BCS Bowls: Up in smoke

By Chris Maza
Fan Fanatic Sports Staff

Hey, this is what we all expected. The BCS is a system set up so the rich get richer and everyone else gets left in the cold. So why are we surprised that Boise State and TCU are facing each other in a bowl for the second year in a row?

We all know what the BCS is and the reasons to get rid of it. This is not a new story. Not only is that horse dead, but the impact from the repeated flogging of said deceased mammal has driven it six feet under. We all want a playoff. The people who stand to lose the most money from a tournament don't. This is not a surprise. So this column will not be about condemning a system we already know doesn't work. This will simply be a primer of the entire bowl season. Enjoy.

December 19th
New Mexico Bowl, 4:30 on ESPN
Fresno State vs. Wyoming
Fresno State has a pretty entertaining offense to watch, ranking 14th in the nation in points scored. The Bulldogs were the first team to really put a dent in Boise State's defense, putting up 34 points on a team that had held its first two opponents (which included Pac-10 champion Oregon) to a combined eight points.They have a balanced attack that favors the run a tad with 2779 rushing yards to 2452 passing yards. Wyoming plays right into Fresno's hands with a weak defense against both the run and the pass. Fresno does have a lackluster defense, but Wyoming posted some of the worst offensive numbers in the country.

St. Petersburgh Bowl, 8:30 on ESPN
Rutgers vs. UCF
Rutgers finished the year 8-4, but it is a very weak 8-4. They went 2-3 against winning teams, while beating up on losing teams and went 0-3 against ranked opponents. Rutgers relies on its defense to win games simply because they cannot score points. Their 27-point-per game average is skewed heavily by blowout wins over Texas Southern and Howard. The defense ranked 19th in the nation in total defense, but probably isn't that good, as Cincinnati, Connecticut and Syracuse all had big days offensively against it. Luckily for the Scarlet Knights, UCF doesn't have much of an offense and a mediocre defense they should be able to run the ball against.

December 20th
New Orleans Bowl, 8:30 on ESPN
Southern Miss. vs. Middle Tennessee State
This is the second-consecutive trip to the New Orleans bowl for Southern Miss, who hasn't fared well outside the confines of M. M. Roberts Stadium, going 1-5 this season in road games. That said, Southern Miss. is an undefeated 3-0 in this game. Middle Tennessee State is a hot team right now, having won six-straight games, averaging just over 41 points over that span, while holding opponents to less than three touchdowns in four of those wins. That said, this is also the team that gave up 31 points to Troy. Both teams can be dynamic on offense while suffering breakdowns defensively, so this could be a shootout.

December 22nd
Las Vegas Bowl, 8:00 on ESPN
BYU vs. Oregon State
This pits two quality teams from arguably two of the most competitive conferences in football together. The little team that got big press after beating Oklahoma finished the season strong with a 26-23 win over Utah. With only one loss in an underrated Mountain West Conference, BYU is dangerous. They did have an embarrassing loss to Florida State, but September seems a long time ago. BYU has one of the best scoring offenses in the country, as does their opponent, Oregon State, who gave Oregon all it could handle in a bid for the Pac-10 championship. The x-factor could be the Beavers' defense. Oregon State does pretty well against the run (with the exception of last week's game), but they can be touched in the passing game and Max Hall is not afraid to let it fly.

December 23rd
Poinsettia Bowl, 8:00 on ESPN
Utah vs. California
It was a disappointing season for the Golden Bears, who were expected to at least compete for the Pac-10 title and have a Heisman candidate they would rely on. Instead, Best disappeared in some of the team's biggest games and then when he got hurt, it didn't seem to matter much as they went on to beat then-ranked opponents Arizona and Stanford. But a sickening loss to Washington destroyed all of the Bears' momentum and a lot of people are wondering which Cal team will show up the day before Christmas Eve. As expected, Utah was a solid team in an above-average conference. The Utes finished 9-3 with two of its losses coming against teams playing in BCS bowls and the third coming against BYU, 26-23 last week. The Utes hold the nation's longest active bowl winning streak with eight. Neither team has been stellar offensively, but on the defensive side, Utah holds a distinct advantage. Cal's defense has been simply awful at times this season.

