Bowl Preview: Cotton Bowl

AT&T Cotton Bowl Classic
Cotton Bowl, Dallas
Texas Tech vs. Ole Miss
Date: Jan. 2
Time: 2 p.m.
TV: FOX
Line: Texas Tech -4

About Texas Tech: Coach Mike Leach is a genius. We know this because game announcers tell us all about how he has a law degree. (OMG! a LAW degree? He's SO SMART! Nobody has one of those!) Unfortunately, he tends to coach like an idiot. Tech throws the ball all over hell's half-acre and looks pretty doing it, but Leach tends to make dumb decisions at key junctures. Anyway, as usual, Tech can score and move the ball. They were in the national title running until everyone realized they're Texas Tech.

Intangibles:
Leach pirate fetish: -1
Lubbock: -4
Red Raider guy on horse: +4

About Ole Miss: Good-ole boy wunderkind Houston Nutt looks like some kind of genius after taking to the Rebels to the Cotton Bowl thanks to Ed Orgeron's recruits. Nutt, is most certainly NOT a genius though, especially when it comes to text messaging. Anyway, the Rebels are a decent team and Nutt does get some credit. Jevan Snead is a decent QB and that Michael Oher dude on the OL is a total freak.

Intangibles:
Firing David Cutcliffe: -3
Firing Ed Orgeron: +3
more John Grisham novels: -2
Biloxi: -1
Gambling in Biloxi: +2

Impact player: While I was tempted to pick the defensive guy from Tech who gets all gussied up with crazy hair and makeup, I'll go with Snead who needs to play well for Ole Miss to hang around.

Bowl Slogan: "We used to be somebody!"

Little known fact: This is the final year the Cotton Bowl will be played in the traditional Fair Park location. Next year it will be played in the new Cowboys monolith. That sucks.

Watchability (1-5): 3

The Pick: Texas Tech 27, Ole Miss 24

Random thoughts from the retired one

Special Report

Retired Coach Rick
ACC Correspondent

I wish everyone would stop trying to sell the University of Florida's greatness. They lost a home game to a middle of the pack SEC team. The other one loss teams lost an away game or on a neutral field.

I am going to sound like Lee Corso, please forgive me Joe Brodsky, but here it goes. I think Florida will beat Alabama in the SEC championship game but it is going to be closer than the experts think. I personally think if UF gets into a close, low scoring game, Alabama will win. All the conferences need to play a conference championship game. This would cut out a lot of the play-off talk.

How many people think Michigan has a chance against Ohio State? I do. Slim but a chance.

My nominees for the Heisman Trophy are #1 QB Colt McCoy, Texas; #2 QB Sam Bradford, Oklahoma; #3 WR Michael Crabtree, Texas Tech; #4 QB Graham Harrell, Texas Tech. Of course if Florida makes it to the BCS Championship game then Tim Tebow will win it. He will win it in the closest vote of all time.

A few friends of mine have told me the bowl committees are trying to find schools that have some history with each other. A lot of them are looking at the distance the fans will have to travel. With the economy the way it is the sponsors are trying to make it as easy for the fans as they can.

Who is going to be the All-American QB this year?

The games I want to see this week are: Texas Tech/Oklahoma, Michigan State/Penn State, Ohio State/Michigan, BYU/Utah, Ball State/Central Michigan, Florida State/Maryland and Miami/Georgia Tech.

My picks are Oklahoma in a blowout. Michigan State in a close one. Ohio State in a closer one. Utah in a walk. Central Michigan in a wild but close one. FSU in an easy one. UM in another nailbiter.