Billy Coleman
4** Georgia -7.5
4* V.Tech + 2
3* Penn St-USC under 45
Spylock
Virginia Tech 3 units
Iowa 1 unit
Penn St. 1 unit
Robert Ferringo
2.5 units South Carolina +3.5
ALLEN EASTMAN
4 UNITS USC -9
Pointwise Phone Plays
3* Iowa
3* Nebraska
2* Georgia
Jeff Benton
25 dime Penn St
5 dime Mich State
Brand X Sports
Outback Bowl Thursday January 1
Iowa Hawkeyes versus South Carolina Gamecocks
Line Iowa -3.5 Total 43
Iowa has the better team and more impressive season resume but I would not bet a Big 10 favorite in a Bowl with someone else’s money.Let’s buck the number and go against the 10th and 11th ranked defenses and take the OVER 43 in this one.Iowa has put up 210 points in the last six games and the Gamecocks have let up 87 in their last two.
3* OVER 43
Gator Bowl Thursday January 1
Clemson Tigers versus Nebraska Cornhuskers
Line Clemson -4 Total 56
Both teams come into this contest in Jacksonville on three-game winning streaks. Clemson (7-5) also was victorious in four of its last five games, while Nebraska (8-4) took five of its final six.I am going to take the corn shuckers +4 as Clemson QB situation is down to a quality freshman starter Wily Korn coming off shoulder surgery or Cullen Harper who three for 11 tds….and twelve picks
3* Nebraska Cornhuskers
Capital One Bowl Thursday January 1
Michigan State Spartans versus Georgia Bulldogs
Line Georgia -7.5 Total 55
Michigan State had a great year but got CRUSHED the only two times they played a quality opponent (45-5 to Ohio State and 49-18 to Penn State)Georgia had a great year but was stunned by Georgia Tech in the season finale.I am going to “Remember the Spartans” (Victor Mature are you still out there?) And grab the TD and hook
4* Michigan State Spartans +7.5
Rose Bowl Thursday January 1
Penn State Nittany Lions versus USC Trojans
Line USC -10 Total 45
USC owns an 8-0 record versus the Big 10 and really flew under the radar this year at 11-1 Penn State was probably thirty seconds away from playing for the BCS Championship when they could not stop Iowa from scoring as time ran out in their only loss of the season.Looking at this game like Joe Q. Public, my gut tells me USC will romp.Vegas did not make 102 billion last year because Joe Q. Public wins.
5* Penn State Nittany Lions +10
Bonus 3* on the UNDER 45
Orange Bowl Thursday January 1
Virginia Tech Hokies versus Cincinnati Bearcats
Line Cincinnati -2 Total 42
Virginia Tech has dramatically improved as the season progressed.Tech recovered from a shattering season opener home loss to East Carolina and two consecutive losses in Conference to win the ACC and play on New Year’s Day.Cincinnati has been rock solid as their defense all year long. Only losses to #1 Oklahoma and in conference rival blemish the Bearcats season record.This is a tough match up but I am going to lay the two points and take the Bearcats.Cincy’s is just a tad better on both sides of the ball
2* Cincinnati Bearcats -2
Bonus 3* on the OVER 42
Tim Trushel
20* S Carolina
Larry Ness
9* Bowl Total
I begin this analysis by quoting myself in my first 20* bowl total of the 2008-09 bowl season. I took West Va and North Carolina 'over 46' and the teams combined for 35 first-quarter points and a game which finished 31-30 West Va, was 'over' with nine minutes left in the 3rd quarter. Here's how I concluded that analysis. "West Va's averaged 41.3 PPG in Pat White's previous three bowl wins and the games have averaged 74.0 PPG. Throw in West Va's other four bowl games this decade where those contests finished with totals of 48, 48, 70 and 87 points, and West Va bowl games have averaged 67.6 PPG this decade! While West Va's defense is top-notch (15.9 PPG allowed / ranked 9th), I see White excelling once again and North Carolina playing along right." Often times, handicapping has a lot to do with 'feel.' My 'feel' here is that "the old ball coach" has more than a few surprises in store for Kirk Ferentz and his Hawkeyes on January 1 in Tampa. Spurrier's Gamecocks can't run the ball at all, averaging 98.3 YPG (ranks 108th) with an average of 2.9 per rush. His Fun 'n Gun offense has had little 'punch' this year as QB Chris Smelley's play has resembled his name (56.5% with 13 TDs and 15 INTs). Starting this game at QB will