December 24th
Hawaii Bowl, 8:00 on ESPN
SMU vs. Nevada
Just like last year, this game features a team with a very good offense against a team with a terrible defense. After dropping its first three games, Nevada went on to win its next eight games before falling to Boise State in a championship game of sorts. Despite being shut out by Notre Dame to start the season, the Wolfpack still ranks fifth in the nation in scoring offense. Quarterback Colin Kaepernick has been the perfect example of the way Nevada's season has gone. Over the first three games, Kaepernick threw two touchdowns and four picks, while running for one more touchdown. Over the remainder of the season, he threw just one interception, while connecting on 17 touchdown throws and running for another 15 touches. SMU struggles mightily against the run, which is Nevada's strength, so this does not bode well for the Mustangs, who have not made a bowl appearance in 25 years.

December 26th
Little Ceasar's Pizza Bowl, 1:00 on ESPN
Marshall vs. Ohio
Yawn. Marshall finished 6-6 and 4-4 in C-USA, good for fourth in the conference's East Division. The Thundering Herd went just 2-4 against winning teams and finished the season losing three of its last four. Neither their offense nor their defense ranks in the top half of the nation. Ohio lost to Central Michigan in the MAC championship game and finished the season strong, going 7-1 over its last eight games before falling to the Chippewas. That said, the Bobcats have a prettey terrible offense and a defense that leaves a lot to be desired. This is one bowl that wishes Notre Dame had not decided to forgo the bowl season this year. With no real name to draw attention to this game, most people will just sleep in after making merry on Christmas.

Meineke Car Care Bowl, 4:30 on ESPN
North Carolina vs. Pittsburgh
UNC can thank Florida State for this matchup. The Tar Heels have been hard to figure out this season. They needed a safety thanks to a holding call in the end zone to beat UConn, lost 16-3 to Virginia and were toppled by a struggling Florida State team. On flip side, they beat ranked teams in Virginia Tech and Miami and topped Boston College at Alumni Stadium, something no one else was able to do this season. Those three wins came as part of a four-game winning streak that had people thinking this team finally had put it together. Then came North Carolina State, who ruined UNC's hopes for a big-name bowl. UNC has been troubled by an inconsistent offense that lacks the playmakers necessary to make Tyler Yates the quarterback he was a year ago. Defensively, the Tar Heals were good enough to win pretty much every game. Pitt blew a huge lead in a season finale that would determine the winner of the Big East and lost to Cincinnati, sending the Bearcats to a BCS game and the Panthers to Charlotte. It was the second-straight heartbreaking loss for Pitt, who lost to West Virginia on a 43-yard field goal as time expired the week prior. Probably the biggest surprise for Pitt this season has been the play of Bill Stull, who threw for 21 touchdowns and eight interceptions after finishing with more picks than scores a year ago as LeSean McCoy paced the offense. Without McCoy, Stull had to take on a larger role in a much more balanced attack and responded.

Emerald Bowl, 8:00 on ESPN
Boston College vs. USC
Another matchup that can be credited to Florida State. The name suggests this game might hold some kind of prestige, but keep in mind that until 2003, it was known as the Diamond Walnut Bowl. Boston College's administration has to be drooling at the amount of exposure and the ratings (because they only make 750,000 for showing up) their game is going to get this year because even though it's a down year for USC, the Trojans' brand is still big enough to draw a crowd. The Eagles have exceeded expectations this season, going 8-4. After their tumultuous offseason, which featured the head coach getting fired for talking to an NFL team about a job after being told not to, the heir apparent to the quarterback spot getting suspended for grades and transferring, and team leader Mark Herzlick being diagnosed with a rare form of cancer, pretty much everyone thought that 4-8 might even be a stretch for Newton University. Still, BC was helped by a weak schedule that featured just four games against winning programs. They went 1-3 in those games. They put of gaudy numbers against weak teams, but had glaring losses to quality opponents in Clemson, who held them to 54 yards of total offense (1.1 yards per play), and Virginia Tech, who allowed just 169 yards. USC experienced a fall from grace this season that has been well documented. Matt Barkley is still the quarterback of the future for this team, but he experienced his share of growing pains this season. The Trojans are just 2-3 in games where Barkley has to throw 30 passes or more and the freshman has a 4-6 TD-INT ratio in those games. USC's rushing offense had found its way and has contributed most of the Trojans' offense. Boston College also has relied on the running game as Montel Harris has been by far the team's most effective offensive weapon.

