This past season was one of the most exciting college football seasons in history. It began with a bunch of hippies taking down Big Blue (in the Big House no less) and ended with West Virginia losing to a 28 point underdog on its own turf. So it is only logical that we would have been granted the opportunity to watch some great games this bowl season after the great regular season, right?
Wrong. There are 32 bowl games which means that nearly half of all division 1 football teams make a bowl. Well, seeing as how there are only about 30-35 good college football teams in division 1 this causes a problem. I remember when making a bowl game used to mean something and I am only 24 years old. Hell, Alabama made a bowl game. Yes, the same Alabama team that lost to freaking UL Monroe...at home! Florida Atlantic is going bowling too. I cannot wait to see the ratings on their epic tilt with Memphis.
The way I see it there are only 15 bowl games worth watching. If you do the math on that you would realize that this means that there are 17 games that are not only bad, they are atrocious. Now for the rankings. There are some surprises to the list as some BCS games are lower than other non-BCS games but that is to be expected as the BCS is one of the dumber things that the powers that be have given us. The top 5 will have a brief synopsis of things to come while the last 1o aren't quite worthy of my time.
Top 15 Watchable Bowl Games
#1. BCS Title Game: LSU - Ohio State
This is compelling on a number of levels. First, this is for the "title." I put that in quotes because how we will ever know who the best team is without a playoff is beyond me. This is also a very interesting match up that pits the big (slow) Ohio State team up against the athletic (fast) LSU squad. Will we see another rape-job of Ohio State or will the Buckeyes redeem themselves and take home their 2nd title in 5 years. There is no way Ohio State shits the bed for the second year in a row but LSU has too many playmakers for the Buckeyes.
LSU 24 - Ohio State 21
#2. Sugar Bowl: UGA - Hawaii
After last years' Fiesta Bowl everyone will be asking the same question. Can Hawaii be the next Boise State? As a Georgia grad I can already feel the team and the fan base taking the Warriors lightly. This is the same thing that happened to the Dawgs when they played West Virginia in the Sugar Bowl a few years back. If the Dawgs don't prepare for Hawaii like they would against an Auburn team this game will be VERY close. If the Dawgs come to play and bring their "A" game this will be a 25+ point ass kicking. I see Hawaii coming to play and the Dawgs playing their B+ game thus the score will be closer than it should be.
UGA 31 - Hawaii 21
#3. Fiesta Bowl: Oklahoma - West Virginia
The Mountaineers epically shit the bed when they performed the choke job of the year by losing to Pittsburgh at home. Oklahoma lambasted Missouri in the Big 12 title game and feel snubbed by getting placed in the Fiesta and not the BCS title game. This game is going to come down to Pat White's arm. The Sooners are going to load up in the box and force WVU to throw the ball. The problem with that is the Sooners have some badasses in the secondary led by Reggie Smith. The Sooners feature the most efficient passer in the country in Sam Bradford and feature a power running game that should give the Mountaineers fits. WVU took UGA by surprise in the Sugar bowl in 2005 but will have that luxury this time around.
Oklahoma 31 - West Virginia 23
#4. Cotton Bowl: Arkansas - Missouri
The hose job of the latest BCS catastrophe went against the Missouri Tigers. Finishing 6th in the BCS and having already beaten both Illinois and Kansas the Tigers were past over by the BCS for both of the aforementioned schools. What do they get instead? A trip to shitty ass Dallas to play Darren McFadden and Felix Jones. The Razorbacks ended on a high note by beating then #1 LSU and look to end Darren McFadden's career with a win. Arkansas will be coached by their defensive coordinator in the game which shouldn't be that big of an issue as Houston Nutt sometimes forgets he has RunDMC in the backfield. There should be a ton of offense in this game and watching the contrasting styles should be worth your 3 hours. I like Arkansas' speed to prevail in a shootout.
Arkansas 31 - Missouri 28
#5. Holiday Bowl: Arizona State - Texas
Both of these teams looked like BCS locks as late as Thanksgiving but both faltered when it mattered most. Arizona State was hammered at home by USC and Texas lost to Texas A&M for the second consecutive year. The Holiday bowl is always fun to watch due to the fact that the defenses usually skip the trip out to Sunny San Diego. I think Arizona State is one of the most overrated teams in the country but Texas may be one of the most underachieving teams in the country. There is a ton of talent on each side of the ball with Texas bringing one of the best backs in the country to the game in Jamaal Charles and star Arizona State QB Rudy Carpenter. This game is almost always a close shootout and I feel that trend will continue.
Arizona State 35 - Texas 34
#6. Chick-Fil-A Bowl: Clemson - Auburn
I like the Tigers/War Eagles in this one as they should be able to contain Clemson's running game.
Auburn 20 - Clemson 14
#7. Orange Bowl: Virginia Tech - Kansas
This will be a very fast defense against a very spread out offense. I like the speed of VT in this one as Kansas hasn't beaten anyone of note all year long.
VT 27 - Kansas 20
#8. Capital One Bowl: Florida - Michigan
Lloyd Carr wants to go out on a high note. Too bad he can't get a horribly slow QB. Florida should light up the slow Michigan D and prove he was worthy of the Heisman.
Florida 34 - Michigan 24
#9. Rose Bowl: USC - Illinois
What a joke this game is. There are at least 3 other teams that deserve to be here more than Illinois. USC will make Juice Williams look horrible and should shut them down all day long.
USC 37 - Illinois 13
#10. Outback Bowl: Wisconsin - Tennessee
Tennessee has a knack for sucking in second tier bowl games but this years team has come on late. Wisconsin plays well in bowl games but this years team is not that good.
Tennessee 24 - Wisconsin 21
#11. Gator Bowl: Virginia - Texas Tech
UVA plays the game like a pro team would. Run the ball and stop the run. Texas Tech doesn't know what it means to run the ball so this should be fun. If Leech stays at Tech the Red Raiders should take this game.
Texas Tech 31 - UVA 28
#12. Music City Bowl: Florida State - Kentucky
The Seminoles had a bad year...again, but they get a shot at one of the top QB's in the nation in Andre Woodson. Kentucky's D is not that good which should keep the Noles in this game.
Kentucky 24 - Florida State 21
#13. Insight.com Bowl: Indiana - Oklahoma State
The feel good story of the year is Indiana making a bowl game on the heels of losing Coach Terry Hoeppner to cancer. Both teams have crazy good offenses and crazy bad defenses which should make for an entertaining game.
Oklahoma State 38 - Indiana 31
#14. Alamo Bowl: Texas A&M - Penn State
The Aggies will be sans coach in this game although that may not be a bad thing. Penn State has one of the most boring offenses in the country but feature a nasty D. Look for the D to carry the day.
Penn State 20 - Texas A&M 17
#15. Champs Sports Bowl: Boston College - Michigan State
Matt Ryan is worth the price of admission. Michigan State has a solid offense under first year coach Mike D'Antonio which should make this game a high scoring affair. I like Matty Ice to take this game and end his great career on a high note.
Boston College 31 - Michigan State 27
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