On the Docket - Humanitarian/Holiday Bowl

Humanitarian Bowl: Bowling Green (7-5) vs. Idaho (7-5)

Synopsis:

Yes, they are playing this game, and yes, it will be televised outside the state of Ohio and Idaho. The Vandals are actually quite a story this season under head coach Robb Akey. This will be the first bowl game for Idaho since 1998, the only other time the Vandals made a postseason appearance. The Vandals come in as losers of four of their last five after starting the season 6-1.

Bowling Green is making a return to the bowl scene under first-year head coach Dave Clawson. The Falcons went 6-2 in conference play, and can lay claim to wins over Troy and Buffalo. They only lost by a touchdown at Missouri in September.

Player to watch: DeMaundray Woolridge saved his best season for last at Idaho, rushing for 854 yards and 16 touchdowns in 2009. He topped the century mark in rushing yards twice this season, including a 143-yard output against WAC champion Boise State. He would love nothing more than to end his career with a few more highlight reel-worthy touchdowns in the bowl game.

Who has the edge? Bowling Green is the more accomplished team, and Idaho is coming in on a bit of a losing skid. Idaho does have the advantage of a virtual home game in Boise, and may not be affected by the blue turf, since they play on it every other year during the regular season. Still, Bowling Green is just that much better than Idaho at this point in time.

Prediction:

Bowling Green 37

Idaho 28

Holiday Bowl: Arizona (8-4) vs. Nebraska (9-4)

Synopsis:

This may be the most intriguing matchup of any bowl game on this year’s slate. Both teams are defined by great defenses. Mike Stoops at Arizona and Bo Pelini at Nebraska have built their respective programs around shutting down opposing offenses. The Wildcats entered November controlling their own Rose Bowl destiny. The Huskers nearly knocked off Texas in a controversial Big 12 championship game. This game will be the ultimate chess match between two of the game’s best defensive minds.

Player to watch: Ndamukong Suh is the best defensive tackle prospect to play college football since Warren Sapp in the mid-1990s. He wreaks havoc in every opposing backfield he faces. The fact that he was named a Heisman Trophy finalist speaks volumes for the respect he has earned by the national media as a force on the interior defensive line. This is a big-time NFL audition for Suh, who could be the first player selected overall in next April’s draft.

Who has the edge?

Nick Foles has come on strong as the Arizona quarterback in the latter part of the season, and has helped the Wildcat offense score enough points to support their great defense. He has not faced a defensive lineman anywhere near the caliber of Suh, however, nor a defense like Nebraska’s. The Huskers proved in the Big 12 championship that they could stop any offense put in front of them.

Prediction:

Nebraska 23

Arizona 18

Race for the Heisman - Ndamukong Suh

Season statistics: 70 tackles, 16 TFL, 7.5 sacks, 10 pass break-ups, 22 hurries.

Why he deserves to win: He is the most dominant force on the defensive line this side of Warren Sapp in college football. Defensive tackles with 10 pass break ups and nearly 30 visits to the backfield (from sacks/hurries) come around as rarely as a solar eclipse.

Suh rendered double-team blocking schemes obsolete this season. Instead, he would often attract three offensive linemen struggling to keep him off their quarterback. Just ask Colt McCoy if you want to know what kind of difference Suh can make in a game.

Why he wouldn’t win: A defensive tackle…hell, a full-time defensive player has never won this award (Charles Woodson played both ways when he won in 1997). Though he may be the most dominant player the sport has seen in 30 years, it’s going to be difficult for Suh to dissipate tradition and earn the most votes.

Besides, the trophy depicts a running back carrying the football, striking a stiff-arm pose, not a defensive tackle leaving offensive linemen in his wake.

Best game of 2009:

There was a certain level of buzz surrounding Suh the second half of the season. That buzz turned into full-fledged hype after Suh sacked Colt McCoy 4.5 times last Saturday in the Big 12 Championship.

The Husker offense managed only 106 yards of total offense, yet only lost on a last-second field goal. The talent disparity between the Longhorns’ offense and the Huskers’ was enormous, but Suh, in large part helped Nebraska stifle Texas all night.

Had Hunter Lawrence’s field goal as time expired taken a flight path of about three feet more to the left, Nebraska would have clinched the conference title, and Suh’s odds would have instantly doubled at the least. 

Best week for college football fans is upon us

Thanksgiving is here, which only means one thing. Some finger-lickin’, lip-smackin’ good football.

I’ve been around this world for 19 years, spending about 16 of them as a die-hard college football fan, and no weekend out of the year is better than that of Thanksgiving.

Thanksgiving evenings used to be filled with Grandma’s scrumptious dinner, followed by the Egg Bowl, Ole Miss versus Mississippi State. The next day, I could sleep until 11:30ish when I would wake up, grab some pancakes, and enjoy the Lone Star Showdown, Texas versus Texas A & M.

This year’s slate has been shaken up a bit from recent tradition, but should still provide for an unbeatable day of indigestion recovery.

This year, Thankgsiving night concludes with the Longhorns and Aggies from College Station, which has not been friendly to Colt McCoy. In 2007, McCoy brought in 13^th-ranked Texas to Kyle Field only to fall 38-30 in Aggies’ coach Dennis Franchione’s finale.  

The Aggies also won 12-7 in 2006. Last year Texas shut down Stephen McGee in a 49-9 win, but much of the first half was very close. If the Aggies can rally around Jerrod Johnson and their occasionally explosive offense, they can give the Longhorns fits.

Black Friday will only bring more classic rivalry showdowns. The nightcap is the Backyard Brawl, West Virginia and Pittsburgh. The Mountaineers’ three losses have all come on the road, and Friday night’s game is in Morgantown. Noel Devine and Dion Lewis are two of the best running backs in the country.

Pittsburgh has a huge matchup with unbeaten Cincinnati looming the following week, but it’s hard to imagine it suffering from the classic look-ahead syndrome against its hated rivals.

Either way, the Mountaineers won’t let the Panthers invade their turf and get away easily.

One of my favorite rivalry games is Nebraska-Colorado. Every year, this game provides some prime-time entertainment. Whether it be Chris Brown scoring six touchdowns in 2001, or Ndamukong Suh returning an interception for a touchdown in 2008 to seal the win, this game is always a great one.

Dan Hawkins may very well be on his way out after a failed experiment as the Buffaloes’ head coach, and his players would love nothing more than to let Hawkins go out with a huge win over the Big 12 North division champions.

All of those games are going to make for a spectacular weekend, but the one game most likely to transform the college football landscape is Alabama at Auburn. The Crimson Tide are within one game of its second straight undefeated regular season and a matchup with top-ranked Florida in the conference championship game.

There have been several games this season where the Tide’s offense has not been at its best, and the Tigers can surely score points with anyone. Chris Todd and Ben Tate have combined to produce 27 touchdowns this season.

This is Greg McElroy’s first trip to Jordan-Hare Stadium for the Iron Bowl as a starter. In the state of Alabama, there is football season and then there is the Tide and Tigers matchup. This particular game is on a completely different level from any other, and the odds are McElroy might not handle that tremendous pressure.

Rivalry week is upon us, and the Thursday-Friday prelude to the weekend is fast approaching. The BCS bowls are right around the corner!. . .