be freshman Stephen Garcia, who is only marginally better than Smelley but is likely more motivated. Garcia is from Tampa and is reportedly excited to get a chance to play in front of family and friends in his hometown of Tampa. He has a terrific WR in Kenny McKinley, who with 48 catches this year, now has 201 career receptions, which is a school record. Also, TE Jared Cook (All-SEC) was quoted as saying, "I can't wait man; this is a good chance to finally come out in our last game and prove ourselves to the world." What he's taling about is South Carolina's two-game collapse at the end of the regular season. South Carolina was 7-3 entering its game at Florida on Nov 15. All three losses had come by seven points, losing at Vandy, home to Georgia and at LSU (nothing to be ashamed of in those scores). However, the Gators 'pasted' the Gamecocks 56-6, gaining 519 yards. Then two weeks late, South Carolina lost 31-14 at hated-Clemson. South Carolina's defense entered the Florida game allowing just 15.6 PPG and 256.5 YPG but allowed 87 points (43.5 per) and 902 yards (451 per) in those final two games, while committing eight turnovers (four in each game). In fact, turnovers have been a major problem for South Carolina all season, committing 33 (only Hawaii, Wash St and Wyoming have more). Iowa has a tough 'D,' allowing 13.3 PPG (ranks 8th) and 288.9 YPG (ranks 13th) but it's my 'call' that Spurrier and Co. will be up to the challenge. Consider this. Spuurier returned to the college ranks at South Carolina for the 2005 season and took the Gamecocks to back-to-back bowl games, before LY's 6-6 season (lost final five games). Spurrier's first two bowl games with South Carolina ended in a 38-31 loss to Missouri in '05 and a 44-36 win over Houston in '06. That's two games which have averaged 74.5 PPG. This total is 'hovering' around 43 and I don't expect Iowa to be a 'silent spectator' in this one. After all, Iowa finished with FIVE wins in its final six games, including its 24-23 upset of Penn State on Nov 8. RB Shonn Greene topped 100 yards in all 12 games TY (1,729 yards / 6.2 YPC / 17 TDS) and I believe South Carolina's defense was 'exposed' in those final two games. Also, don't think that for a second that Kirk Ferentz and the Hawkeyes are not excited to be back in a bowl game, especially one on New Year's Day. Ferentz began at Iowa back in 1999, going 1-10 and 3-9 in his first two seasons. However, beginning in 2001, he had led the Hawkeyes to SIX consecutive bowl games (including the Orange Bowl in the 2002 season) before last year's 6-6 season. Will this game go 'over' as easily as West Va / NC? I can't promise that but I don't believe we'll have to 'sweat out' the 4th quarter!
9* Bowl Total on Iowa/South Carolina Over.
7* Massive Mismatch
Both Georgia and Michigan State come into this game 9-3 but it's fair to say that while the Spartans are thrilled to be in this New Year's Day bowl, the Bulldogs have to be somewhat disappointed. Many argued that Georgia was as good as any CFB team by the end of the 2007 and Georgia began the year No. 1 in both the AP and Coaches' polls. However, it's also pretty fair to say that things never 'clicked' this year for Georgia. The Bulldogs were 'hammered' in their two big showdown games at home to Alabama (lost 41-30 after trailing 31-0 at the half) and in Jacksonville 49-10 to Florida (trailed 35-3 at the end of the 3rd quarter). Then, in the season's final regular season game ("between the hedges"), Georgia took a 28-12 halftime lead, only to lose 45-42, while allowing 409 rushing yards for the game. I think it's safe to say that head coach Mark Richt, all of his players and surely the Georgia fans, had no intention of spending New Year's Day in Orlando. However, I wouldn't be too quick to dismiss Georgia's chances in this game. While I congratulate Michigan State for its 9-3 season, I believe the Spartans are VASTLY overrated. RB Javon Ringer ran for 1,590 yards (4.3 YPC and 21 TDs) but MSU's running game is NOT all that impressive, despite the presence of four, fifth-year seniors on the OL. The team averaged only 138.4 YPG (tied for 67th in the nation), averaging 3.5 YPC as a team. MSU played seven bowl teams this year and excluding its game with