By Peyton Wesner
I have been waiting thriteen days for today. Today is the official start to Bowl Mania and there is no better place to host the first game than the Superdome. Despite, today being the first day of Bowl games, there are some really great match-ups to watch, including Utah versus Colorado State in the Royal Purple Las Vergas Bowl and Western Michigan versus Air Force in the Famous Idaho Potato Bowl. A crazy stat is that 4 of the 10 teams in today's bowls are from the Mountain West Conference. What is better than that?
R+L Carriers New Orleans Bowl
11:00 AM EST-ESPN
7-5 Nevada
8-4 Louisiana-Lafayette
Hmm, I thought this game was called the Louisiana-Lafayette Bowl. I guess I was wrong. Today will be the fourth consecutive R+L Carriers New Orleans Bowl the Rajin' Cajuns will be playing in. In the last three seasons, they have defeated Tulane in a close 24-21 matchup (2013), Shane Carden and Justin Henry's East Carolina Pirates 43-34 (2012), and the San Diego State Aztecs 32-30 (2011). Louisiana-Lafayette has had another solid season with three of their four losses coming against bigger, stronger teams. The one winable game that was a loss hurt the Rajin' Cajuns the most as it occurred in Week 13. The matchup was a home game against Appalachian State and all Louisiana-Lafayette had to do was win their last two games to finish with an undefeated 8-0 conference record and a tie for the Sun Belt crown with Georgia Southern. The Mountaineers were playing for pride in Week 13 since they had no chance to win the crown and a minuscule chance to make a bowl game. Appalachian State jumped of to an early 14-3 lead in the first quarter behind a punt return touchdown from Bobo Beathard (JR). The Rajin' Cajuns faithful were stunned because the odds were, if defeated Applachian State, they would most likely defeat their Week 14 opponent, the Troy Trojans. In the second quarter Louisiana-Lafayette came back and scored ten unanswered to be down only one point going into halftime. The third quarter was very evenly played. The Mountainers scored a touchdown and Louisiana-Lafayette kicked a field goal to make the score 21-16 going into the last fifteen minutes. After an Appalachian State punt and a Rajin' Cajuns three and out, Appalachian State drove the ball down field and Marcus Cox (SO) punched the ball in from the two yard line giving his team a 28-16 lead with 5:35 left in the fourth. The pressure was for the home team and it all came down to a fourth and seven on their own 37 yard line. Louisiana-Lafayette's Quarterback Terrence Broadway (SR) completed the pass to Gabe Fuselier (FR) but he was stopped four yards short from the first down. Appalachian State would score another touchdown for good measure and the game ended by the score of 35-16. No share of the conference title for Louisiana-Lafayette.
The Nevada Wolfpack are back in a bowl game after last year's horrid 4-8 season. The Wolfpack are led by Senior dual-threat quarterback Cody Fajardo. Farjardo's rushing statistics are arguably better than his passing stats as he has ran for 13 touchdowns while passing for 18 touchdowns. Nevada was off to a great start this season as they had defeated Connor Halladay's (SR) Washington State Cougars team in their second game. The suprising fact about the game was that it was not high scoring as Nevada held Halladay's offense to 13 points (the least amount of points the Cougars scored all season). After the big win over a Pac-12 school, Nevada had to play a better Pac-12 team led by up and coming quarterback, Anu Solomon (FR). The Arizona Wildcats game was close but Solomon and Wildcat wide receiver, Cayleb Jones (SO), took over in the second half and won by the narrow margin of 35-28. The Arizona game sent the Wolfpack into a lull as they lost two narrow games against the stiff competition of Boise State and Colorado State who were the best two teams in the Mountain West Conference this season. The two loses against the Broncos and the Rams sealed the fate of there being no chance for Nevada to play in the MWC Championship Game. Coming into today's game, Nevada has lost two of their last three regular season games (Air Force and Fresno State).
