Thursday, Jan. 1, 11 a.m. ESPN
Iowa vs. South Carolina
Iowa favored by 3
USC vs. Iowa... wait a minute... that was Carson Palmer vs. Brad Banks. I know that Palmer's leader of a 1-11-1 Bengals team; where in the world is Banks? As for the Hall of Fame Bowl, other than a OSU loss to Bama, a Penn State blowout over Auburn, and a slew of Gamecock games, I really don't remember much... er, I guess I remember a good bit.
I've watched a couple of Iowa and S.Car. games; I honestly have no clue how this one will go, but this game will be a fun one to watch, as long as I get the TVs setup by Thursday morning. Coupled with the fact that I'm going to try and cook collared greens, black-eyed peas and cornbread on Thursday, means this game might not get my full attention. That's okay though; as I see the Hawkeyes taking this one from Spurrier.
Capital One (Citrus) Bowl
Thursday, Jan. 1, 1 p.m. ABC
Georgia vs. Michigan State
Georgia favored by 6
I should be more hyped up for this one, but I'm not. And I, the big SEC fan, should expect to see this one be a run-away, with Georgia high-octane offense and the Bulldog's stellar defense... oh that's right, scratch that about the defense. Thanks to Matt Ryan, Willy Martinezis probably the most hated man in Georgia. (Not too concerned with Mike Vick being locked away anymore...) Auburn went down to Orlando in 2005 with a highly favored team, only to get drubbed by a big, slow Big Ten team - though they didn't look that slow on New Year's Day 2006. I could easily see the same thing happening against Michigan State. Oh, and goodbye to Matt Stafford and Knowshon; best wishes at Detroit, Matt; and to Moreno, have fun doin' that Solja Boy in the NFL.
Konica Minolta Gator Bowl
Thursday, Jan. 1, 1 p.m. CBS
Clemson vs. Nebraska
Clemson favored by 3
I hate the Gator Bowl. I don't know why. Perhaps because it always opposed the SEC's Citrus Bowl. Maybe it's because it usually put in a bland Big East team against a bland ACC team. Or it could be because this seemed to be the all-Notre Dame bowl for the late 90's. A decade ago, this match-up might have seemed a little bit more interesting, but now that Nebraska's made that leap into the mainstream of offenses, the only real storyline is seeing a so-so Big XII team play a reeling ACC team. I guess seeing Thunder and Lightning in their final game, along with the outstanding hire of... wait, who'd Clemson get to replace Tommy Bowden. Dabo who? How do you pronounce that? And Auburn's being told it has the worst hire ever? Why wasn't this decision questioned? Oh, right because the Tigers beat the Gamecocks... wait a minute, isn't that what Tommy Bowden has done over the past decade to continually save his job. Nice decision Clemson. Guess it's true that ya'll are Auburn with a lake.
The Rose Bowl Game presented by CitiThursday, Jan. 1, 4:30 p.m. ABC
No. 5 USC vs. No. 6 Penn State
USC favored by 10
I don't understand why everyone's saying that this is the game of the bowl season, specifically citing it as better than the National Championship Game. Really. This one? No offense to Penn State (I've been a huge supporter of the Lions all season even though I did predict the Iowa loss), but I don't think anyone has a chance against a Pete Carroll team in a bowl game. USC has been amazing when they have a month to prepare, and the team rolls through anyone in Pasadena. I see the same thing happening here.
I'm obviously happier seeing the Lions play USC though, because a PSU-Oregon State rematch would've been a snoozer (especially after watching Oregon State defeat Pitt 3-0. As Rece Davis said, of all the Sun Bowls ever played, this was certainly one of them.) I think Penn State will stick close through a half, which has normally been the case for Big Ten teams against the Trojans, but USC will take over in the second half.
Oh, and to everyone who says that USC should have been in the championship game over Florida because their loss was on the r .Quit the crying. USC gets the benefit of the doubt at every juncture. They're normally the next-in-line. It's true that it's not the Trojans fault that the Pac-10 sucked, but that's the way it works. In 2004, they were unquestioned as the number one team, even though Auburn played a tougher conference schedule. Instead, people looked at Auburn's win over The Citadel to show why the Tigers should be left out. The Trojans can't benefit from people using their schedule to elevate them, then claim that it's inappropriate to do so the next. That rant's directed at you, David Norrie.
FedEx Orange Bowl
Thursday, Jan. 1, 8:30 p.m. FOX
No. 11 Cincinnati vs. No. 16 Virginia Tech
Cincinnati favored by 2
I'm actually interested in watching this one, unlike everyone else outside of Ohio and the Blacksburg metropolitan area. Cincinnati was knocked around by Oklahoma earlier in the season, but rebounded and came through with a 6-1 Big East record. (Of course, it'd be much easier to hype the Bearcats if not for the mid-season 40-16 loss to Connecticut.) I'm a big fan of Brian Kelly; I wished Auburn had pursued him a little more, but evidently he's really happy in Cincinnati. I didn't think it was possible for anyone to be happy in Cincinnati, but apparently you can be happy there; I guess it's not Scranton.
Virginia Tech nipped their way into the ACC Championship Game, though I (and apparently the SCF Poll voters) thought that Georgia Tech is the superior ACC team at year's end. The Hokies make a return trip to Miami, where they'll try to make-up for that horrible loss to Kansas (which actually legitimized the Jayhawk's overrated season). Thanks Hokies. Va Tech is going for their first win in a BCS bowl, losing the 1999 Sugar, 2004 Sugar (to Auburn) and last season's Orange Bowl.
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