One of the primer conferences in college athletics has not enjoyed a good season. Their best team is an undefeated Ohio State squad that isn't eligible for the post season. Nebraska was the 2nd best team, but they got blowout to a 7-5 Wisconsin team. The conference will send 7 schools to bowl games, but none of those 7 teams are favored to win. Wisconsin has to play a tough Stanford team without their coach, Nebraska is facing a team that was 3 yards short of a National Title, and Michigan isn't a good match up for South Carolina. The team with the best chance to win is Northwestern against Miss State. But the Wildcats might not be able to match Miss State's physicality It could be a long bowl season for Jim Deleaney.
When you beat Oregon State and Stanford this season you would think that the Huskies would be one of the top teams in the Pac 12. But that same team also dropped a games to an average Arizona team and a horrible Washington State team. Not a model of consistency. Washington has a ton of talent, but it's a matter of them wanting it. Will they want it against Boise State who always is up to play BCS teams.
3. How many sacks will Jarvis Jones have?
Jarvis Jones has been dominant for most of the season. He's one of the best pass rushers in the nation and finished 4th in the nation with 12.5 sacks. He'll likely be a top 5 draft pick in the NFL Draft. His Bowl opponent, Nebraska. Nebraska's offensive tackles (Brett Qvale and Jeremiah Sirles) are not very good and have shown to give up a lot of pressure on Taylor Martinez. I have a gut feeling that Jones could easily get 5 or more sacks in this game. Add in Martinez's tendency to put the ball on the carpet, Jones could improve on his 7 forced fumbles too.
4. Georgia Tech's Running GameEverybody knows that Georgia Tech has one of the best rushing attacks in all of college football. Their triple option attack is puts a strain on defenses and has allowed them end the regular season with the 4th overall rushing attack. Usually triple option teams struggle in bowl games because teams have a month to get ready fort hem. However USC has struggled to stop the run and in their biggest losses opponents have just gashed the Trojans. USC is even giving up an average of 156 yards per game. Will the Trojans be able to slow down the triple option? Or will the Yellow Jackets be able to end their seven bowl losing streak and take advantage of a porous USC rush defense?
In case you are new to college football, the spread has taken over. Teams are employing three and four wide receiver sets on a consistent basis. Even teams like Arizona and Oregon who are two of the best rushing teams run their offenses out of the spread. So it's rare to see teams run a traditional power running attack. But we have two of them in this game. Both Wisconsin and Stanford are known for their smash mouth rushing attacks, big strong offensive lineman, and dominating the line of scrimmage. Old School football fans will be in heaven for this game. We shouldn't see a high scoring affair, but at the end of the game we'll see plenty of grass, blood, and sweat all over their uniforms. It should be great to watch.
Because it takes only winning all of your games or sometimes losing just one game to make the national title teams aren't willing to play a lot of marquee games in the non-conference. Sure we get the occasional Oregon vs LSU or Michigan vs Alabama, but most schools have FCS programs on their schedule and non AQ schools so they can go undefeated entering conference play. So it's hard to get a real feel for which conference is the best. But Bowl Games do give us a chance to have conference vs conference. And even though it isn't an exact science we can see which con fence wins the most bowl games and has bragging rights. But then the SEC has had bragging rights for a while since they've won six straight national titles. Though it's still fun to see which conference will win the most bowls.
7. How will Northern Illinois do in their first BCS Bowl?
If your a fan of defense and low scoring games, then don't watch this game. Both UCLA and Baylor are known scoring points. Baylor is as high flying as they come and are averaging 44 points per game. UCLA isn't rated as high, but they do average 35 points per game. UCLA has an improved defense, but they are still giving up 25 points per game and Baylor will be able to score on anybody. Add in that Baylor's defense can't stop anybody and Brett Hundley and Jonathan Franklin shouldn't have any trouble finding the end zone. This game should be the highest scoring game of the bowl season.
One of the best things about bowl season is seeing some great one on one match ups between elite players. This year is no different. In the Outback Bowl we get to see arguably the best pass rusher against one of the best left tackles in college football. Jadeveon Clowney is a beast. No other way of saying it. He was second in the nation in sacks with 13 and has given tackles in the SEC fits all year long. In this game he'll be going against Michigan LT Taylor Lewan whose nutrerlized every player he's seen this year. He's projected as the second best tackle in the 2013 NFL Draft and will likely be a top 15 pick. I don't know about anybody else, but I'm excited to see how these two heavyweights do against each other. Will Clowney have his way? Or will Lewan show why NFL GMs are in love with him?
10. Will the SEC win their 7th straight National Title?
It's been no secret that the SEC has dominated college football the past decade. So much that they've won 6 straight National Titles. This year is no different. Alabama has made it back to the BCS Title Game and look to win their second straight National Title. That would give the SEC their 7th in a row. Something that is just unheard of. They have a great shot to do so. They'll be facing off against a good Notre Dame team. But it's a Notre Dame team that isn't necessarily a world beater. Yes they won all 12 games but they've done so without a consistent offense. Alabama brings one of the best defenses in the nation and an offense that has a strong running attack. It should be a close game, but Alabama holds the edge.
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