Offense Comparision
Both teams' offenses are about running the ball but in very different ways. Louisiana-Lafayette uses the running back combo of Elijah McGuire (SO) (1165 yards and 14 touchdowns) and Alonzo Harris (SR) (737 yards and 12 touchdowns), which keeps opposing defenses off-balanced. Nevada's leading rusher is not a running back but a quarterback. Cody Fajardo does it all for Nevada as he runs and passes very well. The only difference between the two offenses is that Nevada actually has a passing game while Louisiana-Lafayette is all ground game
Prediction:
Louisiana-Lafayette has the experience not only in bowl play but in this bowl. The Rajin' Cajuns have home field advantage sonce the game is in New Orleans which will play a factor in the game. Personally, I believe McGuire will have another big game with two touchdowns and lead his team to victory. Nevada's Fajardo will struggle this afternoon in the dome and ULL's defense will put the pressure on him in and out of the pocket.
---Louisiana-Lafayette 31, Nevada 20
Gildan New Mexico Bowl
2:20 PM EST-ESPN
9-4 Utah State
7-5 UTEP
The second Mountain West Conference team to play today is the Utah State Aggies. The Aggies can be described by one letter "D" because they have held opponents to 20.8 points per game, which is 21st best in the nation. If the defense is struggling most likely the Aggies are not winning shown by their 2-3 record when giving up 21 or more points. 21 points isn't that many points, why is Utah State losing more than winning against opponents that score over the amount? The reason for the poor record is that Utah State's offense is not very productive. They have had used four quarterbacks this year...FOUR due to injuries to their current starters (Ohio State thought they had it bad). Today they will continue to ride the Freshman from Texas, Kent Myers. Myers (FR) has been effective since being thrusted into the starting lineup as he has thrown for 5 touchdowns and 2 interceptions in a five game span where the Aggies went to 4-1. Prior to Myers, USU lost games at Arkansas State 21-14 in overtime and 16-13 to Colorado State in Fort Collins, Colorado. The problem is putting points on the board. In the Aggies last game for a chance for a share of the Mountain division crown in the Mountain West Conference against number twenty-three Boise State they were stampeded 50-19 by future NFL running back, Jay Ajayi (JR). Ajayi ran wild that day and outscored the Aggies by himself by scoring a career-high five touchdowns on 229 yards. A loss by that many points would normally discourage a team, but not Utah State. The Aggies are excited for today's opportunity to win their third consecutive bowl game and to take out some of the Boise State frustration on the UTEP Miners of Conference-USA.
Unlike, Utah State, the Miners are coming in on a positive note with a 24-21 win against Middle Tennessee State in their last game. Also, in contrast to Utah State, the Miners have not won a bowl in 46 years. Although the challenge will be tough against one of the nation's top defenses, an advantage for UTEP is their offense's continuity. Their Quarterback, Jameill Showers (SR), has been healthy all season and has played every snap of every game. Walking into battle with Showers is runningback Aaron Jones (SO) who has ran for 11 touchdowns on 1,233 rushing yards (both career highs). Showers' team has had no bad losses this season as they have all came against Power 6 conference teams or good C-USA teams. They even almost pulled off a conference upset against Brandon Doughty's (SR) Western Kentucky Hilltoppers. Now if you have not heard of Doughty, let me put it into perspective for you. He has thrown 44 touchdowns this season on 4,344 passing yards, both the most in their category not in the conference but in the country. Yeah, Doughty has more touchdowns and passing yards than this year's Heisman, Oregon's Marcus Mariota (JR). On November 8, UTEP jumped to a 17-7 lead against Western Kentucky just to squander it and be defeated by the score of 35-27 in the fourth quarter. I firmly believe that if the Miners would have beat the Hilltoppers, they would have not lost to Rice a week later and could have been placed in a higher ranked bowl game
Comparison:
UTEP by far has the better offense and more experienced quarterback but Utah State's defense can stop almost anyone. UTEP relies heavly on the running game while the Aggies have more of a balanced offense. Both teams at times find it hard to put points on the board, meaning today could be a game in the twenties or even the teens.