December 27th
Music City Bowl, 8:30 on ESPN
Clemson vs. Kentucky
Well, this is another team that is being bumped down thanks to Florida State. The Tigers go from having a chance - albeit a slim one - of appearing in a BCS bowl to facing the team that finished fifth in an overrated SEC's East Division. C.J. Spiller was given a lot of attention in terms of the Heisman, but did not make it into the list of finalists after a mediocre outing against Virginia and a terrible showing against South Carolina. Still, it was an very good season for the senior, who rebounded in the ACC Championship with a career-high 233 yards and four touchdowns. In Kentucky, Spiller takes on the 100th ranked rush defense. Throw on top of that the fact that Kentucky has a sub-par offense and Clemson features one of the top-30 defenses in the nation and this one could shape up to be an ugly one early.

December 28th
Independence Bowl, 5:00 on ESPN2
Texas A&M vs. Georgia
This is a nightmare of a bowl. Texas A&M was 6-6 despite having one of the highest scoring offenses in college football. Why? Because their defense was one of the absolute worst in the nation. The Aggies had just one win thise season against a winning program and while they did put up points against ranked opponents Oklahoma State and Texas, both games ended in losses and they also gave up huge offensive games to Kansas State, Colorado and Oklahoma (52, 35 and 65 points, respectively), all of which were also losses. The team does not have a real quality win to its credit. Jerrod Johnson has been impressive with 28 touchdowns and just six interceptions. Georgia went into this season with some pretty lofty expectations, but didn't live up to any of them, finishing 4-4 in a pretty weak SEC this season. Georgia has had a pretty strong defense this season, but one weakness has been the pass. They don't give up a ton of yards, but the 23 touchdowns they allowed is one of the worst totals in the country and the secondary did very little in terms of creating turnovers. Georgia's offense probably doesn't have enough firepower to make up for their deficiencies in pass coverage.

December 29th
EagleBank Bowl, 4:30 on ESPN
Temple vs. Army or UCLA
The actual matchup for this game will be decided on Dec. 12 when Army and Navy play. If Army wins, they're in. If they don't UCLA takes the spot. Check back for details on this game after the 12th.

Champ Sports Bowl, 8:00 on ESPN
Miami vs. Wisconsin
Yet another team that is pretty upset about the Gator Bowl's selection of Florida State. Most likely if FSU wasn't in the picture, it would be Miami in the Gator Bowl. Instead, they are headed to the last Champs Sports Bowl that will be open solely to ACC and Big 12 teams. The Big East will join starting next year, as will Notre Dame, who will be eligible once every four years. Some Miami fans consider the Hurricanes to be the best team in the ACC because they beat champion Georgia Tech. But more than that, the Hurricanes could make that argument given the way they played early in the season against four ranked teams in consecutive games. Miami started the year 5-1 and quarterback Jacory Harris was being talked about in the Heisman conversation. Then a heart-pounding overtime game that featured 11 lead changes and three interceptions by Harris. Perhaps Harris ended up falling in love with his arm strength, as he started throwing ill-advised passes and finished the last six games with 10 interceptions to his 12 touchdowns. His four interceptions in a loss to UNC pretty much sealed the 'Canes' fate. Wisconsin flew under the radar most of the season as Ohio State, Iowa and Penn State took the headlines. The Badgers had a solid 9-3 campaign, but was fifth behind unranked Northwestern in the Big Televen. Michigan State was the most quality win this season and matchups against the Buckeyes and Hawkeyes could have given some credibility to the Badgers' season, but both ended in losses. Wisconsin's defense is one that could both be an advantage or a big problem for Harris. They have allowed 20 passing touchdowns this year, but have also picked off 15 passes.

December 30th
Humanitarian Bowl, 4:30 on ESPN
Idaho vs. Bowling Green
With Boise State gone to a BCS Bowl, Idaho slides into the former MPC Computers Bowl. In a weak WAC conference, the Vandals finished 4-4 in the league, but went 3-1 in non-conference games. Granted, those teams had a combined 20-31 record. Their signature win is Northern Illinois in non-conference play. They face the MAC's third-place team, who enters the game on a four-game win streak. However, their best win of the season came in week one against Troy. Both teams feature devastatingly bad defenses. The difference is Idaho has an offense that moves the ball with ease, especially against bad defenses. They have scored more touchdowns by Miami, Alabama and Virginia Tech this season.

