Oh, yeah, bowls. Obviously I’ve been more out of it than usual this year…
1/1, Outback (neé Hall of Fame): Northwestern vs. Auburn(-8)
If there’s a reason to think Northwestern will be in this game, I can’t come up with it. Give ‘em.
1/1, Gator: West Virginia vs. Florida State(+2.5)
Ah, yes, the “Bobby Bowden is retiring so he’ll get special treatment” bowl. VA Tech should be ticked, they should have gotten this bid. How much more compelling would VATech vs. WVU have been? Seriously. Mountaineers roll.
1/1, Capital One (neé Citrus): Penn State vs. LSU(-1)
When in doubt, pick against the Big Ten.
1/1, Rose: OSU vs. Oregon(-4)
Same rule as last game. Plus, there is simply no way I can root for the Buckeyes, , so I have to pick this way.
1/1, Sugar: Cincinnati vs. Florida(-12.5)
Wow, I figure Florida as a lock for this one, but that’s a boatload of points. Too many for me.
1/2, International: South Florida vs. Northern Illinois(+7)
Wow, Directional State U as a bowl game. In Canada. If ever evidence was needed that there are too many bowls, this has to be it. Give the points, the MAC sucks.
1/2, Papajohns.com: South Carolina vs. UConn(+4)
For no good reason, I’ll take UConn and the points.
1/2, Cotton: Oklahoma State vs. Ole Miss(-3)
I have no idea why the Rebels are favored here—I would have guessed the other way around—so I’ll take the points.
1/2, Liberty: Arkansas vs. East Carolina(+7.5)
Ugh, a C-USA team in a bowl. Gotta go with the team that actually plays somebody, so I’m going Razorbacks.
1/2, Alamo: Michigan State vs. Texas Tech(-7.5)
Well, the Mike Leach media feeding frenzy is in full swing. You’d think that’d be a distraction, but Texas Tech will have the stadium packed and MSU sucks, so I’ll take the Red Raiders.
1/4, Fiesta: Boise State vs. TCU(-7.5)
TCU is better and will probably win. However, I like Boise to keep it close enough to be interesting from a point spread perspective, so I’m going with the Broncos.
1/5, Orange: Iowa vs. Georgia Tech(-4)
Tech has that gimmick option offense. That’s great when you never see it and have only a week to prepare, but Iowa is a well-coached team (they certainly aren’t in a BCS bowl on talent) and they have time to prepare. I like getting more than a FG here, so I’m picking the Hawkeyes… but rooting for Tech! Go Jackets!
1/6, GMAC: Central Michigan vs. Troy(+3.5)
Whatever the O/U is, take the over. The Trojans will have a strong home-field advantage as nobody in Michigan has any money to travel. CMU’s losing their coach and sucks in bowls, but this is Troy State we’re talking about here. Nope, can’t talk myself into it, taking the points.
1/7, BCS Title: Texas vs. Alabama(-4)
Smaller spread than I would have thought. Frankly, I think the UT offense will struggle like they did against Nebraska, only Bama has a better offense. Again, picking the Tide, but rooting for the Longhorns.