My Crystal Ball Says...

...that I know what will happen in this week's key games. Always remember that I'm right, and your team sucks.

This is the second edition of the special bowl season picks. Keep checking back for the last edition.

Don't let the fact that I'm 1-5 in my previous set of picks bother you too much. Boise State almost got it done, and so did Miami. North Carolina had a lousy fourth quarter - turning the ball over twice - otherwise, they played pretty well against West Virginia. Hawaii is still in need of a collective Heimlich Maneuver after choking as badly as they did. And Central Michigan coach Butch Jones showed why he is still coaching at Central Michigan. The lone shining moment from my first set of picks? The Florida State drubbing of Wisconsin. Sad, but true.

This set is likely to be MUCH better.

Northern Illinois vs Louisiana Tech (Independence Bowl)
This is a battle of dogs, Huskies against Bulldogs, and a matchup of two teams with solid running games and suspect passing games. This is basically a home game for Louisiana Tech, which is good news for them. They’ve only lost once at home this year. I’ll take Louisiana Tech.

NC State vs Rutgers (PapaJohns.com Bowl)
Rutgers looked like a hopeless cause at the start of the season after opening with a 1-5 record. Then they won their last six games, all in all, a heck of a coaching job by Greg Schiano. Similarly, North Carolina State started the year 2-6, but they’re on a hot streak after closing the season with four straight wins. On a whim, I’ll take NC State in this one.

Missouri vs Northwestern (Valero Alamo Bowl)
Northwestern is, very quietly, 9-3, and would be 10-2 except for an inexplicable loss to Indiana. They run the ball well, and that might help them stay in the game with a Missouri team that plays very little defense to speak of. In what should be a shootout, I still think Missouri has too much firepower for the Wildcats.

Maryland vs Nevada (Roady’s Humanitarian Bowl)
If early reports are correct, and if you count the workers in the concession areas, there may be about 29 people at this game. That’s too bad because watching almost any game on the Smurf Turf is fun. Maryland is one of the most remarkably inconsistent teams I’ve seen. They beat four ranked teams this year, but lost to Middle Tennessee State, got shutout by Virginia, and got pounded at home by FSU. Which Terps will show up? Nevada, amazingly, is fifth in the nation in total offense, but their defense is every bit as suspect as Maryland’s sometimes is. I think Nevada is a bit more excited about this than Maryland, and that may be the difference. And I’m betting on a big game from Wolfpack QB Colin Kaepernick.

Western Michigan vs Rice (Texas Bowl)
This is another game that should be an entertaining shootout. The Broncos lost their last game of the regular season to Ball State. Rice is on a six game winning streak, and Chase Clement is another one of those very solid quarterbacks that you may not have heard of. I’ll go with Rice.

Oklahoma State vs Oregon (Pacific Life Holiday Bowl)
This should be yet another entertaining, high-scoring game. It’s tempting to pick an Oregon team that piles up points and yards at will sometimes. But it is also tempting to pick an Oklahoma State team that runs very well, and has a decent passing attack to go with the running game. Can the Cowboys hold the ball and keep the Oregon offense off the field? I think so.