I absolutely love bowls. People complain that there are too many, but I wish that there were more. As I’ve been looking over the bowls trying to get ready for them, some matchups have jumped out more than others. Here are the ten bowls, in order, that have me the most excited. Some won’t bethe ones you think:
1. BCS Championship, Florida and Oklahoma – This is a no-brainer. This is one of the best matchups we have seen in the history of the BCS. I’m disappointed by Oklahoma’s injuries and Florida’s coaching issues, but it still should be a classic. When you put two offenses this good run by two coaches this good together in one game you can’t help but have a great game. They truly do save the best for last.
2. Poinsettia Bowl, Boise State and TCU – The Broncos will be very frustrated that they went undefeated and wound up in the Poinsettia Bowl. They’ll be looking to take it out on TCU. The brilliant TCU defense will have something to say about that.
3. Chick-fil-A Bowl, LSU and Georgia Tech – Georgia Tech’s run offense is decidedly effective, but I’m still not entirely convinced that it isn’t a gimmick. LSU is flawed, but they will be very well prepared for this one, so it will be a very good test for the Yellow Jackets.
4. Capital One Bowl, Georgia and Michigan State – Knowshon Moreno vs. Javon Ringer – what else do you need?
5. Fiesta Bowl, Ohio State and Texas – I’m not as down on the Big Ten as everyone else, so I respect the Buckeyes – especially when Terrelle Pryor has a month to prepare. Texas is going to be pissed off, and looking to take it out on the Buckeyes. It should be fun. Texas is a very entertaining bowl team recently.
6. Gator Bowl, Nebraska and Clemson – No game features two caches with more to prove. Nether team is anywhere close to perfect, but they are both moving in the right direction under their new leadership.
7. Cotton Bowl, Ole Miss and Texas Tech – Texas Tech is going to be very insulted that they have been entirely written off by the world after one lousy game. They will be looking to show the world how wrong they were, and Ole Miss is as good a punching bag as there is. I expect serious fireworks.
8. International Bowl, Buffalo and UConn – Buffalo has never before played in a bowl game, and they are playing very close to home, so they will be pumped. UConn is a solid team with the most productive running back in the country. Randy Edsall and Turner Gill are two very good coaches who will have their teams ready. This one will be a ton of fun.
9. GMAC Bowl, Ball State and Tulsa – The two teams both fell on hard times at some point in the season, but they both have the ability to play well, and they both can put up a pile of points. This one is going to be a good old fashioned shootout – the total is a whopping 77.
10. Las Vegas Bowl, BYU and Arizona – This is by far the best of the first day bowls, and a great way to start things off. BYU can play offense as well as almost anyone when they want to, especially through the air. Arizona plays pretty good defense, especially against the pass. Strength against strength. The last time BYU played a Pac-10 team was UCLA and they won 59-0, so they won’t be intimidated.