Prediction:
Not many people are giving UTEP a chance to win in this game and Vegas is calling them a 10 point underdog. I actually feel that this one could be very close. Think about it, Utah State's offense is the most productive when their defense is stopping opponents and giving them good field position. If the Miners figure out the Aggies defense and score some points (maybe 21 or more), UTEP will have a chance to win. For UTEP to score though, Showers is going to have to a game like he did against a ranked Kansas State squad on the road earlier in the season. The K-State game was by far the best game of his career as he threw for 201 yards and 4 touchdowns in a 58-28 loss.
---Utah State 24, UTEP 21
Royal Purple Las Vegas Bowl
3:30 PM EST-ABC
8-4 22. Utah
10-2 Colorado State
PW's Bowl of the Day
An old Mountain West Conference rivalry is continued in Las Vegas this afternoon as the twenty-third ranked Utah Utes take on the Colorado State Rams. Utes was in the Mountain West Conference until 2010 when they decided to move conferences for the bigger, better Pac-12. The last five match-ups between the two teams were all won by the Utes, but to Colorado State's defense their program was in shambles with a record of 20-41 during the five year span the games occurred.
The Utah Utes have had a very good season after two non-bowl seasons. Utah got their name back in the national conversation after defeating the Michigan Wolverines in Ann Arbor 26-10. The next week they hurt their resumé by losing their first conference game of the season against Connor Halladay's Washington State Cougars. The loss was disappointing for a few reasons. To begin with, Washington State had one win going into the meeting and were predicted to be a bottom-feeder in the conference. Also, Utah had a twenty-one to zero lead in the first quarter and allowed WSU to go on a 28-6 run for the remainder of the game. Finally, it was at home! How does a home team with a half-way good defense lose a game with a 21-0 lead! The next week Utah bounced back and defeated number eight ranked UCLA behind ten sacks on stud quarterback Brett Hundley (JR). With 34 seconds left in the fourth quarterback, Utah's kicker, Andy Phillips (SO) nailed a 29-yard field goal to give the Utes a 30-28 lead. But no lead is safe from Brett Hundley. Hundley drove the Bruins down the field to the 37 yard line of the Utes, setting up a 54-yard field goal for Junior Ka'imi Fairbairn. He missed but there was a flag on the play. Roughing the Kicker was called on Utah, giving Fairbairn another chance to win the game with a 49-yard field goal. The kick for the win was up...and he missed again. Utah 30, UCLA 28. Two weeks later, Utah beat another ranked team from L.A., the USC Trojans. The Trojans had a 21-17 lead but Utah had the ball with less than a minute left needing a touchdown to win. Travis Wilson (JR) dropped back and found Senior Kaelin Clay in the back of the end zone with eight seconds left. Utah wins! 2-0 against ranked opponents! The next week Utah went into Tempe for a battle of the ranked against number fourteen Arizona State. The game needed extra time as the score was tied at 16 at the end of regulation. The first series for Utah came down to a third and seven. Wilson ended up throwing an incompletion setting up a field goal for the hero at UCLA, Andy Phillips. The attempt would be 35-yards, an easy chipshot for Phillips. The kick was up and he missed? HE MISSED! Phillips missed! Arizona State's then ended up a made field goal of 36 yards from Zane Gonzalez (SO). The run was over and so was the undefeated record against ranked opponents. The last four games of the season for Utah were ugly as they lost badly to the fourth ranked Oregon Ducks and fifteenth ranked Arizona Wildcats in Salt Lake City while winning closely at Stanford and Colorado. A team that defeated the Buffalos by more than just four points this season is their opponent today.
