All college football fans have been waiting for today’s game because it’s the Roady’s Humanitarian Bowl on the famous blue turf in Boise, Idaho. This is a bowl game where you aren’t that good of a team and if you actually accept the invitation you get to play in Idaho in the middle of winter. Today’s game will more than likely be played in a snow storm with a high of 34 and by end of game it will be 27 degrees. This is why they play in the day so it’s a bit warmer for the fans.

When will the NCAA decide that bowl games in snow are worthless and they will not ever have proper fan attendance? Unless of course you are Idaho and this is your first bowl game since the 1998 Humanitarian Bowl.

Idaho is playing a Bowling Green team basically in a home game. The good thing is we will be able to see the best receiver in CFB this year.  Freddie Barnes is about to play his final college game in Wednesday’s Humanitarian Bowl and Barnes has a chance at an NCAA record that’s stood for 20 years. Already with an eye-popping 138 catches this season, Barnes is five grabs shy of breaking the NCAA record for receptions in a single season (142) set by Houston’s Manny Hazard in 1989.

Both teams score well, but look for Idaho to run more as BG gives up almost 200 yds on the ground and 400 total yds per game.

I am betting Idaho +1.5 to cover

Outback Bowl
Auburn -7.5 v Northwestern

After opening the season with wins over Towson St and Eastern Michigan the Wildcats lost to Syracuse and Minnesota, but then won 6 of 8 to end the season with an 8-4 record. The Wildcats have been known to give up on D what they get on O throughout the year so this may play into the hands of Auburn who scores a lot. Auburn won its first 5 games including blowouts over West Virginia and Miss St. and a nice win over Tennessee. They lose their next 3 games, won two and then lost the last 2 games at Georgia plus a close one to Alabama. Look for this game to be a score fest and fun to watch. As much as one may want to take the SEC over
the Big Ten I say take the over 55 and enjoy the first ‘Hangover Game’
of the year.

I am betting the over 55pts

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Gator Bowl
West Va -2.5 v FSU

Blah blah blah, OK, it’s Bobby Bowden’s last game. Who cares? This 6-6
Fla St team is an underserving team to be playing on a New Year’s Day.
Yes, the Seminoles 6 losses were to bowl teams, but 2 of their 6 wins were to
non-bowl teams plus the D gave up 50 TD’s this year. Nuff said. West Va
on the other hand ended their season with wins over Pitt and Rutgers
after losing to #4 Cincy by 3 late. The Neers went 5-3 against bowl teams
and peaked late in the year. Noel Devine runs wild and I don’t care
that Weinke, Deion, Corey Simon and Tommy Polley are on the sidelines
for the game because they are not on the field.

I am betting West Va -2.5 pts to cover

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Capital One Bowl
Penn St -2 v LSU

When there was a big game LSU had to win they always seems to lose.
Although the D is still awesome they just cant get their young offense
to score. The Tigers average just 300 total yards per game and they
have scored over 33 pts once this year and that was against Tulane.
The same situation applies for Penn St. The Nittany Lions lost the two
big games they needed to win. If you count the 6-6 Mich St., 6-6 Minn
and Temple wins then they were 4-2 against bowl teams. This game flat
out sucks in my opinion. Penn State has more big play guys, but I will
take LSU to pull off an upset with Les Miles getting his 3 weeks to prepare.

I am betting LSU +2 to cover

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Rose Bowl
Oregon -4 v Ohio St

Has Ohio State seen an offense like Oregon this year? Nope. Even USC
didn’t have the fire power the Ducks have on O. The Buckeyes lost 2
games by a total of 11 points to USC and Purdue and ended the season
with 5 straight wins. Now the leak of the alledged Pryor injury which
makes me think there is some gamesmenship going on. The Ducks scored
at will pretty much all year. They are unpredictable on offense and will keep
OSU on their toes, but as we are seeing in the early bowls the Pac 10 has no
defense. Oregon did give up 31 TD’s on D and over 329 yds per game. I like
Jim Tressel over Chip Kelly.

