Ramblings from the Ultimate Sports Sentimentalist

From top to bottom, it’s probably a slightly below average bowl season, as far as matchups go.  Four of the five BCS games are either as good or better than usual, but the fifth game is absolutely horrible.  It also seems like we are missing those two or three extremely captivating non-BCS bowl games that we usually have each year.  However, just because a lot of the games don’t look great on paper, doesn’t mean that they won’t end up as classics on the field.  In fact, it is promising that there are glaring few double-digit spreads in this year’s games (3) meaning we could have several nail-biters.  Of course, it’s extremely disappointing not to have my Alma Mater in a bowl, but hey what can you do.  Here are my rankings of this year’s bowl games based on the quality/viewability of each matchup.  I will try to hinder my personal interests in particular teams from affecting these rankings.  Next week, I will be making my bowl picks, so if you are looking for some projections to go by, then check back for that.

Must-See Bowl Games

1.  Tostito’s National Championship Game: Boise State vs. TCU-  For the first time since the 2005 season (the USC vs. Texas year), my # 1 and # 2 ranked teams will playing each other in a bowl game to prove who the best team in the country is.  I’m somewhat disappointed this game isn’t the finale of the bowl season, like most national championship games are, but it’s also cool to see it on a Monday night which is the same night the NCAA uses for its basketball national championship.   Let’s all hope this game is as good as it looks on paper.

2.  Sugar Bowl: Florida vs. Cincinnati- I will be interested to see how the Gators play after falling short of their national title dreams.  I don’t think they’ll lay an egg, since it’s Tebow’s last game, but if they’re not careful then they could be the victim of a second consecutive Sugar Bowl shocker.  Whether or not Brian Kelly will be coaching this game is an important factor to consider, but if Cincy can somehow woodshed the Gators then they might be able to steal my national championship vote away from the winner of Game # 1.

3.  CitiBank Bowl: Alabama vs. Texas- This will be a quality BCS matchup between two undefeated, national powerhouses.  It’s a shame that neither one will get to play one of the national championship game participants to have a chance to prove they are the best team in the country, but that’s why we need a playoff.  The top two Heisman trophy finishers could be squaring off in this one, and seeing an SEC playing in Pasadena will be really cool.  Hopefully, it won’t  much of a letdown for viewers, since it is being played three days after the national title game for some reason.

4.  Rose Bowl: Oregon vs. Ohio State- I always loved following the Cinderella Rose Bowl participants of the mid-1990s (Wisconsin- 1994, Oregon- 1995, Northwestern- 1996, Arizona State- 1997, Washington State- 1998), and I was hoping after the USC debacle that we’d get another similar storyline here from the Pac-10.  Unfortunately, Oregon just isn’t that great of a feel-good story compared to Oregon State, Stanford or Arizona who could have played in this game instead.  I especially don’t like the fact that the Ducks decided to reinstate LeGarrette ”Blount Force Punch” just when they needed him to clinch the conference title for them.  Nonetheless, this should be a good BCS game featuring two contrasting styles. 

5.  Humanitarian Bowl: Bowling Green vs. Idaho- Since this blog is entitled “Ramblings of the Sports Sentimentalist”, I’m naturally going to hype up games with the most sentimental storylines.  That is why games ranked 5-9 have that quality as their distinguishing features, and is also why the Humanitarian Bowl (traditionally one of the worst bowl games) has managed to make it to # 5.  The Idaho Vandals are of course the feel-good story here, as me and several other experts ranked them 118thin the preseason.  In fact, if you refer back to my preseason projections, I said that their opener versus New Mexico State would likely serve as both teams only chance to win a game against a 1-A opponent all season.  Well, I was way off on that one.  The Vandals are probably the worst regarded preseason team ever to make a bowl, which is why this game has to be in the top

6.  Gator Bowl: West Virginia vs. Florida State- Sentimental storyline: Bobby Bowden’s final game.  Enough said. 

7.  Hawaii Bowl: Nevada vs. SMU- I don’t really care about June Jones coming back to Hawaii.  That’s not the big sentimental storyline here.  The focus of this game should be all on SMU’slong-last resurrection from the death penalty.    

8.  EagleBank Bowl: UCLA vs. Temple- Another typically abysmal bowl game with a great feel-good storyline.  Regardless of who Temple is playing, the fact that the Owls are in their first bowl since the 1979 Garden State Bowl is reason enough to watch this game.  Unfortunately for Temple fans, they still haven’t played at a warm weather bowl site since the 1934 Sugar Bowl. 