The Colorado State Rams had a great season under 2014 Mountain West Coach of the Year, Jim McElwain. McElwain led Colorado State to not only to a ten-win season but a ten win season that saw CSU in the Top 25. Remember when Colorado State won three to four games a year...this is not the same team. The Rams are led by Mountain West Offensive Player of the Year, Garrett Grayson (SR). Grayson capped off his career with a 32 touchdown season on 3,779 passing yards with only 6 interceptions. Not only did Colorado State have one of the best quarterbacks in the country but one of the best wide receivers as well. Rashard Higgins (SO) was one of the top targets in the nation this past season ashe caught 17 touchdowns and ran for 1,640 yards from Grayson. The only two losses for the Rams came against conference champion, Boise State and rival Air Force. The Air Force game was the last game of the regular season and with a win. Colorado State would have shared the Mountain Division championship with Boise State. Air Force had home field advantage and a 24-10 lead with three mintues left in the third quarter. Colorado State then rallied and tied the game with ten minutes left in the game. Both teams had ample opportunities to win the game but finally the Falcons' Will Conant (SR) kicked a 39-yard field goal to bring victory to Air Force on Senior Night.
Comparison
Suprisingly the statistics show that Colorado State has the better of the two defenses since they allow three fewer points a game than Utah but there is one thing to remember. The Utes lead the nation in sacks with 52 or 4.3 sacks per game. In addition, Utah only allows 245 passing yards per game (third best in the Pac-12). The side of the ball going up against the Utes Defense is the Colorado State offense. Obviously, Colorado State has the better offense with the most playmakers. The three headed ram of Garrett Grayson (SR), Dee Hart (SR), and Rashard Higgins (JR), is as good as any in college football and I would take them three over any trio besides UCLA. Utah's offense has been suceptive to droughts shown in their performances against Arizona and Oregon. Frankly, if Utah's defense is not playing well, they do not win.
Prediction:
I have said it before and I will say it again, I am very excited for this game. My matchup to watch is Colorado State's offensive line versus the pass rushers of Utah. My scenerio is simple if Grayson is not protected, Utah will win, if Grayson is not sacked and has time to make his reads and throw the ball, Colorado State wins. Simple enough? Utah must receive a very good performance from Travis Wilson (JR) though because Colorado State can put up points at any time. A thought that has popped into my head is whether or not the absence of Jim McElwain will affect the Rams performance. McElwain accepted the Florida Gators head coaching job for next season and is not going to be coaching today for Colorado State. I would nkt think it would influence their performance but who knows.
---Colorado State 27, Utah 24
Famous Idaho Potato Bowl
5:45 PM EST-ESPN
8-4 Western Michigan
9-3 Air Force
Seriously, at this point I wonder how four Mountain West schools are playing on the same day of Bowl Mania. Anyway, both teams have made tremendous strides since last year. Western Michigan won only one game last year and this season they won eight. Why such a sudden turn around? A Freshman from Tinley Park, Illinois, named Jarvion Franklin happened. Franklin has emerged from high school to become one of the top running backs in the country. The teenager has 24 touchdowns on 1,525 rushing yards. That statline is truly spectacular as he has more touchdowns than his quarterback. Speaking about quarterbacks, the Bronco Quarterback is also the reason for the team's improvement. Zach Terrell had a tough Freshman season last year kinda like the season a rookie has in the NFL. But the bad season was the best thing that could have happened for Terrell because the experience he gained from it has made him one of the best quarterbacks in the MAC. Terrell improved his stat line from 8 TDs, 8 INTs, and 1,602 passing yards, to 23 TDs, 10 INTs, and 3,146 passing yards with one more game to play. Big improvement right? Two of the four games the Broncos have dropped so far have came against Power 6 schools (Purdue and Virginia Tech) while the other two came against division contenders within their conference. The Purdue and Virginia Tech games were two possession loses and in perspective did not mean as much as the division battles. After the Virginia Tech loss, the Broncos hosted the Toledo Rockets. The game was a slow scoring and rather boring affair going into the fourth quarter with the score 10-3 Western Michigan. Both offenses soon would take off. With a little over a minute left in the game, Andrew Haldeman (JR) nailed a thirty three yard field goal to give WMU a 13-10 lead. Haldeman the Hero? Nope, there was too much time for Toledo to operate. Sophomore Logan Woodside led the Rockets down the field and set up a thirty seven yard field goal for Jeremiah Detmer (SR). Detmer made the attempt and the game was headed to overtime in Kalamazoo. On the first possession of overtime, Woolside threw a twenty two yard touchdown pass to Alonzo Russell (JR). The extra point was made by Detmer on top of the extra point. 20-13 Toledo, Western Michigan ball. Zach Terrell threw a touchdown on his possession. Second Overtime coming right? The extra point was missed by Haldeman. Toledo 20, Western Michigan 19...final. The loss hurt the Broncos but after the defeat Western Michigan rolled off six straight matchups leading to a crucial matchup against MAC powerhouse, Northern Illinois. The Broncos had home field advantage and used it to their advantage early and often. With four minutes left in the second quarter the score was Western Michigan 21, Northern Illinois 7. The WMU fans were going crazy but they forgot that there is two halves in football. NIU added a field goal going into halftime slightly shifting the momentum. Coming out of halftime Northern Illinois scored 21 points unanswered and won by the score 31-21. Kalamazoo didn't know what hit them. With the win, Northern Illinois clinched a berth in the MAC Championship Game and Western Michigan dropped their fourth game of the season.
