The only down note of this bowl season has been the defection of LSU’s Leonard Fournette and Stanford’s Christian McCaffrey. Both opted out of their respective bowl games — the Citrus and Sun — rather than risk getting injured before the NFL draft.
“I don’t understand this,” Mike Ditka told ESPN. “You’re part of a team. You’ve played with these guys your whole time in college. You fought with them. You tried to win. Now you get to the bowl game and say, ‘Nope, I’m not going to risk injury.’ Injuries are going to come or they’re not. These guys are missing a great opportnity to play with their teammates.”
The best game thus far was Louisiana Tech’s 48-45 win against Navy in the Armed Forces Bowl before 40,542 fans at Carter Stadium in Fort Worth, Texas. This wasn’t so much a football game as it was a slugfest between two teams that disliked each other more with each play.
Bulldogs quarterback Ryan Higgins was like Johnny Manziel but without the attitude. He threw for 409 yards and openly sobbed on the sideline after the win, tears of joy and relief. His favorite targets were Trent Taylor and Carlos Henderson, who combined for 22 catches — some spectacular — and four touchdowns.
While Higgins flashed the play action pass, Navy third-string quarterback Zach Abey ran the triple option to precision. He rushed 24 times for 114 yards and two touchdowns and opted 20 pitches to his backfield mates Chris High, Darryl Bonner, Calvin Cass Jr. and Dishan Romine, who rushed for 134 yards and three TDs.
UMass fans got a good look at the Bulldogs when they beat the Minutemen 56-28 before 13,311 fans at Gillette Stadium and UMass faced the cold hard facts that FBS football can be merciless.
The underdog Midshipmen put up much more of a battle. They traded touchdowns, pumped fists, gang tackled, and constantly tried to rip the ball out of the runners’ hands. Late in the second half, Tech’s 6-foot-2, 284-pound defensive tackle Jordan Bradford planted Abey into the ground and knocked him out of the game.
Bradford was ejected for targeting, but the hit was helmet-to-ribs and the sort that Ditka and Ray Nitschke would applaud. Abey told the Washington Post afterward he was sore but didn’t have broken ribs.
Fourth-string quarterback Malcolm Perry came in and on the first play ran 30 yards for a touchdown that tied the game 45-45, only to be done in by another Tech drive that set Bulldogs kicker Jonathan Barnes up for a 32-yard field goal that won the game as time expired.
The only team to represent the northeast was Boston College, which held on to beat Maryland, 36-30, Monday in the Quick Lane Bowl at Ford Field in Detroit.
Starting today, teams from the power conferences will begin taking the stage. Here’s a look at what to expect during the eight bowl games over the next two days:
Today
Birmingham Bowl
South Florida (10-2) vs. South Carolina (6-6)
Legion Field, Birmingham, Ala., (2 p.m., ESPN)
Line: South Florida by 10½ (Over/Under 62½)
Three Gamecock QBs have at least 50 completions this season and freshman Jake Blakesly emerged as the starter after beating UMass, 34-28, on Oct. 22. Pigs fly when an SEC team is a double-digit dog to an AAC opponent and guess what? The earth shakes. The Gamecocks were thumped by Clemson 56-7 in the season finale, and are a .500 team happy to be in a bowl game.
South Florida tied Temple for first in the AAC by winning seven of their last eight games, including a 52-45 win against Navy. Coach Willie Taggart left for Oregon and new coach Charlie Strong has deferred to assistant coach T.J. Weist for this game. The Bulls were an FBS-best 15 of 16 on fourth-down conversions.
PICK: South Florida (UNDER)
Belk Bowl
Arkansas (7-5) vs. No. 22 Virginia Tech (9-4)
Bank of America Stadium, Charlotte, N.C., (5:30, ESPN)
Line: Virginia Tech by 7 (61½)
Razorbacks QB Austin Allen is a 3,000-yard passer and running back Rawleigh Williams III is a 1,326-yard rusher. Arkansas special teams didn’t allow a blocked punt all season.
The Hokies narrowly lost to No. 2 Clemson 42-35 in their season finale. Tech QB Jerod Evans is the reason Andrew Ford transferred to UMass. Evans will be 23 in a month. Unlike others who’ve opted out of the bowl season (Leonard Fournette, Christian McCaffrey) the 6-foot-3, 238-pound Evans is still proving his worth. He’s rated the sixth best QB Class of ’18 and his 4,000 all-purpose yards is a school record.
PICK: Arkansas (UNDER)
Valero Alamo Bowl
No. 12 Oklahoma St. (9-3) vs. No. 10 Colorado (10-3)
Alamodome, San Antonio (9 p.m., ESPN)
Line: Colorado by 3 (62½)
USA Today’s draft wire has 6-5, 236-pound QB Mason Rudolph a top-five pick in the 2017 draft. At Oklahoma State he’s passed for 3,777 yards, thrown for 25 touchdowns and been intercepted just four times in 416 attempts.