I am betting Ohio State +4 to cover

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Sugar Bowl
Fla – 12.5 v Cinci

Wos, is this not the Win one for the Gipper game of the bowl season?
Tebow and Meyer plus a new interim coach in Cincy. The Bearcats had two close
wins to end the season which exposed their suspect defense and gives this game
an aura of a blowout. I don’t want to get too analytical here, but Florida has given
up only 13 TD’s all year and when Cincy played a decent non-Big East team it
struggled on offense. Florida will come to play and play big.

I am betting Florida -12.5 to cover

Well we have come to the final week of my regular season pix of course sans the Army vs Navy clash next week. This week has already kicked off with Oregon winning the Civil War and punching a ticket to Pasadena. Just think in 2 weeks we have our first bowl game and then we slide into the ‘Most Wonderful Time of the Year.’

Central Michigan -13.5 v Ohio – MAC Championship

We start with my “Man Crush” Dan LeFevour who was just voted Player of the Year in the MAC this week going for the MAC Championship tonight against Ohio.  CMU cruised through their division while Ohio had to beat a resurgent Temple team last week to win their division.  Ohio lost only 1 game in the conference this year to Kent where the Golden Flashes had seven sacks, 15 tackles for loss, intercepted three passes and didn’t allow an offensive touchdown. The only other two losses for the Bobcats were to UConn and the University of Tennessee. CMU did not lose a conference game and only lost at Arizona and at BC, but they did win at Michigan State.  Both Defenses give up over 300 total yards each game, but CMU has 52 offensive TD’s which is 22 more than Ohio.  The Chippewas are playing in Detroit where the home crowd will be ready and the elements will not be a factor since it will be played in a dome. 13.5 points for a conference championship is a bit much in my mind.

I am betting Ohio +13.5 to cover

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Boise St -47 v New Mexico St

This is such a horrible game. Boise is always trying to impress the BCS bunch in order to show that they can play with anyone and beat them, but I don’t think this game will help them at all.  New Mexico St has only scored 15 TDs on offense all year and will need half of those in just this game to stay competitive. That will not happen on the Smurf turf.  Boise has scored 62 TDs this year while NMSU has given up 48 so you do the math. With all the conference championships getting all the attention this game is under the radar except for maybe the Fiesta Bowl directors watching. Look for Boise St on Senior Day to score and score often.

I am betting Boise St -47 to cover

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Florida -5.5 v Alabama – SEC Championship

This is the National Championship in a nut shell. Whoever wins this game is the early favorite in the BCS Title Game January 7th.  The question remains is Superman Tebow going to beat a team who has lately looked suspect on their team strength which is defense and can the Tide keep the Gators from running outside the tackles and make Tebow throw outside not down the middle? Florida is coming off probably their best game of the year in a total domination of Florida State and have only given up 9 TD’s all year.  Bama has only given up 13 TD’s all year and a scant 77 yards per game rushing.  This will not be a scoring fest and may be a repeat of last year when Bama had the lead and controlled the game for 3 1/2 quarters only to lose the spread and the game in the final 8 minutes.  I believe that although Florida has less offensive weapons than last year the Gators will win because they know how to win.  I am seeing a 17-10 final with the Gators going to Pasadena.

I am betting Florida -5.5 to cover

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Texas -14.5 v Nebraska – Big 12 Championship

Other than last year’s blowout this game always seems to provide us a great drama and upsets. This year will be no different. the Huskers are an enigma.  They should have beaten VTech back in September and they lost at home to Iowa State all by a total of 3 points. They did have a beat down by Texas Tech, but have regrouped since the Iowa State loss to reel off 5 straight including beating Oklahoma and doing it all with defense.  With the help of All American Ndamukong Suh they have only allowed 13 TD’s all year and that includes 5 ranked teams with potent Big 12 offenses.  If it sounds I am leaning toward Nebraska you may be right, but Colt McCoy is playing for the Heisman Trophy in this game as well as leading the team to a BCS Title bid.  They are running on all cylinders on offense, but they have been playing cream puffs. The Horn’s D is only giving up 66 yards per game rushing while Nebraska relies on a balanced offense so it will be interesting to see who is really going to control the line of scrimmage.  If Nebraska can score TD’s instead of FG’s then they have a chance, but if they trade FG’s to Texas TD’s this game will never be in doubt.