Holiday Bowl, 8:00 on ESPN
Nebraska vs. Arizona
This game features the second-place teams in two of the toughest conferences in college football. Nebraska was within one second of going to a BCS bowl and features one of the best defenses with perhaps the best defensive player in the country. Nebraska's offense has struggled at times this season with games like a 9-7 loss to Iowa State. They take on the second-place team in a very competitive Pac-10. Arizona was very much in the running for the conference title until it suffered back-to-back losses to California and eventual champion Oregon. While Arizona's defense is nowhere near the level of Nebraska's, it is still a very solid unit and their offense has put up much better numbers than the Huskers. That said, Nebraska has shut down better offenses than Arizona. It will be interesting to see which strength will win out.

December 31
Armed Forces Bowl, 12:00 on ESPN
Houston vs. Air Force
Houston has played contender for the better part of this season, riding the arm of Case Keenum. That was no more evident than when last week's C-USA championship game, which they lost to East Carolina. Keenum threw 75 passes, completing 56 of them for 527 yards. On the whole, Houston picked up 557 yards on the day. It makes you wonder if Keenum is really that good. On one hand, when defenses know exactly what the offense is going to do and they still can't stop you, that is something. But also keep in mind that Keenum only faced one Top-40 defense all season and it's easy to pile up yardage when you're throwing 6.5 more attempts per game than the guy who throws the second most. Probably the thing that convinces that he is a top-flight quarterback is his completion percentage, which is nearly 71 percent, and his TD-INT ratio, which stands at 43-9. Wow. Also stunning is just how bad Houston's defense is. Some of Keenum's best games (527 yards, 5 touchdowns vs. East Carolina; 536 yards, 5 TDs vs. UTEP, ) ended in losses, which seems unfathomable. Air Force has a very tough defense and played TCU and Utah tough this season, but Max Hall displayed that the Falcons can be beaten through the air by throwing five touchdowns in BYU's win in the regular season finale.

Sun Bowl, 2:00 on CBS
Oklahoma vs. Stanford
This shapes up to be a vary exciting matchup. Don't let the record fool you. Oklahoma is still a very good football team, even sans Sam Bradford. The Sooners were just 2-3 against ranked opponents this season, but the three losses were by a combined five points. The Sooners defense has been one of the best in the country and have shut down some of the top offenses in college football. The best example of that came last week in a 27-0 drubbing of Oklahoma State to deprive the Cowboys of a chance for a BCS bid. Oklahoma held its in-state rivals to 109 total yards and 0-14 on third down. Stanford has been one of the feel-good stories of the year with Toby Gerhart as the main character. The Heisman finalist has had an outstanding season, literally running over defenses on his way to 1736 yards and 26 touchdowns, both good for first in the country. Both teams will go into this game with a quarterback they didn't start the season with. Landry Jones certainly has had more experience this year and has served well, but he is still an unpolished rookie prone to make mistakes. While Gerhart is the catalyst for the offense, Andrew Luck (2575 yards, 13 TD, 4 INT) has been a nice choice at quarterback, having won the job over Tavita Pritchard. Now Pritchard, who threw for 1633 yards, 13 touchdowns and 10 interceptions a year ago, takes over for Luck, who broke a finger on his throwing hand.

Texas Bowl, 3:30 on ESPN
Navy vs. Missouri
Navy, not surprisingly, has one of the top rushing offense in the league, basically because they run more than pretty much any other team in the country. The only teams that tops them in both attempts AND yards is Georgia Tech, which runs the exact same offense, only with better personnel. With 23 touchdowns, Ricky Dobbs has the most rushing scores by a quarterback and second most in the country at any position. His 138 points are the most by any quarterback in college football and blow away totals put up by Heisman finalists Colt McCoy and Tim Tebow. Granted, the competition hasn't always been as good as what they have faced. Missouri spent part of the early season ranked, but a losing streak right in the middle of the season put an abrubt end to that as they fell in consecutive weeks to Nebraska, Oklahoma State and Texas. They were actually better on the road (4-1, 5-1, including a neutral site game) than they were at home (3-3). Missouri was pretty good offensively behind their sophomore quarterback, but an inconsistent defense has directly led to all four of the losses and left a lot of games closer than they should have been.