Two of Colorado’s three losses were to top 10 teams, including 41-10 to No. 4 Washington in the Pac 12 championship. Senior QB Sefo Liufau is closing in on 10,000 career passing yards (9,568) but also has a tendency to put it up for grabs with 35 picks to go with his 60 career TD passes.
PICK: Oklahoma State (UNDER)
Friday
Autozone Liberty Bowl
Georgia (7-5) vs. Texas Christian (6-6)
Liberty Bowl, Memphis, Tenn. (noon, ESPN)
Line: Pick’em (48½)
The under 49 looks enticing as neither team ranks in the top 50 in either rushing or passing, merely indicative of teams with balanced offensive attacks. Bulldogs’ top three running backs Nick Chubb, Sony Michel and Brian Herrien teamed up for 2,103 yards and 13 TDs. QB Jacob Eason is a true freshman still learning, his 14 TD passes offset by eight picks.
Horned Frogs have fumbled just four times in 12 games, but junior QB Kenny Hill has thrown almost as many interceptions (13) as TD passes (15) and he’s been sacked 23 times. At this writing he was questionable with a sore foot. Backup Foster Sawyer passed 25 times for only 86 yards during a 30-6 loss to Kansas State.
PICK: Georgia (UNDER)
Hyundai Sun Bowl
No. 18 Stanford (9-3) vs. North Carolina (8-4)
Sun Bowl, El Paso, Texas (2 p.m., CBS)
Line: Stanford by 2½ (54)
A lot of the rah went out of the sis-boom-bah when Christian McCaffrey announced he’s not playing to avoid injury and prepare for the NFL Draft. Last year McCaffrey set a Rose Bowl record with 368 all-purpose yards in a 45-16 rout of Iowa, that’s a lot less headache for Tar Heels defensive coordinator Gene Chizik. UNC’s Mitch Trubisky threw for the 10th-most yards in FBS (3,468) and eight receivers caught at least one TD pass. Season ended on a bummer with November losses to Duke and NC State.
PICK: Stanford (OVER)
Franklin American Mortgage Music City Bowl
Nebraska (9-3) vs. No. 21 Tennessee (8-4)
Nissan Stadium, Nashville, Tenn. (3:30 p.m., ESPN)
Line: Tennessee by 6 (59½)
Nebraska has only four fumbles all season and has rushed 111 more times than it’s passed. Terrell Newby is 10th in the Big Ten in rushing and wideout Jordan Westerkamp is 15th in receiving yards.
Volunteers won their first five games, beating Va. Tech, Georgia and Florida and reaching No. 11. Then the wheels fell off with a 49-10 home loss to Alabama and an 11-point loss at Vanderbilt in the season finale.
PICK: Tennessee (OVER)
NOVA Home Loans Arizona Bowl
South Alabama (6-6) vs. Air Force (9-3)
Arizona Stadium, Tuscon (5:30 p.m., ASN)
Line: Air Force by 13½ (57½)
The Falcons lead the FBS in passing yards per completion, 25.33 per game, but are 127th in passes attempted. Completion rate is only 43.7 percent. Leading rusher Jacobi Owens (785 yards) is 109th in FBS, but 5-9 junior Timothy McVey is the touchdown maker with 10 TDs on 80 carries. Falcons finished with five straight wins.
The Jaguars’ rushing and receiving leaders, Xavier Johnson and Gerald Everett, had only 787 and 717 yards respectively, and QB Dallas Vavis had more interceptions (11) than TD passes (10), all reflective of a highly mediocre team. The only thing for bettors to worry about here is the dreaded backdoor cover.
PICK: Air Force (UNDER)
Capital One Orange Bowl
No. 6 Michigan (10-2) vs. No. 11 Florida State (9-3)
Hard Rock Stadium, Miami Gardens, Fla. (8 p.m., ESPN)
Line: Michigan by 6½ (51½)
Wolverines have four running backs with at least 400 yards rushing, but the guy who comes in from the bullpen to close is fullback Khalid Hill. A 6-foot-2, 263-pound battering ram out of Detroit, Hill has 39 yards on 25 carries that have resulted in 10 TDs. He’s the ultimate role player, tied for most scores with leading rusher De’veon Smith. Sixteen Wolverines have scored a TD and Michigan kickers have converted all 62 PATs.
Seminoles defensive end DeMarcus Walker is tied for FBS sack lead and running back Dalvin Cook is another first-rounder with 18 TDs. Coach Jimbo Fisher might have his eyes set on next year and use Cook as a decoy. Bowl season gives him 15 practices to get his young talent ready for next season.
Meanwhile, Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh focuses on the present. His Wolverines beat Florida in last year’s Citrus Bowl, 41-7.
PICK: Michigan (UNDER)