NCAAF · 12 minutes ago

10 Bold College Football Predictions For Bowl Season

TJ Inman

Host · Writer

10. Utah and Nebraska Combine for 400 Rushing Yards
The Utah Utes have one of the best rushing attacks in the country, and this could very well be Kyle Whittingham’s final game as the head coach in Salt Lake City. They take on the Nebraska Cornhuskers in the Las Vegas Bowl, and it’s fair to say that the Huskers are a team in flux with a weak defensive line that is probably going to get worse by the time this game kicks off. The Huskers gave up 5.1 yards per carry (118th nationally), and Utah has obliterated teams, at times, on the ground. Nebraska does have a solid rushing attack of its own, and it should be able to churn out some yards as well. The two combine for at least 400 yards rushing as the Utes bludgeon the Huskers.

Nebraska at Utah (-15.5)

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1. Boise State Surprises Washington in LA Bowl
The Washington Huskies are favored by nearly ten points in this Saturday’s Bucked Up LA Bowl against the Boise State Broncos. The Huskies are significantly more talented, but rumors are swirling that head coach Jedd Fisch is taking the suddenly open Michigan job, and there is a very real chance Washington has zero interest in this game. The Boise State Broncos have played well recently, winning three straight games, including a victory in the Mountain West Conference Championship Game with a 38-21 triumph over UNLV. The Broncos cover the 9.5-point spread and win outright as the more motivated team.

Boise State at Michigan (-9.5)

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2. Oklahoma Advances to Rose Bowl
On Friday, December 19, the College Football Playoff kicks off as the Oklahoma Sooners host the Alabama Crimson Tide in Norman. The winner will advance to the Rose Bowl to face No. 1 Indiana. We saw this game just a few weeks ago as Oklahoma won 23-21 in Tuscaloosa despite being outgained 406-212 and giving up 326 passing yards. Everything I know about advanced analytics screams to trust the numbers from that matchup and take Alabama to win this game, but I can’t trust the Crimson Tide right now. In the past six games, Kalen DeBoer’s team has not looked anything like a worthy playoff team. They escaped with a win at South Carolina and were outplayed by both Auburn and Georgia. Brent Venables had a chance to see the Alabama offense up close, and now he gets a full two weeks to prepare a gameplan to overwhelm Ty Simpson and motivate his team as underdogs. Give me Oklahoma to beat the Crimson Tide again.

Alabama (-1.5) at Oklahoma
3. Miami Stuns Texas A&M in College Station
The Miami Hurricanes were on the outside looking in, but a late flip by the College Football Playoff Selection Committee handed Mario Cristobal’s team the last at-large spot in the field. Their reward is a trip to College Station to play Texas A&M. This game has as much intrigue as any first-round matchup, and the recent interception issue for Marcel Reed (six INTs in five games) is a problem against a talented Miami defensive front. The Hurricanes get consistent pressure on Reed, slow the A&M running game, and get some huge plays from Malachi Toney in the upset win and advance to a clash with Ohio State.

Miami at Texas A&M (-3.5)
4. Toledo's Defense Locks Down Louisville
Do the Louisville Cardinals have any interest at all in playing in this bowl game? The Cardinals are heavily favored against the 8-4 Toledo Rockets in the Bush’s Boca Raton Bowl, but I’m rolling with the Rockets to shut down the Louisville offense. Jeff Brohm’s teams have a history of stinker performances in games against overmatched opponents, and Toledo only surrendered 73 points in the MAC and just 146 points all season, making them one of the country’s best defenses.

Toledo at Louisville (-9.5) | Total of 44.5
5. Cal Rolls Hawaii on Christmas Eve
The Cal Golden Bears rode a breakout performance from freshman Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele (JKS) to a 7-5 record, but they still canned head coach Justin Wilcox. The hire was former Cal player and Oregon defensive coordinator Tosh Lupoi, and his first move was to fly to Hawaii and convince his star quarterback to stick around for at least his sophomore season in Berkeley. That’s a massive win for Cal, and I think they’ll be playing inspired football with their new head coach in place as they take on Hawaii on the island on Christmas Eve. JKS puts up 300+ yards as he plays in front of a lot of friends and family in his home state, and Cal beats Hawaii by double-digits.

