This and that on a Holiday Week.

Bowl practices should once again be valuable for this team.
(Photo by Acid Reign.)

     War Eagle, everybody! Bowl week is here, and we are thrilled! The Auburn Tigers are in New Orleans for the new year’s weekend, and gearing up to play the Oklahoma Sooners in the Sugar Bowl. The game will air at 7:30 PM Monday night, January 2^nd, on ESPN. The game will be the last bowl game of the holiday weekend, with only the national championship game awaiting a week later.

     With the long layoff between the end of the regular season, and the last bowl game, this game has been previewed and analyzed to death. I won’t be drawing up another big comparison. I think Oklahoma is dangerous, particularly on offense. However, I have seen a lot of out-of-sync offenses, this December. It’s hard to remain sharp, executing just against a scout team. Usually in bowl games, the team that takes care of the football and runs it the best, wins. I like Auburn’s chances, if they can keep the fumbles and picks to a minimum. We will have our usual liveblog up, for this game, here at trackemtigers.com!

     The SEC is not off to the best of starts, this year in the bowls. First Mississippi State barely got by Miami of Ohio, 17-16 in the St. Petersburg Bowl. The Bobcats were just a 6-6 middle of the pack MAC team, coming into the game. MSU survived on blocked kicks. Then, Vanderbilt was destroyed by North Carolina State in the Independence Bowl, 41-17. That game wasn’t even as close as the score indicated, as NC State drove the length of the field early, and fumbled the ball away twice. Last night, Texas A&M lost to Kansas State in the Texas Bowl, 33-28. What is up with that dark, cavernous stadium in Houston? Are they having trouble paying the light bill?

We look at the remaining bowl games, after the jump!

 

     Today, another pair of SEC teams will compete in bowl games. First, South Carolina takes on South Florida in the Birmingham Bowl. I figured that this might be a sloppy game, as storms were rolling through the area last night. As usual, there was a bit of thunder and wind, and not even enough rain to wet the street. This is another dangerous game for the SEC. The Gamecocks barely slipped into bowl eligibility, while South Florida is a 10-win team. I suppose I’m remembering a particularly bad Auburn performance against the Bulls, from 9 years ago.

     In the late afternoon in Charlotte, Arkansas takes on Virginia Tech in the Belk Bowl. I really don’t know how to pick this game. Both teams have shined at times, and looked absolutely awful upon occasion. Arkansas certainly did not look like a bowl team, when they played Auburn, this year. That 56-3 beating was one of the worst in the NCAA, this season. Tech has double digit losses again Tennessee, Syracuse, and Georgia Tech.

     Tomorrow, Georgia takes on TCU in the Liberty Bowl. Both teams have been down, this season. Tennessee will take on Nebraska in the Music City bowl later. Tennessee looked the part of a title contender early, and by year’s end they were getting thumped by Vanderbilt. Saturday features another pair of really early SEC games, before the playoffs start in the afternoon. LSU takes on Louisville in the Citrus, and Kentucky takes on Georgia Tech in the Taxslayer bowl in Jacksonville. I think Kentucky has a chance, as they are a run-heavy team, and they practice against that. Most teams Georgia Tech has played don’t have the time or inclination to play that way. LSU has the tall task of defending Lamar Jackson.

     Saturday afternoon, Alabama takes on the Washington Huskies in the Georgia Dome. I expect the Huskies to hang around for a half or so, then the dam will burst and the final score will likely be ugly, in the Tide’s favor. Saturday night, the other half of the playoffs will feature Clemson vs. Ohio State in the Fiesta Bowl. I would like to see Clemson destroy the Buckeyes. I feel like the playoff committee did college football a big disservice, passing over several conference champions to put Ohio State in the game, when they didn’t even win their own division.

     After a college-football-less Sunday, Monday features the last of the bowls. Florida takes on Iowa in the Outback Bowl, to start things off. Auburn ends the evening with the Sooners in New Orleans. I’m intrigued also by the Cotton Bowl matchup. Undefeated Western Michigan takes on Wisconsin, in that one. The Badgers are a top-tier Big Ten team. Can the 13-0 MAC-championWestern Michigan Broncos hang with them? I know that their fans felt that they deserved better than a Monday bowl game.

     The college football season concludes in Tampa, Florida, Monday night on January 9. The championship game will likely feature a rematch between Alabama and Clemson. I feel like Alabama’s defense is better than last year’s, but its offense can be mistake-prone. Clemson had kind of a slow start this season, but played dominant football down the stretch. Here’s hoping for a good game.

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