I am betting Nebraska +14.5 to cover

Not much to say since I have been on a cold streak recently. Yes, the bookies had a bigger turkey this year than expected due to my recent slide.

Here are some quick bounce backs during rivalry week.

Virginia +15 home vs Vtech – Love the points at home take Virginia +15

Central Fla -3 @ UAB – Ummm this is a blowout folks. Take CFU -3

So. Miss +5 @ ECU – one of the best games of the weekend I like So Miss and the points

Tx Tech -21 vs Baylor – Tech rolls and goes to a New Years bowl

Fla St +26.5 @ Florida – I just think Fla St has one great game in them for ole Bobby. I saw the line and thought it was a misprint. Love the points!

UCLA +13.5 @ USC – I hate the Trojans and the Bruins have a little swagger now after almost two full years in Norm Chow’s offense.

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Real quick pix

App St -13.5 over S Car St

Richmond -5 over Elon

Bill and Mary -10 over Weber St

Georgia Tech -8.5 over Georgia

Well the bubble finally burst about as bad as Jamarcus Russell’s NFL career to date. After rolling the previous 4 weeks I had a worse day than a Dave Kingman Golden Sombrero. 0-4 was what I provided you last week and it wasn’t even close. I am still 15-8-2 over the past 5 weeks so let’s look at the glass half full.

Oklahoma St -17 v Colorado (Thursday)

#12 Ok State can not get to the Big 12 Championship due to their loss against Texas 3 weeks ago, but what they can do is win out and get themselves into a pretty big bowl game. Possibly a Holiday Bowl against the likes of Oregon, Stanford, USC or Oregon State in what could be the best non-BCS bowl of the year. The Cowboys are playing a disaster in Colorado where this will be the last year for head Coach Dan Hawkins. Ok State needs this win and again next week at rival Oklahoma to become one of the top 10 elite schools in the 2009 season even without Dez Bryant. Cowboys rank 32nd nationally in total defense, allowing 333.9 yards per game,  and seventh against the rush (89.6). As for turnovers, Oklahoma State still owns the plus-five mark it attained last season.

I am betting Oklahoma State -17 at home to cover

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Tennessee -17 v Vanderbilt

After going 3-1 the previous 4 weeks heading into Mississippi including
a 12-10 loss to at that time #1 Alabama in Bama things were on the right
track for Lane Kiffin and the Vols. Then 3 players get arrested for armed robbery and that is the ball game. They got crushed in ‘Sippi the same week and now need to win 1 of 2 to get bowl eligible and this is their chance. They need to come out and beat an over matched Vandy team in Knoxville before closing out at Kentucky. The Commodores are 2-9 with wins against 1-9 Rice and 2-8 Western Carolina and are riding a 7-game losing streak.  If Vandy gets close the TU Boosters will have Kiffin’s head, but will keep Mrs. Kiffin as ambassador of football recruiting.

I am betting Tenn -17 at home to cover

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Notre Dame -6 v UConn

I said last week that the Pitt game was Charlie’s Alamo and they lost. They did make an attempt to come back, but needed an 85-yd punt return
to cover the spread. Basically Pitt beat them up pretty good. ND has
to win this last game at home to satisfy some pundits because they will have zero chance next week at Stanford. UConn now has a few weeks under it’s belt after the death of a teammate and since that day have gone 0-3 but losses to Cinci, WVa and a hot Rutgers. They come
into South Bend with 2 weeks off and after dropping 45 at Cinci
while losing by 2 the problem is this may be Jimmy Clausen’s
and Weiss’s final home game. This is the game ND has to and will
win to save a little face. Their talented WR’s are healthy and JC
.. no. not that JC, but Clausen will throw for over 300 and the
Irish will cover easily.