The Falcons were hunted in the Mountain West Conference last season but this year they are the hunters. Air Force won two games last year, but this season they are a totally different team. What changed? Air Force strengthened their defense. Last season they scored points on the offensive end but could not outscore opponents. With a better defense, Air Force competed in every game this season. They even beat Boise State! How? With defense! The Falcons caused the Broncos to turnover the ball seven times, six of which came from Jay Ajayi (JR) and Grant Hedrick (SR) at Usaf Academy, Colorado. With the 28-14 win, Air Force moved to 3-1 (1-1 in the MWC) and looked like maybe they could win the Mountain Division. It didn't happen as two weeks later Utah State shot the Falcons chance of making the MWC Championship Game with a 34-16 win. After the loss to USU, Air Force won four straight setting up a matchup with San Diego State in California. Another loss insued and Air Force was trending downward but coming into tonight's game they defeated the three-headed monster from Fort Collins by the score of 27-24. Colorado State's Grayson (SR), Hart (SR), and Higgins (SO) could not have played any better as Grayson had three touchdowns on 366 passing yards, Hart had 115 rushing yards, and Higgins caught two touchdowns on 12 catches for 193 receiving yards. Most of the time those stats for those three men get the Rams a win, but not that night as Will Conant (SR) made a 39-yard field goal to bring the Falcons to a Senior Night victory.
Comparison;
Air Force has a rush-first offense with running back Jacobi Owens (SO) and dual-threat quarterback Kyle Pearson (SR) while Western Michigan will throw the ball around the yard in additon to handing it off. Another difference I see between the two is field goal kicking. The way WMU's Haldeman has been kicking extra points in big games, I would go for the two point conversion before letting him attempt a PAT. Air Force's kicker, Will Conant seems pretty consistent at both PATs and FGs so advantage Falcons if it becomes a low scoring field goal kicking game. On the defensive side of the ball, both teams give up almost the same amount of points, so for that reason, I feel defense will play no advantage to either side.
Prediction:
Jarvis Franklin will look like a veteran runnning back and run for two or more touchdowns. Western Michigan's Terrel will feed the ball throughout the game to Franklin but pick his spots off play actuon for throw the deep bomb. Air Force's Kyle Pearson will have extra motivation to go out on top since this is the last game of his career. Tonight, I see Pearson throwing a touchdowns and running for another in an Air Force loss.