9.  Copper Bowl: Minnesota vs. Iowa State- As a protest against the over-commercialization of college sports, I refuse to call established bowl games by their new sponsor names.  That is why this game will be referred to as the Copper Bowl, and the reason is at # 9 is because of Iowa State’s miraculous run to a bowl game after three straight horrible seasons.  My comment in my preseason college football guide was: “Don’t see them beating any of the 10 BCS schools on their schedule”.  Paul Rhoads emotional post game speech after their win over Nebraska also enhances the sentimentality of this story.

10.  Sun Bowl: Oklahoma vs. Stanford- The combined unbelievability factor of all five of the miraculous storylines I just mentioned pretty much equals the outlandishness of Oklahoma being a 9.5 point favorite in this game.  There is absolutely no basis for such a point spread.  Stanford has had a better season, more talent, and will come in more motivated.  Stanford is without Luck at QB, but unless Bradford plans on coming back for the Sooners than expect a close game between an established powerhouse and one of the up and coming programs in the country.  This is also an incredible coaching matchup with two of the brightest college football minds in the country, Harbaugh and Stoops, matching wits.

11.  GMAC Bowl: Central Michigan vs. Troy- The GMAC has once again produced a blockbuster battle of mid-major powerhouses (last year Tulsa played Ball State).  Unfortunately, this bowl game has not featured many close games, and I’m not quite sure if Troy has the offensive power to keep up with CMU here either.  Nevertheless, enjoy the chance to watch two very good football teams that you don’t get to see on TV very often.

12.  Liberty Bowl: Arkansas vs. East Carolina- The Pirates have once again made a late season surge to capture their conference championship and go to the Liberty Bowl.  They lost a close game to Kentucky last year in Memphis, and I expect another tight contest here.  If ECU could slow down Houston’s potent offense, I don’t see why they can’t do the same against the Hogs.  This bowl always interests me because it seems to constantly produce close games (last 5 matchups decided by 7 points or less) despite annually inviting a non-BCS team to play an SEC squad.

Watchable Bowl Games (Real college football fans should tune in, others maybe not)

13.  Papajohns.com Bowl: South Carolina vs. UConn- The Huskies have battled through more adversity than anyone this year after the death of their cornerback Jasper Howard.  They will undoubtedly come into Legion Field with plenty to play for, and if the Gamecocks don’t watch out, they will get upset in this one.  Expect a close, tight game throughout, as the Huskies have won or lost in dramatic fashion in almost every game they’ve played this year.

14.  Cotton Bowl: Oklahoma State vs. Ole Miss- Let’s call this disappointment bowl 1, as this is one of several bowl games this season matching teams who immensely underachieved based on their preseason expectations.  Unlike  several other disappointment bowls however this game should be close and entertaining.  It will also feature two offensive superstars playing in their last collegiate games, as Zac Robinson and Dexter McCluster  take the field for the final time.

15.  Music City Bowl: Kentucky vs. Clemson- I generally hate meaningless rematch bowl games, especially when the first matchup wasn’t very exciting.  That’s definitely the case here as Kentucky blew out the Tigers in this same bowl in 2006.  Still, this game is an exception to that rule because it features two of the most versatile players in the country in Randall Cobb and C.J. Spiller

16.  Holiday: Arizona vs. Nebraska- The Holiday Bowl has produced many memorable games, and this matchup should be no exception.  If you like watching defensive struggles, then this game is for you.  The only reason it isn’t ranked higher on this list is that nothing involving Nebraska’s anemic offense should be described as “must see”.

17.  Las Vegas: Oregon State vs. Brigham Young- No bowl in the country has come farther than the Las Vegas Bowl.  Throughout the 80s and 90s, it was considered far and away the worst bowl game due to its MAC and Big West tie-ins.  This year, it matches two top 25 teams who both had legitimate BCS aspirations.

18.  Poinsettia: Utah vs. California- Very similar to the Las Vegas Bowl in that it matches an upper echelon Pac-10 team against an elite Mountain West squad.  One added plot twist in this one is that both programs are riding impressive bowl winning streaks into this game.  Cal has won its last 4 bowl games, while Utah has won its last 5 including two BCS games.

19.  Armed Forces: Houston vs. Air Force- I was really excited about this game between two teams with impressive yet vastly different offensive schemes until I realized that it was a rematch between two squads who played each other twice last year (once in this very same bowl).  Then I remember that last year’s game was a classic shootout, so this bowl could be very good again.