I am betting Notre Dame -6 at home to cover

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Texas -27.5 v Kansas

WOW, what a week for the Rock Chawk Jayhwak program. 450+lb
head coach Mark Mangino is under an internal review which has been
initiated by the KU athletic department to investigate a personnel
matter involving the eight-year coach. Published reports indicating
senior linebacker Arist Wright came forward and provided an account
of an incident with Mangino and mired in a 5-game losing streak
after winning the first 5 has only fueled the fire.  Oh about Texas. Since the Red River game in mid-Oct against the Sooners Texas has literally crushed their opponents and have a stranglehold on the Big 12 South and will beat whoever wins the Neb v Kansas St game in the Big 12 Championship. Also ranked #3 in the BCS and awaiting the game between the SEC’s best in 3 weeks can reasonably figure to be in the National Championship and potentially have a Heisman Trophy winner in Colt McCoy who is as hot as anyone in college football.

I am betting Texas -27.5 at home to cover

I just keep on rolling after going 4-1 last week and over the last 4 weeks I’m 15-4-2. If I keep this up you can start calling an 800 number to get the pix because I’m on fire. Anyway, here we go with a great weekend of college football.

Cincinnati -9.5 v West Virginia

Zach Collaros is starting once again for the Bearcats at quarterback while giving Tony Pike more time to heal up and get ready for Illinois on the 27th. If this was a game that Cincy felt that would be a tester Pike would be under center. We don’t have to keep hyping the Cincy offensive stats after 711 yards last week alone. West Va is coming off a squeaker against lowly Louisville and before that was demolished by a South Florida team who was crushed by Rutgers yesterday. West Va has played one good team this year in Auburn and lost and now they will play Cincy and Pitt in consecutive weeks on the road. When you can get Cincy at home in a single digit spread and a national TV audience to show they belong jump all over them.

I am betting Cincinnati Bearcats at home to cover -9.5

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Pitt-7 v Notre Dame

This is the Alamo for Charlie Weis. Win and you get to coach another day, but lose and you are pretty much done. Personally I see ND losing 2 out of their last 3 games to Pitt and Stanford plus the home game against UConn is a tough one. Pitt is under
the radar and have parlayed their great season into a #8 ranking and are on the verge of going to a big time bowl game. The Pitt D is only givig up 200 yds a game passing and with an anemic ND rushing scheme I dont see how Claussen can have the game
needed to beat one of the hottest teams in college on the road.

I am betting Pitt at home to cover -7

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NC State +9.5 v Clemson

Clemson is playing their best football of the year and have won 4 straight including at Miami. They roll into Raleigh this weekend and it’s a game I will be attending with the eye of the Tiger. Clemson is atop the Atlantic Division of the ACC over BC who they have already beat this year. Clemson is looking for a chance to face Georgia Tech in the ACC Championship. Clemson lost to the Rambling Wreck back in September by only three points so it would be an interesting Championship game should it occur. NC State after hitting the skids with 4 straight losses came home and beat a bad Maryland team last week while giving up 31 to the Terps. Clemson although playing well has that day where they play down to the opponents level. NC State has the offense to overcome any team, but they will have to stop a hot CJ Spiller to make it close.

I am Betting NC State at home to cover +9.5

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TCU -20 v Utah

I know I have been touting TCU for the National Championship all year and now that everyone knows they are legit it is time for them to finally have that game where they squeak by someone. Utah who is 8-1 this year after a 13-0 year last year comes in with only a loss at Oregon back in September. Da Utes handled the trap game last week crushing New Mex as did TCU by blowing out San Diego State. Don’t think for a second Utah gives up before taking the field like all the other Mtn West has against TCU. Utah is good and they too have been flying low and can elevate their BCS hopes with a big win at TCU. I don’t know if they have all the players to match TCU, but this game will not be another TCU blow out.

I am betting Utah on the road to cover +20

I am 11-3-2 over the last 3 weeks and I went 4-2 last week. I’m on the West Coast in San Fran gearing up for an epic 49ers versus Titans clash on Sunday which you will have a prediction for on Sunday morning. Lets get back to college football and my Saturday pix.

