Dec. 31: New Year's Ever fourplay
After starting the bowl season 0-2, I've bounced back with three straight victories (Central Michigan vs. Purdue, the under in the UConn-Wake Forest game, and Mississippi vs. Central Florida) to stand at 3-2 for a net profit of 0.8 units.
I'm coming with four games on New Year's Ever (hence the headline of "New Year's Eve fourplay" in case you were thinking something else).
ARMED FORCES BOWL
Air Force +4 vs. California
Cal was ranked as high as No. 2 in the nation and had to be thinking they were headed to the BCS title game or at worst the Rose Bowl. Instead, they lost six of seven and land here, short of even a New Year's Day bowl. They can't help but be disappointed and now they face an Air Force team that will come with its best effort representing the Armed Forces, even though if they're behind in the arms race and rely on a ground attack that is No. 2 in the nation with 299 yards per game. Cal also has distractions with star receiver DeSean Jackson being disciplined and not expected to start though he will play. I'll take the point with the hotter and more focused team.
HUMANITARIAN BOWL
Fresno St. +6 vs. Georgia Tech
This is another case of a Fresno St. team that is probably much happier to be going to Boise, Idaho, than Georgia Tech. Teams that have lost their head coach are 0-5 in bowls so far this year and that's what the Yellow Jackets faced. Fresno coach Pat Hill loves facing big-name schools and he has the team to return to his old ways of knocking them off.
CHICK-FIL-A BOWL
Clemson -2 vs. Auburn
Can I just say the Tigers are going to win? (Oh, they're both nicknamed the Tigers?) Anyway, I'm now going with two favorites. In this game, I love the running back tandem of James Davis and C.J. Spiller for Clemson and they are complimented well by quarterback Cullen Harper. That gives them a big edge on offense. The Auburn defense is ranked No. 8 in the country, but guess what, Clemson is No. 6, so we have the team with the better defense by a narrow margin but the better offense by a wide margin. I'll lay the small points.
INSIGHT BOWL
Oklahoma St. -4 vs. Indiana
Despite Penn St. winning and covering over Texas A&M, I'm going to back the Big 12 vs. the Big 10. Both teams have good offenses and suspect defenses, but I like the OSU attack better. Indiana might also be in a "just happy to be here" mode as they dedicated this season to Terry Hoeppner, who died from cancer last June, and they wanted to make it to a bowl game in his honor. Well, they're here, and emotions have been running high since getting the bowl big, but I don't see them getting the win as well.
I'm coming with four games on New Year's Ever (hence the headline of "New Year's Eve fourplay" in case you were thinking something else).
ARMED FORCES BOWL
Air Force +4 vs. California
Cal was ranked as high as No. 2 in the nation and had to be thinking they were headed to the BCS title game or at worst the Rose Bowl. Instead, they lost six of seven and land here, short of even a New Year's Day bowl. They can't help but be disappointed and now they face an Air Force team that will come with its best effort representing the Armed Forces, even though if they're behind in the arms race and rely on a ground attack that is No. 2 in the nation with 299 yards per game. Cal also has distractions with star receiver DeSean Jackson being disciplined and not expected to start though he will play. I'll take the point with the hotter and more focused team.
HUMANITARIAN BOWL
Fresno St. +6 vs. Georgia Tech
This is another case of a Fresno St. team that is probably much happier to be going to Boise, Idaho, than Georgia Tech. Teams that have lost their head coach are 0-5 in bowls so far this year and that's what the Yellow Jackets faced. Fresno coach Pat Hill loves facing big-name schools and he has the team to return to his old ways of knocking them off.
CHICK-FIL-A BOWL
Clemson -2 vs. Auburn
Can I just say the Tigers are going to win? (Oh, they're both nicknamed the Tigers?) Anyway, I'm now going with two favorites. In this game, I love the running back tandem of James Davis and C.J. Spiller for Clemson and they are complimented well by quarterback Cullen Harper. That gives them a big edge on offense. The Auburn defense is ranked No. 8 in the country, but guess what, Clemson is No. 6, so we have the team with the better defense by a narrow margin but the better offense by a wide margin. I'll lay the small points.
INSIGHT BOWL
Oklahoma St. -4 vs. Indiana
Despite Penn St. winning and covering over Texas A&M, I'm going to back the Big 12 vs. the Big 10. Both teams have good offenses and suspect defenses, but I like the OSU attack better. Indiana might also be in a "just happy to be here" mode as they dedicated this season to Terry Hoeppner, who died from cancer last June, and they wanted to make it to a bowl game in his honor. Well, they're here, and emotions have been running high since getting the bowl big, but I don't see them getting the win as well.
| Date | Bowl | Favorite | Underdog | Spread | Selection | Result |
| Dec. 20 | Poinsettia | Utah | Navy | 8 | Utah | Loss |
| Dec. 21 | New Orleans | Fla. Atlantic | Memphis | 3 | Memphis | Loss |
| Dec. 22 | Papajohns.com | Cincinnati | Southern Miss | 10.5 | Cincinnati | Loss |
| New Mexico | New Mexico | Nevada | 3 | Nevada | Loss | |
| Las Vegas | BYU | UCLA | 6 | BYU | Loss | |
| Dec. 23 | Hawaii | Boise St. | E, Carolina | 10.5 | Boise St. | Loss |
| Dec. 26 | Motor City | Purdue | C. Michigan | 9 | C. Michigan | Win |
| Dec. 27 | Holiday | Texas | Arizona St. | 2 | Texas | Win |
| Dec. 28 | Champs Sports | Boston Coll. | Michigan St. | 3.5 | Boston Coll. | Loss |
| Texas | TCU | Houston | 3 | Houston | Loss | |
| Emerald | Oregon St. | Maryland | 4.5 | Oregon St. | Win | |
| Dec. 29 | Meineke Car Care | Wake Forest | Connecticut | 3 | Connecticut | Loss |
| Liberty | Miss. St. | Central Florida | 3 | Miss. St. | Win | |
| Alamo | Penn St. | Texas A&M | 6 | Texas A&M | Loss | |
| Dec. 30 | Independence | Alabama | Colorado | 4 | Alabama | Win |
| Dec. 31 | Sun | South Florida | Oregon | 6 | South Florida | |
| Chick-fil-A | Clemson | Auburn | 1.5 | Clemson | ||
| Armed Forces | California | Air Force | 4 | Air Force | ||
| Humanitarian | Georgia Tech | Fresno St. | 4.5 | Fresno St. | ||
| Music Bowl | Kentucky | Florida St. | 3 | Kentucky | ||
| Insight | Oklahoma St. | Indiana | 4 | Oklahoma St. | ||
| Jan. 1 | Outback | Tennessee | Wisconsin | 3 | Tennessee | |
| Cotton | Missouri | Arkansas | 3 | Missouri | ||
| Gator | Texas Tech | Virginia | 5.5 | Texas Tech | ||
| Capital One | Florida | Michigan | 10.5 | Michigan | ||
| Rose | Southern Cal | Illinois | 13.5 | Southern Cal | ||
| Sugar | Georgia | Hawaii | 9 | Hawaii | ||
| Jan. 2 | Fiesta | Oklahoma | West Virginia | 7 | Oklahoma | |
| Jan. 3 | Orange | Virginia Tech | Kansas | 3.5 | Kansas | |
| Jan. 5 | International | Rutgers | Ball St. | 10 | Rutgers | |
| Jan. 6 | GMAC | Tulsa | Bowling Green | 4.5 | Tulsa | |
| Jan. 7 | BCS Title | LSU | Ohio St. | 4.5 | LSU |
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