Last night at 8 PM, the BCS bowl schedule was released.
Texas and Alabama will play in the BCS Championship Game. This game will come down to which defense handles the other team’s star player more effectively. Mark Ingram, the Alabama running back, is a Heisman candidate who has played extremely well against many tough, stout SEC defenses. The Big XII is not a well renowned defensive conference like the SEC. This could be the difference in the game. Texas star Colt McCoy is probably the Heisman favorite this year, although that may have been compromised by his poor performance against Nebraska. My prediction is that the top ranked Alabama defense will be able to stop the Texas offense that has not played often against high caliber, speedy, physical defenses. The Alabama running game, led by Mark Ingram, will wear down the Texas defense, who has not faced many high octane offenses this year. Greg McElroy will have opportunities to make plays in the passing game because of Texas’ need to put many men in the box to stop Ingram. This combination of Alabama’ offensive firepower and stout defense will prove to be the difference in the game.
My prediction: Alabama 31-Texas 20
Boise St. and TCU will play in the Fiesta Bowl. This matchup is an interesting matchup, as it pairs the top 2 non-BCS conference teams. Boise State and TCU are both undefeated to this point, and the Fiesta Bowl is the only BCS Bowl other than the National Championship to pair two undefeated teams. In my opinion, this game comes down to how well the Boise offense can play against the talented TCU defense. TCU should not have too much of a problem scoring on the Boise defense. However, the TCU defense is of top tier quality, and could provide offensive problems for Boise State and quarterback Kellen Moore.
My prediction: TCU 41-Boise State 24
Ohio State and Oregon will play in the Rose Bowl Game. This game is an interesting matchup because it poses the conservative Buckeyes against the run and gun dual option threat Oregon Ducks. Jeremiah Masoli and Terrelle Pryor, the two quarterbacks, will be the difference makers in this game. Jeremiah Masoli has run the option magnificently for the Ducks this year, and has established at times an unstoppable offense. Terrelle Pryor has proven to be the one explosive offense player Ohio State has. The key to this game will be how well Terrelle Pryor plays. If Terrelle can effectively mix the pass and run, Ohio State will be able to move the ball consistently against the mediocre Oregon defense.
In the end, I think Oregon’s offense will be too much for the Buckeyes to handle. My prediction: Oregon 35-Ohio State 17.
The Sugar Bowl will be Florida against Cincinnati. Cincinnati is the other undefeated team in the BCS besides the four listed above. Florida has one loss, and is coming off the loss to Alabama in the SEC Championship. This game will come down to how well Tony Pike can handle the Florida defense, ranked 2nd in the SEC behind only Alabama. To this point, the Bearcats have had their way against many mediocre Big East defenses this year. It will be interesting to see if the Bearcat offense is for real. Another X-factor will be how well Tebow can respond to his disappointing performance in the SEC Championship.
My prediction: A high scoring game with Florida coming out victorious: 37-31
The final BCS Bowl game is the Orange Bowl. The last BCS qualifying Iowa Hawkeyes will face the triple option Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets. The key aspect of this game will be how well the Iowa defense can handle the triple option, which Georgia Tech lives and dies by. Iowa’s offense has not been very dynamic this year, but will have a chance to redeem itself against a defense that is not as stout as those in the Big 10.
My prediction: Georgia Tech 27 Iowa 17
The final BCS spot came down to Iowa and Penn State. Many Penn State fans thought that Penn State would get the final bid because of the identical records between the teams and the fact that Penn State has a much larger fan base and would provide more revenue than Iowa.
However, as much as it pains me to say so, the correct decision was made. First, Iowa defeated Penn State on the road by 11 points early in the season. To those who say that one must also consider how the teams finished, such as the case of Oregon and Boise State, I realize that that is important. However, it is necessary to remember that towards the end of the season, Penn State lost to Ohio State at home by 17 points. The very next week, Iowa lost to Ohio State, on the road, in overtime, 27-24, without Stanzi at quarterback. Therefore, Iowa outplayed Penn State at the beginning of the year, by defeating the Lions in Beaver Stadium, and at the end of the year, shown by the teams’ performances against Ohio State. Iowa truly deserved the BCS bid over Penn State.