Well last week wasn’t good at all. I missed the first four games of the bowl season, but come on, nobody has a clue on those. It’s all really just a guess. How do you know which 6-6 MAC or WAC team will win? You just don’t. So everybody that’s in the 2011 WarBlogle.com Bowl Pick ’em that is currently ranked ahead of me, you just wait. I’m on a two-game winning streak. Blogle’s coming on.
Bowl Season: 9-9
Regular Season: 85-26 (76.6%)
Overall: 94-35 (72.9%)
12/24
Sheraton Hawaii Bowl (7 p.m. ESPN)
Nevada vs. Southern Miss – Last I saw, Nevada had sold about 10 tickets to this game. Southern Miss probably hasn’t sold many more. Their team will be coached by an interim, and I’m pretty sure not too many people in Hattiesburg have plans to fly to Hawaii for Christmas Eve.
That being said, this game does have the potential to be pretty exciting. Nevada’s offense is always fun, and Southern Miss runs a fast paced scheme as well. Auburn fans might want to watch this one given that USM’s offensive coordinator, Blake Anderson, is supposedly on top of Gene Chizik’s list.
Nevada 27, Southern Miss 21
Southern Miss 24, Nevada 17 – FAILURE
12/26
AdvoCare V100 Independence Bowl (4 p.m. ESPN2)
Missouri vs. North Carolina – There are no major programs in college football that bore me more than these two teams. I don’t know why. They just do. I don’t want Missouri in the SEC, and I’m tired of hearing how North Carolina should be good every year. You aren’t the elite, so don’t act like it. Until you prove you belong, stick with the middle of the pack. Yes, I’m being elitist.
Missouri is pumped about joining the SEC. North Carolina will have an interim coach. Those rarely win.
Missouri 31, North Carolina 17
Missouri 41, North Carolina 24 – SUCCESS!
12/27
Little Caesars Bowl (3:30 p.m. ESPN)
Western Michigan vs. Purdue – I know the Credit Union Bowl is bad, and so is the Potato Bowl, but the Pizza Bowl has to be the most embarrassing. Hey man, what bowl y’all going to? Ummmm, the <covers hand with mouth> Bowl. So, how ’bout them Braves?
What’s worse than picking a game with a good MAC team and mid-level Big Ten 1eam? As a game picker I’ll tell you: nothing. Will the smaller team rise up and beat the supposed bigger team, or will the bigger team flex their muscle? I have no idea, but I’ll go with the little team.
Western Michigan 17, Purdue 13
Purdue 37, Western Michigan 32 – FAILURE
Belk Bowl (7 p.m. ESPN)
Louisville vs. North Carolina State – Louisville made it to a bowl game? Didn’t they get beaten pretty badly by FIU? Oh, don’t tell me FIU was good. They just got beat by Marshall. North Carolina State isn’t much better, and actually seems to be more obscure than Louisville at this point, so I guess I’ll go with the Cardinals.
Louisville 28, North Carolina State 14
North Carolina State 31, Louisville 24 – FAILURE
12/28
Military Bowl presented by Northrop Gruman (3:30 p.m. ESPN)
Toledo vs. Air Force – That’s not fair. Air Force is in the Military Bowl? That’s just cheating. I mean you know they’re going to win. But wait… Toledo’s mascot is a Rocket. Maybe Air Force will go easy on them with the obvious connection. Geez, what am I even talking about now?
Air Force 31, Toledo 10
Toledo 42, Air Force 41 – FAILURE
Bridgepoint Education Holiday Bowl (7 p.m. ESPN)
California vs. Texas – Normally this would seem to be a pretty big game just based off of the names. It’s not. Texas has no offense and Cal isn’t the team that got decent for the past few years. Some people will still watch expecting some good football, but they probably won’t find any unless Mack Brown steals some of Santa’s magic over the weekend.
Texas 21, Cal 7
Texas 21, Cal 10 – SUCCESS!
12/29
Champs Sports Bowl (4:30 p.m. ESPN)
Florida State vs. Notre Dame – Here’s another game that would appear to be a good one. Again, it’s not. Florida State is not near as good as everyone wanted them to be. Notre Dame hasn’t been near as good as the traditionalists have wanted them to be since, well, the 80’s.
Florida State is still the much better team and could and should beat the Irish pretty badly.
Florida State 38, Notre Dame 17
Florida State 18, Notre Dame 14 – SUCCESS!
Valero Alamo Bowl (8 p.m. ESPN)
Washington vs. Baylor – Now that RGIII has won the Heisman Trophy, will he be jinxed like a lot of former winners have been in their bowl games? If he was, I don’t think we’d even know. Baylor will beat the Huskies with a great, good, or maybe even just average Griffin performance.
Baylor 35, Washington 23
Baylor 67, Washington 56 – SUCCESS!
12/30
Bell Helicopter Armed Forces Bowl (11 a.m. ESPN)
BYU vs. Tulsa – There’s a Military Bowl AND an Armed Forces Bowl? That’s like having a Potato Bowl and a Sweet Potato Bowl, isn’t it? I mean, they’re pretty much the same thing, right?
Let’s see. I don’t remember seeing Tulsa playing one time this year. I remember BYU beating Ole Miss early in the season, which doesn’t mean much, but it was still a win over an SEC team on the road. That’s all I need to know to pick the Cougars.
BYU 27, Tulsa 17
BYU 24, Tulsa 21 – SUCCESS!
New Era Pinstripe Bowl (2:20 p.m. ESPN)
Rutgers vs. Iowa State – When I think about Yankee Stadium, the first thing that comes to mind is football. The next thing that comes to mind is Iowa State football. I think Paul Rhoads and Babe Ruth would have gotten along nicely. Rhoads would have been so proud… so proud… SO PROUD of Ruth.
Rutgers does have a good story with Eric Legrand, but they weren’t very good this year. Iowa State did potentially ruin my next year, if you know what I’m saying.
Iowa State 30, Rutgers 20
Rutgers 27, Iowa State 13 – FAILURE
Franklin America Mortgage Music City Bowl (5:40 p.m. ESPN)
Mississippi State vs. Wake Forest – Last year, Mississippi State fueled the hype machine with a big win over Michigan in the Gator Bowl. This year, after a few losses, they dropped off the map. Even with a blowout of Wake Forest, which will probably happen, they will stay off the map until they beat somebody besides Ole Miss next year.
Mississippi State 34, Wake Forest 14
Mississippi State 23, Wake Forest 17 – SUCCESS!
Insight Bowl (9 p.m. ESPN)
Iowa vs. Oklahoma – Hey, what happened to the .com? Hey, what happened to Oklahoma? I guess they’ve both gone away. Iowa was probably just as disappointing as the always-ranked-in-the-top-10 Sooners, but at least they weren’t as overhyped. Honestly, Oklahoma is still the better team, but will they care about playing in the Insight Bowl? Eh, it won’t matter.
Oklahoma 45, Iowa 20
Oklahoma 31, Iowa 14 – SUCCESS!
2 comments
Hawaii Bowl or whatever it is called is only fun for the players. And even then, jet lag isn’t all that great for schools not from the West Coast. Much like the Pro Bowl, only the locals and tourists will attend the game.
[…] This bowl season has been pretty bad for the 'Blogler. That's expected when you have a bunch of games that you'd normally ignore on a Tuesday night. Things are getting better, though, and so are my predictions. Now we get into the meat of the schedule so expect my average to skyrocket. Right… If you are looking for my predictions for today's games, they are on last week's post. […]