Insight Bowl, 6:00 on NFL Network
Minnesota vs. Iowa State
It's hard to find an interesting part of this game as neither team has a good offense or defense. It truly is a battle of mediocrity between the Big Televen's eighth-place team (Minnesota) and the Big 12 North's fourth place team. This is another game that would have loved to extend an invite to Notre Dame. Someone might at least have tuned in to see the show Jimmy Clausen and company would put on against either of these defenses.

Chick-Fil-A Bowl, 7:30 on ESPN
Virginia Tech at Tennessee
Tennessee made strides under its first year with Lane Kiffin at the helm, but to say the Volunteers are a marquee team would be a flat-out lie. The SEC was filled with middle-of-the-road teams and Tennessee was one of those. One thing that Tennessee did do very well was play defense, ranking in the top 30 in the country in both yards and points allowed per game. They will need that defense to play well against a very tough Virginia Tech offense led by Ryan Williams, not Tyrod Taylor like the media makes it out to be. Williams, a freshman, is one of the best running backs you've never heard of with a tremendous future ahead of him. His 19 rushing touchdowns lead the ACC and were fourth in all of college football. The Hokies also boast one of the best defenses around, so even if Tennessee manages to shut down the Virginia Tech offense, the Vols are not likely to have the offense to put them away.

January 1
Outback Bowl, 11:00 on ESPN
Northwestern vs. Auburn
Northwestern finished with a worse overall record than Wisconsin and an identical league mark, but beat them in the regular season finale to finish ahead of them in the Big Televen. Late in the season, the Wildcats made a habit of making life hard on ranked teams. While Penn State won their game, 34-13, Northwestern led, 13-10 at the half, then fell apart after losing its starting quarterback Mike Kafka. The Wildcats followed that blueprint against Iowa, taking advantage of Hawkeyes quarterback Ricky Stanzi out for a 17-10 upset. Kafka followed that victory with two of the best games of his career, including a 325-yard, two-touchdown performance against the Badgers. Auburn is another team that was a pain for ranked teams. They didn't put up much of a fight against LSU, but they upset Ole Miss and Alabama needed a touchdown in the last 1:30 to beat the Tigers. Auburn running back Ben Tate insists he is the best running back in Alabama and the numbers are comparable and thanks in large part to Tate, the Tigers have the 13th ranked rushing attack in the nation. Northwestern is solid against the run and stopped Ingram almost in his tracks, allowing the Heisman finalist to just 30 yards and no touchdowns on 16 carries.

Capital One Bowl, 1:oo on ABC
Penn State vs. LSU
The Nittany Lions made it into this game with a 10-2 record against a schedule that featured eight teams that finished the season with losing records. They went 0-2 against teams that finished the year ranked, both of which are in their own conference (Iowa and Ohio State). Penn State posted a good statistical season defensively with that schedule, which included just two Top 40 offenses and seven teams that were in the bottome half of the nation in terms of scoring points in Akron (105), Syracuse (101), Iowa (86), Illinois (82), Minnesota (98), Northwester n (76) and Indiana (84). Fortunately for them, they face an LSU team that never really seemed to find its identity offensively. Jordan Jefferson has been disappointing and hasn't shown an ability to lead the offense in any way. If there's one plus for that offense, it's that they rarely turn over the football. Defensively, LSU isn't flashy, but they have been very good at keeping opponents out of the end zone, which is what really matters. The Tigers have allowed one of the lowest TD-allowed totals in the nation and held Florida without an offensive score and held Alabama, who averaged almost four touchdowns a game, to just two. In both of those games, the defense let them down, scoring a combined 18 points.