Sun Belt Conference representative Florida Atlantic, look at the rushing totals for the other six games. I'll list them separately, for effect. Cal 203 yards (MSU 81), Iowa 151 yards (MSU 91), Northwestern 176 yards (MSU 128), Ohio State 216 yards (MSU 52), Wisconsin 281 yards (MSU 25) and Penn State 138 yards (MSU 35). Doing the match and those six major bowl opponents ran for an average of 189.2 YPG on the ground against the Spartans, while MSU ran for an average of 68.7! As for MSU's passing game, QB Brian Hoyer lost WR Devin Thomas (79 catches / 8 TDs) who left early for the NFL, leaving Javon Ringer (35 catches LY) as the leading returning pass-catcher in '08. Hoyer completed just 50.8 percent of his throws this year, for a very modest 2,235 yards with just nine TDs. His leading receiver was Blair White, who caught 39 balls wit just one TD. In comparison, Georgia is loaded with future first-round NFL draft picks at the skill positions. Matthew Stafford (61.1 percent / 3,209 / 22 TDs and 9 INTs) is high on almost every scout's list of QBs, while no one even remotely questions RB Knowshon Moreno's (over 1,300 yards rushing for the 2nd straight year) NFL resume. In freshman AJ Green (55 catches / 17.3 YPC / 8 TDs) and senior Mohamed Massaquoi (57 catches / 16.0 YPC / 8 TDs), Stafford likely has two future NFLers as targets. The Georgia OL struggled at times this year and as mentioned at the top, Georgia's defense surely underachieved this year, especially in its biggest games. However, let's rewind MSU's season for just a second. The Spartans opened at Cal and lost 38-31. Then, at 6-1 and 3-0 in the Big 10 on Oct 18, MSU lost its "showdown game" at home to Ohio State, 45-7. In its final regular season game on Nov 22 at Penn State (when a win would have given the Spartans a share of the Big 10 title), MSU lost 49-14. Talk about not showing up in the big games? MSU's defense allowed an average of 44.0 PPG in its three losses, while the offense tallied just 25 points in the Big 10 losses to Ohio St and Penn St. By the way, the highly-touted Javon Ringer was held to 109 yards rushing (3.3 YPC) in his games vs Ohio St and Penn St. Is Georgia thrilled to be here? The answer is probably no but any way you 'slice' it, this game is "men vs boys."
MASSIVE MISMATCH on Georgia
Matt Fargo
Michigan St. at Georgia
Prediction: Georgia
I am a big fan of Michigan St. head coach Mark Dantonio and what he is doing to this program but his team is outmatched in this spot. I made reference in the Iowa/South Carolina matchup that the SEC had a down year and Georgia was part of that making the Big Ten the conference with the value. However, the two big opponents the Spartans faced, Ohio St. and Penn St., blew them out. They snuck by Iowa and Wisconsin and beat Northwestern by 17 points despite getting outgained by 162 total yards. The Bulldogs never recovered from their blowout loss against Florida as they snuck by both Auburn and Kentucky, although those games were on the road, and then lost to Georgia Tech in the season finale. The good news is that the time off from then until now can only help Georgia. The Bulldogs have a solid coach of their own in Mark Richt and he knows how to get the troops ready as they have won seven of their last eight non-BCS bowl games. Michigan St. struggled defensively against some of the tougher offenses and Georgia has the firepower to put up a lot of points with a first round draft pick at quarterback in Matthew Stafford and a great running back in Knowshon Moreno. Georgia is a solid 19-5 ATS in its last 24 non-conference road games while Michigan St. is just 2-10 ATS in its last 12 games after allowing more than 6.25 yppl in its last game. The Bulldogs bounce back and win this one going away. 5* Georgia Bulldogs
KELSO
Bowl Game of the Year
200 Units Georgia (-8) over Michigan State
Georgia by 17-21
Drew Gordon
300,000♦ ROSE BOWL "NO-BRAINER"
USC
Big AL
4* Nebraska
3* South Carolina
3* Cincy
Ten Dimes S Carolina
Offshore Steam VT/Cinnci Over 42
Computer Boys PSU/USC Over 45
Opinion on Mich St
Opinion on Penn St
Wayne Root
Chairman - USC
Millionaire - Neb
No Limit - Mich St
Billion GOY - Cinnci
Ron Meyer
Lockerroom - S Carolina
Live Dog - PSU
Dallas Sportsman - Clemson