20.  Capital One Bowl: Penn State vs LSU- This would be Disappointment Bowl II without a doubt. Neither team won a big game they played this year, as the Lions best win came against Michigan State and LSU’s against Arkansas. Neither team has any bad losses, but expect a low-scoring snoozefest in this one. 

21.  Outback Bowl: Northwestern vs. Auburn- Probably the worst two teams ever to play in this 24-year old old bowl game.  It will still be fun trying to see Northwestern win its first bowl since 1948 though. 

22.  Independence Bowl: Georgia vs. Texas A & M- This actually may be the best Independence Bowl we’ve seen in years.  Should be a high-scoring shootout between two squads that looked good at times this year and looked horrible at others. 

23.  Texas Bowl: Navy vs. Missouri- Watching Navy’s triple-option attack against a BCS conference opponent isn’t quite what it used to be.  Don’t get me wrong, it’s still fun to see defenses try to pick apart this offense, but now that Paul Johnson has taken this offense to the BCS level it’s not really that much of a novel act anymore.  Still, this should be a good game between two teams with contrasting styles.

24.  New Orleans Bowl: Southern Miss vs. Middle Tennessee State- Two of the most underrated offensive players in the country will face-off in this C-USA/Sun Belt battle.  Darrion Fletcher has been an exceptional running back throughout his career at Southern Miss, and Dwight Dasher put up some sold numbers this year for MTSU.  I will be in attendance for this game, so hopefully this will turn out to be the gem of the early bowl season that some are predicting.

Barely Watchable Bowl Games (aka Clunkers)

25.  Emerald Bowl: Boston College vs. Southern Cal- The ultimate overachievers (BC) will take on the ultimate underachievers (Southern Cal).  I never dreamed I would find my preseason # 1 take on my preseason # 50 in the same bowl game.  Nevertheless, it will be entertaining/humorous to see the mighty Trojans play on such a lowly stage.  BC could pull the upset if the Trojans don’t show up.

26.  Peach Bowl: Virginia Tech vs. Tennessee- By far the worst Peach/Chick-fil-A bowl ever created.  Shame on the organizers of this for not picking a better SEC team and simply capitalizing on the Kiffin appeal.  Last year’s LSU and Georgia Tech matchup left much to be desired, and this game figures to be even worse.  It will ugly, low-scoring, lopsided, and downright hard to watch.

27.  Alamo Bowl: Michigan State vs. Texas Tech- Definitely one of the worst Alamo Bowl matchups in recent history.  The Red Raiders actually ended up having a surprisingly decent season, while Michigan State pulled the usual Big 10 joke scheduling gimmick and qualified for a bowl by only beating one other bowl eligible team.

28.  Orange Bowl: Iowa vs. Georgia Tech- You don’t think I would put a BCS bowl game this low in my rankings?  Well, when its this bad there is no other place for it.

29.  Champs Sports Bowl: Miami-FL vs. Wisconsin- Some people are getting excited about this game and I’m not really sure why.  Seems like a very mundane bowl game featuring a typically boring Wisconsin squad and a Hurricane team that limped home after a promising early season start. 

30.  Meineke Car Care Bowl: Pitt vs. North Carolina- Another game that has been extremely overrated since the bowl schedule came out.  I know the coaching matchup is cool with Wannstedt and Davis reuniting, but keep in mind that both of these teams lost to NC State.  Enough said.

31.  St. Petersburg Bowl: UCF vs. Rutgers- This battle of the knights would not amuse King Arthur in the least.  Can’t give you a good reason to watch this game.

32.  International Bowl: South Florida vs. Northern Illinois- Some bowl games never should exist.  The Garden State Bowl is a good example.  The International Bowl is another.  Is it really necessary for a mediocre Big East team to go up to Canada to clobber a mediocre MAC team every year?

33.  Little Caesar’s Bowl: Marshall vs. Ohio- Yes, I know I should stick to my rule and not give into over commercialization by referring to this game by its sponsorship name, but I really like Little Caesar’s Pizza.  On the other hand, I don’t really like this matchup.  In fact, neither does Marshall’s former head coach Mark Snyder who resigned immediately after the regular season to avoid having to coach in this dud of a bowl game.

34.  New Mexico Bowl: Fresno State vs. Wyoming- Might as well start the bowl season off with a bang right?  The New Mexico Bowl seems to have established itself as the new worst bowl game in America (which I guess wouldn’t include the International Bowl since its in Canada).   Ryan Matthews is the Fresno State running back.  He’s a good player and has my last name.  That’s all I got for this one.