Gator Bowl, 1:oo on CBS
Florida State vs. West Virginia
You can understand that Bobby Bowden is one of the best coaches in college football history and still not like the fact he gets this bowl. Obviously the powers that be find it fitting that the two most prominent programs he coached in this bowl and perhaps that's true. As a Notre Dame fan, I understand what tradition and history mean, but given how many teams the Seminoles had to jump to get to this bowl, it doesn't seem quite fair. Florida State seemed to have a pretty good offense, even after Christian Ponder's injury, but it was aided late in the season by playing weak defenses in Maryland and Wake Forest. When they played a quality defense in Florida, they put up about 150 fewer yards than they averaged the two games prior and scored just 10 points. They also had the 98th-ranked scoring defense. West Virginia had a solid season, but bad losses to Auburn and South Florida. Without those failures, a loss to Cincinnati would have been bearable, especially after beating Pittsburgh and would be in serious consideration for a BCS bowl. So close. But that's the way the season has gone for the Mountaineers, who had four of their last six games come down to one score and all six decided by less than two touchdowns.

January 2
International Bowl, 12:00 on ESPN2
South Florida vs. Northern Illinois
South Florida went into this season with the expectations of competing with the big boys in the Big East and had the quarterback that could take them there. Matt Grothe was one of the best quarterbacks you've never heard of as the Big East's career leader in total yardage. He started the year with five touchdowns in his first three games to lead the Bulls to a 3-0 mark, albeit against weak opponents. But in that third game, he was injured in the second half and never returned for the rest of the season with an ACL tear. From there on, the Bulls went 4-5 and beat just one team with a winning record. That win was a big one over West Virginia and could have given some momentum to South Florida heading into the stretch run. Instead they suffered a deflating 31-0 loss to Rutgers, leading to a 1-3 mark in its last four games. Northern Illinois probably has the weakest 7-5 record in college football. All seven of their wins came against teams with records of .500 or worse, which is not good. Look at exactly where these teams rank and it's even worse. Over the season, which included a four-game win streak, they beat Purdue (77), Western Michigan (84), Miami, OH (117), Akron (106), Eastern Michigan (120), Ball State (112) and Western Illinois (1-10 in FCS).

PapaJohns.com Bowl, 2:00 on ESPN
Connecticut vs. South Carolina
The trials of UConn are well known. Maybe the best player in their secondary, Jasper Howard, was murdered outside a school dance while trying to break up a scuffle just hours after getting the game ball for his efforts in a win against Louisville. After that, not surprisingly, the Huskies went on a three-game losing streak. But it was the incredibly disheartening way they lost those games that made the story excruciating. Losses to West Virginia and Rutgers were by a margin of four points each and they fell just short of BCS-bound Cincinnati, 47-45. But a monumental win over Notre Dame on the road restored the Huskies' season and their spirits and they finished the season with three straight wins. Once again, South Carolina played one of the toughest schedules in college football and the Gamecocks' record reflected it. It was hard to tell which South Carolina would show up from week to week, the one who knocked Georgia out of the Top-25 and beat Ole Miss and Clemson, or the team that lost to Arkansas and squeaked by Vanderbilt? South Carolina features a tough defense, but their run stopping is purely mediocre. Given the fact that UConn has two above-average runners in Jordan Todman and Andre Dixon, Connecticut could pull out a close one if it can control the clock with those weapons.

Cotton Bowl, 2:00 on Fox
Oklahoma State vs. Ole Miss
It's the matchup of two underachieving quarterbacks. Zac Robinson and Jevan Snead were expected to be two of the elite passers in the nation this year on BCS contending teams, but neither really lived up the billing. Ole Miss went into the season ranked in the Top 10 in both polls and amid much debate because of a loss to South Carolina, rose to the No. 4 and 5 spots before getting trounced by Alabama, dropping them to 21/18 and from there, it was mediocrity the rest of the way. The biggest dagger ended up being a bad loss to Mississippi State, which dropped Mississippi to 8-4 on the year. Snead was a big part of the struggles for this team as he threw 17 picks to go along with his 20 touchdowns. Some of his worst games came against lesser opponents. He threw two picks against Memphis, Auburn and Arkansas and three against Vanderbilt. His worst game of the season was by far the Alabama game, where he threw four picks and no touchdowns, then told the media he was glad his team wasn't going to be in the top 10 anymore because the pressure would be off. Doesn't sound much like a winner, does it? Zac Robinson had a difficult season due to injury and losing his star receiver. Dez Bryant was suspended for the season because he lied to the NCAA about a conversation he had with Deion Sanders and college football made an example out of him. Mind you, this is the same organization that allowed the Pac-10 and Oregon to reinstate LeGarrett Blount after he punched a guy, then went after fans in the stands. While Robinson only missed one game this year, he had a host of ailments from sprained ankles to a banged up shoulder to a concussion to a bad hamstring. With Robinson being terribly inconsistent this season, the Cowboys have leaned more on their running game and more specifically Keith Totson. He doesn't get a lot of recognition, but Totson was in the Top-25 in the nation in rushing. But the bottom line remains that the Cowboys don't have the vaunted offensive attack they were expected to have at the beginning of the season and Oklahoma in the final week showed that you can completely shut down the offense if you get to Robinson.

