2010 Bowl Season Preview: Part I

Bowl season is here, capturing the attention of millions of egg-nog chugging, cookie-gorging Americans, especially those involved in pick 'em challenges. The first few matchups are rather bland, but after a few weeks without college football, plenty of pigskin-deprived fans will be tuning in. Besides, if you don't watch the first one, you can't watch them all. The guru is here to give you his take on the opening games, so that you can impress your relatives with your knowledge of University of Texas El Paso Miners. Quick, what's the name of UTEP's mascot?

The first postseason matchup of the year is the New Mexico Bowl, famous (?) for its symbolic trophy. (A traditional Native American clay pot emblazoned with the image of one of the state's great football players, for those of you who don't click the link.) Comparable to the Lombardi Trophy? You bet. The games pits the BYU Cougars against the aforementioned Miners of El Paso. The Cougars come in having won four of their last five, while UTEP has dropped five of their past six. Neither team has a notable ranking in offense or defense, passing or rushing. But give the edge to the Cougars, who come in hot having nearly defeated rival Utah, currently 19th in the BCS rankings, in their regular season finale.

The guru selects BYU with 16 confidence points, for you pick 'em players.

utepathletics.com

My hat goes off to any of you who knew correctly identified Paydirt Pete.

The second game on the schedule is the Humanitarian Bowl, played in beautiful Boise, Idaho. (What a sweet destination for a mid-December game.) Duking it out will be Northern Illinois and Fresno State. The Huskies (Northern Illinois. Again, I bet most of your relatives won't know that one.) enter the game looking for their eleventh win, which would be the most in school history. But they are dealing with the departure of head coach Jerry Kill, who fled for the University of Minnesota. Fresno State, sans NFL first round pick Ryan Mathews, took a major step backwards in 2010. The Bulldogs aren't weak in any one field, but they lack a defining quality. NIU's potent rushing attack (6.2 YPC, 28 TDs) leads them past Fresno State.

The guru choose NIU with 10 confidence points.

Rounding out Saturday's action, the Troy Trojans will square off against the Ohio Bobcats in the New Orleans Bowl. The Trojans have a high-flying passing attack, which contrasts sharply with Ohio's strong rushing offense. The Bobcats' anemic passing game will keep them from capitalizing on Troy's miserable secondary, which yields some of the most yards in the FBS. The Bobcats have a stout run defense, which will do them little good against the arm of Troy QB Corey Robinson, who threw for over 3,000 yards this season. In a game of conflicting offensive strategies (light up the scoreboard vs control the clock), it will be interesting to see which method comes through.

The guru says Troy with 12 confidence points.

With almost a month of bowl games ahead of us, take the time to start the holiday season on the right foot. Tune in for these seemingly boring games because, you never know when they may get interesting. (Just kidding. That link is actually really boring. I never thought I would find a Youtube video with only 1 view. Never underestimate the magnitude of the New Orleans Bowl.)