Bowl Preview: Capital One Bowl

Capital One Bowl
Florida Citrus Bowl, Orlando
LSU vs. Penn State
Date: Jan. 1
Time: 1 p.m.
TV: ABC
Line: Penn State -2

About Penn State (10-2): Joe Paterno will claim his greatest victory after Friday's game, having outlasted that dastardly Bobby Bowden. Paterno, 145, will coach again next year unless someone forgets to recharge his animatronic soul over the summer. The Nits are okay. Decent defense but the offense struggles to run the ball which puts too much on Darryl Clark at quarterback.

Intangibles:
Non-conference schedule: -3
White Out: +1
Isn't anything involving students at Penn State a "white" out?: -2

About LSU (9-3): Les Miles is quickly wearing out his welcome in Baton Rouge, losing three games this year (including one in stunningly stupid fashion.) LSU is all over the place inconsistent. Sometimes they can run the ball, sometimes they can't. Sometimes they play great defense, some times they don't.

Intangibles:
Tiguh Bayyt: -2
Game clock, Les: -3
The Hat: +3

Impact player: Penn State RB Evan Royster. PSU has to run the ball. HAS TO.

Bowl slogan: "Citrus? Pfft. This country was founded on high-interest debt for people who can't afford it!"

Little known fact: I attended the 1993 Citrus Bowl. Somewhere in that little lake outside the stadium probably still reside some possessions of mine.

Watchability (1-5): 4.3

The pick: LSU 24, PSU 17

Miles' meltdown in Mississippi

It's all about your perspective.

There are Michigan fans calling for Rich Rod's head so the Wolverines can bring in Michigan Man Les Miles. After watching Miles mismanage and mishandle the final seconds of LSU's game at Ole Miss last night, there are not many supporters remaining in Baton Rouge.

Have you ever seen a team screw up a perfect situation more? LSU scores and misses the two-point conversion to pull within two in the waning seconds. Manages to get the on-side kick, get into field goal range and then make horrible calls that pushed the Tigers out of range.

Then Miles' team didn't get a timeout called quick enough and allowed more than 20 seconds to run off before getting the call. Miles said after the game, "That play, the clock ran down, timeouts were being called verbally and I didn't relate to the official apparently, and that was the mistake. We didn't know that it hadn't been called."

That can happen, and neither can the hysteria that was taking place on the LSU sideline.

Still, the Tigers completed an unlikely 42-yard pass to Terrance Tolliver at the Ole Miss 6. With the first down, the clock stopped with 1 second remaining. Instead of running the field goal team on the field to rush a shot at the win, QB Jordan Jefferson spiked the ball and the clock struck zero.

Miles claims he doesn't know who called for the spike. The video shows otherwise.

Hey Michigan fans ... you still want Miles over Rich Rod?

Picks of the Week: No. 12

Here we go again. Not too many more weeks to improve the overall record. So let’s see if we can find a little magic in this week’s picks.

Rutgers (-9.5) over Syracuse
Syracuse is looking to avoid going winless in the Big East, but the Orange won’t pick it up a against a revitalized Rutgers team that is led by freshman QB Tom Savage, who has thrown 10 TD passes and only two interceptions. If the Scarlet Knights win out they’ll finish third in the league and own a 10-2 mark. The ‘Cuse have been ravaged by injuries and the defection of WR Mike Williams. First-year coach Doug Marrone has not given up on QB Greg Paulus, who has thrown 14 interceptions.
Pick: Rutgers 31, Syracuse 9

Temple (-10.5) over Kent State
The Owls are riding an eight-game winning streak and need a win here to remain on top of the East Division heading into a key showdown with Ohio. RB Bernard Pierce leads the Owls with a freshman record 1,308 yards and 15 touchdowns on 223 carries. The Golden Flashes are 5-5 and still have a chance to become bowl eligible. But it’s Senior Week at Lincoln Financial Field so the Owls will win and cover.
Pick: Temple 38, Kent State 20

Air Force (+10.0) over BYU
Air Force’s defense must be ready to stop the BYU passing attack to have a chance in this one. Stopping senior QB Max Hall (2,857 yards, 23 TDs) has not been easy this season. But the Falcons have held TCU (20 points) and Utah (16 in regulation) in close losses. That’s why this game should be closer than the spread. BYU’s defenses under Bronco Mendenhall haven’t fared well and this season is no different (ranked 78th nationally).
Pick: BYU 38, Air Force 35

Georgia (-8.5) over Kentucky
It’s not often these two enter this game at 6-4, but the Bulldogs have struggled on defense all season and Kentucky has been unpredictable. Both teams can secure a winning season with a win, but Georgia looks to honor the fallen UGA VII, who died this week. Another factor playing in Georgia’s favor is the improved running game the past four weeks. Let’s not forget this simple fact: Kentucky has not won in Athens since 1977.
Pick: Georgia 34, Kentucky 21

Upset of the Week
LSU (+4.0) over Mississippi
This is a tough pick because we still don’t know if LSU QB Jordan Jefferson will play or not. I don’t like LSU’s chances if it has to start Jarrett Lee. But let’s go out on a limb anyway. The Tigers can’t win the SEC, but there is still plenty to play for this season. Win out and LSU is probably a Top 8 team and will be favored to win the SEC next year. Then there is Ole Miss, who entered the season with astronomical expectations and it was easy to see a massive failure on the horizon. Jevan Snead has been mediocre this season and he’ll need a big game to win at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium.
Pick: LSU 24, Mississippi 21

Last Week: 3-2
Season Record: 29-26