Mich St -20.5  v W. Mich

Western Michigan has already lost twice to Big 10 teams this year and is coming off a loss to Kent St. Michigan state is on a 2 game losing streak after winning their previous 3.  They are at home and need to win this week and next week to become bowl eligible as they close the season against Penn State.  Look for Western Michigan to give up more than their average of 426 total yards per game especially the 176 rushing per game.

I am betting Michigan State to cover the 20.5 at home

Pitt -21 v Syracuse

This is one of my favorite under the radar teams in football. Pittsburgh is a top 10 team if not for the stumble at NC State in a shoot out in September.  After Syracuse the Panthers have ND at home, West Va on the road and end up the season at home against Cinci for the Big East title.  I guess you can call this a trap game, but we are talking about a Syracuse team who lost their ONLY road game in week 2 at Penn State and will play 3 of 4 on the road to end the season. Syracuse is 2-15 the last 3 years on the road and are going into a red hot Pitt team with 2 weeks off.

I am betting Pitt to cover  -21 at home

TCU -25 v San Diego St

There is not a hotter team than TCU in all of college football. They have won all 8 games this year and seem to be getting better as the season progresses. Their last 3 wins are by a combined 123-13 including the whooping at BYU 38-7.  This TCU team I believe can play with and beat ANYONE in the SEC or any other league on any field.  The defense is awesome only giving up a minuscule 235 total yds per game including only 89 on the ground while San Diego St. averages only 69 per game.  SD St is seeking 2 wins in the last 4 to go to a bowl game. They will have to get those against Wyoming and UNLV because TCU is on a mission and will not stop till they are in a BCS Championship game.

I am betting TCU to cover the -25 on the road.

Upset Special

Stanford +8 v Oregon

I know what you are thinking. Why do you like Stanford after Oregon showed they are the class of the Pac 10 by crushing USC?  That is exactly why. This will be a let down game on the road to a Stanford team who plays well at home and needs a win to become bowl eligible. In the past 2 1/2 years, Pac-10 teams are 7-13 the week after they face USC. After Oregon, Stanford then goes to USC, at home to Cal in the big game and Notre Dame at home. Stanford will be getting a lot of exposure if they can beat a top 10 team this week which makes next week against USC a game to watch and so on for the final 3 they play.  Although Stanford  senior middle linebacker Clinton Snyder has suffered a season-ending knee injury the Cardinal has the potential to overpower Oregon’s undersized defense and thereby keep the Ducks’ offense off the field which could be a huge key to Stanford’s pursuit of becoming bowl eligible.

I am betting Stanford to cover +8 at home

LSU + 7.5 at Alabama

This is the game of the week and the game of ineptitude in our eyes. Yes we are anti-SEC biased but Alabama is just not that good. Their QB is terrible and that makes them one dimensional. One dimensional teams never succeed against well coached teams and teams with good defenses. These are two traits LSU has. I am not sure LSU has enough offense to win the game outright but we think they have a chance. I just think 7.5 points is way too many and LSU will do enough to keep it close.

I am betting LSU to cover 7.5 on the road

OK lets get right to it..

• Top 4 pix
• 2 for 2 …which are 2 favorites and 2 underdog specials
• 1AA play o’the day

Top 4

Mich +4.5
LSU -7
Houston -16.5
Pitt -6.5
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2For2

Duke -4 vs Maryland – Duke is potent and Maryland is horrible.
Cal -35.5 vs Wazzu – Do I need to get into specifics here? At Cal vs Wazzu .. nuff said
Washington +10 vs Oregon – The #1 pick in the NFL Draft getting 10 at home in an Oregon trap game before next week vs USC
Iowa +1.5 @ Mich St – Iowa is that good and Mich St is not. This is a respect game for the Hawkeyes
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1AA Play o’the day

Western Illinois Leathernecks -11.5 @ Indiana State – Why?.. Cuz I like the name Leathernecks