---Western Michigan 20, Air Force 17
Raycom Media Camellia Bowl
9:15 PM EST-ESPN
6-6 South Alabama
7-6 Bowling Green
Both teams meeting in Montgomery tonight are being rewarded for their early season performances rather their most recent. The South Alabama Jaguars and the Bowling Green Falcons have the honor of playing in the inaugural Raycom Media Camellia Bowl
South Alabama has had a successful yet disappointing season. The positive is that they made it to a bowl game but losing their last four out of five games after a 5-2 start has to be gutwrenching. The Jaguars only losses after the first seven games was to Mississippi State and eventual Sun Belt conference champion, Georgia Southern. Their eighth game of the season was against conference undefeated at the time, the Louisiana-Lafayette Ragin' Cajuns. South Alabama went into halftime with a 9-6 lead over Louisiana-Lafayette but would give up thirteen unanswered Ragin' Cajuns points in the second half and lose 19-9. The Louisiana-Lafayette game took all of the fight out of the Jags as they then lost to Arkansas State 45-10. The next game South Alabama survived against Texas State but to end the season the Jaguars were manhandled by South Carolina and then could not score enough points to comeback at home versus Navy. South Alabama will be led tonight by Senior linebacker Maleki Harris and Senior quarterback Brandon Bridge.
The Bowling Green Falcons started off their season with a loss to Western Kentucky. Besides the loss hurting their record, it hurt their chances for this season as Junior quarterback Matt Johnson suffered a season ending hip injury. Johnson was expected to have a great season in 2014 and build into his 2013 season, which he threw for 25 touchdowns on 3,467 passing yards while outplaying Heisman canidate Jordan Lynch in the MAC Championship game and now Houston Texans quarterback and then Pittsburgh Panthers quarterback, Tom Savage, in the Little Ceasars Bowl. His totals from the two performances was seven touchdowns and no interceptions on 665 passing yards. Who would play quarterback moving forward? Could they still lead the team to victory? Coach Dino Baber took the Bowling Green job to coach a star quarterback like he did at Eastern Illinois (Jimmy Garoppollo, current New England Patroits back-up) not to mentor the back-up of a star. The back-up of Johnson was a Sophomore from Fort Wayne, Indiana, named James Knapke. Knapke played limited time as a Freshman because of Johnson and no one really knew what he was capable of. His first game was against VMI, a FCS school from the Big South. Knapke led Bowling Green to an impressive 48-7 victory in Week 2 to start the James Knapke Era. Maybe Knapke would not do so bad! The next week the Falcons achieved their signature win of the season against 2,000+ yard rusher Tevin Coleman and the Indiana Hooisers. The team would later clinch the East Division in the MAC on November 12 with a 30-20 win against Kent State. Since their division clinching win, the Falcons have lost three straight including the MAC Championship to Northern Illinois at Ford Field. The year prior with Matt Johnson at the helm, the Bowling Green Falcons upset the undefeated and ranked Northern Illinois Huskies. This year, NIU got their revenge with a 51-17 beatdown in Motown. Although the poor performance in the conference championship could Knapke turn the recent woes around and end the season on a positicw note?
Comparison:
Both teams have very balanced offenses. I know, I have been saying that all day but just look at the stats. USA and BGSU both have a very even pass to run play call ratio. Bowling Green's offense is better than South Alabama's but South Alabama's defense is better than Bowling Green's. With thaf being said, my matchup of the game is the Falcons wide receivers versus the linebackers, safeties, and cornerbacks of the Jaguars. It will come down to whether or not the Jaguars can stop Freshman Roger Lewis, who won All-MAC First Team.
Prediction:
Tonight there will be a lot of firsts since this is the inaugural Raycom Media Camellia Bowl. First touchdown, first MVP, and first winner. So who will it be? Youth or Experience. The Jaguars have many Seniors on their team such as linebacker Maleki Harris, quarterback Brandon Bridge, running back Kendall Houston, and wide receiver Shavarez Smith. All four seniors have contributed greatly during their tenure and will try their hardest to go out on top. Tha Falcons are full of youth as their top three offensive players, James Knapke (SO), Travis Greene (JR), and Roger Lewis (FR), have at least one more year to play. Maybe they will not be as desperate to win as South Alabama. I feel that South Alabam will come out determined to go out on top in front of basically a home crowd. Mobile, Alabama, (where the University of South Alabama is located) is less than two hours and thirty minutes from Montgomery, Alabama (city where the bowl will be played). Expect a big Jaguars crowd to show up and cheer their team to victory.
---South Alabama 23, Bowling Green 20
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