bowl game could end up being rather lopsided, but I have faith that a future NFL prospect Blake Bortles (3280 yards 22 TDs 7 INTs) will keep the game in reach.

Prediction: UCF: 20 Baylor: 37

The Sugar Bowl looks like it could potentially be a classic. Alabama is still bitter after a tough loss in the Iron Bowl. There are no surprises when playing the Crimson Tide. They have a balanced offense and a smash mouth defense. Both TJ Yeldon and AJ McCarron can make big plays at any given moment and an experienced linebacker core hopes to bottle up the Sooners running game. Oklahoma's spread offense uses a variety of speed backs and skilled wide receivers to spread the ball around. Their up tempo pace puts defenses on their heels. The defense will look to force a few turnovers against a disciplined Alabama team. If they are able to do so, they will have a great chance on knocking off the mighty Crimson Tide. Until then, I am not sold on the fact that Nick Saban can lose with a month to prepare.

Prediction: Alabama 36 Oklahoma 28


 The Orange Bowl has two teams with similar styles against each other. Both teams have dynamic quarterbacks and running backs. Both teams score often and don't give up a lot. While Clemson has been exposed in their big games, Senior Taj Boyd has performed admirably in bowl games and Sammy Watkins can expose even the best secondaries. The Ohio State defense has not looked strong recently so we should see the Tigers put up points. Ohio State comes off their first loss in 24 games and looked weaker than usual on both sides of the ball. Nonetheless, dual threat Braxton Miller and Carlos Hyde could make big plays against Clemson. This game will come down to if Clemson can stop the run game like Michigan State was able to, and if Ohio State can take advantage of Clemson's weak secondary. whoever rises to the occasion will be victorious.   

Prediction: Clemson 38 Ohio State: 35

The BCS National Championship looks like will be a shootout for the ages. Auburn's defense will have their hands full against Heisman front runner Jameis Winston. Auburn has some fire power themselves as well. Their rushing attacks has looking very impressive vs Alabama and Missouri, two strong SEC teams. Florida State blew out  yet another, #20 Duke. They have proven all year how good they are and an average Tiger defense will have to prepare for a relentless offense attack. Both offenses will put up a lot of points, so special teams play will be key. A blocked punt, good kickoff return, (or even a missed field goal TD) could be the difference when both offenses are so good. In the end though, I believe the undefeated Seminoles will prevail.

Prediction: Florida State: 45 Auburn: 24