Liberty Bowl, 5:30 on ESPN
East Carolina vs. Arkansas
East Carolina won C-USA for the second-straight year, but was another one of those teams that really didn't play well against quality opponents. They won nine games, including beating Houston in the C-USA title game, but lost to West Virginia, North Carolina and Virginia Tech by at least two scores and also had a game they'd like to forget against SMU. The Pirates give up a lot through the passing game defensively and Arkansas has a pretty good quarterback in Ryan Mallett, who ranks sixth in passer rating, fifth in touchdown passes with 29 and he's only thrown seven interceptions. The Pirates beat a pretty good quarterback in Case Keenum (who threw 75 passes and accounted for almost all of Houston's offense) by coming up with timely interceptions, including one in the end zone to prevent a possible game-winning touchdown pass late in the game. East Carolina is a run-first team, so if Mallett can avoid throwing costly interceptions, they can force the Pirates into a shootout, which is not what they want.

Alamo Bowl, 9:00 on ESPN
Michigan State vs. Texas Tech
Texas Tech proved this year that you can insert pretty much any quarterback with a good arm into that offensive scheme and he'll find success. Tech has the second-most prolific passing offense in the nation behind Houston, Taylor Potts missed two games and put up some of the biggest numbers in the country in terms of passing yards and in those two games he missed, they still put up big offensive days, including 554 yards and eight touchdowns against Kansas State. Texas Tech had two problems, however. The lack of a rushing attack to keep defenses honest (Tech gave up 30 sacks, one of the worst totals in the country) and a mediocre defense. Case in point, Texas A&M put up 52 points against them. They did have quality wins over Nebraska and Oklahoma, but other than that, the resume is pretty thin as they missed out on opportunities to make a statement against Oklahoma State and Texas. They also had losses to A&M and Houston. Michigan State had an up and down year, which included a gmae of musical quarterbacks, which finally ended with the guy everyone thought should be the starter anyway in Kirk Cousins. The Spartans were one of those teams no one could quite get a bead on as they won their opener, then dropped the next three to Central Michigan, Notre Dame and Wisconsin by a combined 13 points. They knocked off Michigan to start a three-game winning streak against weak opponents, then lost another close one to a ranked Iowa team, then went 2-2 the rest of the way. The way the secondary goes seems to be the way the Spartans go. In all but one of the team's six losses, the opposing team had huge days throwing the football. Minnesota and Penn. State both threw for five touchdowns, Minnesota tossed four and both Notre Dame and Central Michigan had three TD's through the air.

January 6
GMAC Bowl, 7:00 on ESPN
Troy vs. Central Michigan
Central Michigan and Troy won the MAC and Sun Belt, respectively. The Chippewas feature one of the most promising young NFL quarterback prospects you never hear about, which paces the 16th-ranked scoring offense. Dan LeFevour completed over 71 percent of his passes this season and threw for 27 touches and just six interceptions. Sure, he only faced one tough defense in Boston College and didn't play well against the Eagles, but he has a live arm and can make all the throws. Troy is right behind Central Michigan in terms of scoring and are third in the entire country in total offense. While the ball moves mostly through the air for Troy, once in the red zone, the running game cna be dangerous as well. The Trojans have actually scored more rushing touchdowns than passing, despite a picking up around 2,200 more yards via the pass than the run. The big difference is the defenses. Troy was scorched for over 400 yards and 28 points per game. Central Michigan is in the top-25 in scoring defense and in the top-30 in total defense.

More to come...