California (-2.5) at Hawaii
6. New Mexico Upsets Minnesota
Jason Eck is one of the best coaches in the country, and he has the Lobos sitting at 9-3 after his first season in the Mountain West. Eck has a contract extension, and he should have a very motivated team with the chance to take on a likely sleepy Big Ten team in the Rate Bowl as they play Minnesota in Arizona. The Gophers lost three of four games before beating Wisconsin to close the regular season, and Minnesota is likely to have many opt-outs for this game. Give me Eck and the Lobos to pull off the upset.

New Mexico at Minnesota (-2.5)
7. Motivated PSU Beats Clemson in Pinstripe Bowl
The Penn State Nittany Lions and Clemson Tigers are meeting in the postseason. If someone had been told that in August, the assumption would be that they were meeting in a College Football Playoff semifinal, but instead the teams have a combined 13-11 record and are playing in the Bad Boy Mowers Pinstripe Bowl at Yankee Stadium. Clemson has already seen multiple starters opt out of this game to either transfer or prepare for the NFL Draft, and Penn State closed the regular season playing well for interim head coach Terry Smith. I think the Nittany Lions play hard for Smith, and Ethan Grunkemeyer has a big day against a suspect Clemson secondary in an upset win for the Nittany Lions.

Penn State at Clemson (-3.5)
8. Georgia Tech Feasts in Pop-Tarts Bowl
The BYU Cougars have played three games against teams anyone would consider really strong: a 24-21 win at home over Utah and a pair of blowout losses to Texas Tech. The Cougars now take on Brent Key’s Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets in the Pop-Tarts Bowl, and I think the Yellow Jackets will show up and compete in what will probably be Haynes King’s final collegiate game (unless he gets a waiver for another season). King means a lot to the Georgia Tech program, and BYU can be had in the run game, so give me the Wramblin’ Wreck of Georgia Tech to cover and win outright!

Georgia Tech at BYU (-4.5)
9. San Diego State Silences Mean Green Offense
The North Texas Mean Green were humbled by Tulane in the American Athletic Conference Championship Game and will now take on San Diego State in the New Mexico Bowl. San Diego State appears to have survived the coaching carousel, with Sean Lewis still at the helm and his staff still in place. They have a strong defense that will match up well against North Texas’ skeleton staff and personnel. San Diego State limits North Texas to just ten points and gets the upset win.

North Texas (-3.5) at San Diego State
10. Utah and Nebraska Combine for 400 Rushing Yards
The Utah Utes have one of the best rushing attacks in the country, and this could very well be Kyle Whittingham’s final game as the head coach in Salt Lake City. They take on the Nebraska Cornhuskers in the Las Vegas Bowl, and it’s fair to say that the Huskers are a team in flux with a weak defensive line that is probably going to get worse by the time this game kicks off. The Huskers gave up 5.1 yards per carry (118th nationally), and Utah has obliterated teams, at times, on the ground. Nebraska does have a solid rushing attack of its own, and it should be able to churn out some yards as well. The two combine for at least 400 yards rushing as the Utes bludgeon the Huskers.

Nebraska at Utah (-15.5)

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1. Boise State Surprises Washington in LA Bowl
The Washington Huskies are favored by nearly ten points in this Saturday’s Bucked Up LA Bowl against the Boise State Broncos. The Huskies are significantly more talented, but rumors are swirling that head coach Jedd Fisch is taking the suddenly open Michigan job, and there is a very real chance Washington has zero interest in this game. The Boise State Broncos have played well recently, winning three straight games, including a victory in the Mountain West Conference Championship Game with a 38-21 triumph over UNLV. The Broncos cover the 9.5-point spread and win outright as the more motivated team.

Boise State at Michigan (-9.5)

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10 Bold College Football Predictions For Bowl Season

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