Ramblings Sports 2014 CFB Prediction Review

Alright, the season is over the games are done and there is no football on Saturdays until next season. This is a review of all my picks from before the season and how they turned out. I think it's a good exercise to find points of improvement.

AAC

Predicted

1) Cincinnati 2) UCF 3) ECU 4) Houston 5) SMU 6) USF 7) Memphis 8) Tulane 9) Tulsa 10) UCONN 11) Temple

Actual

1) Memphis 1) UCF 1) Cincinnati 4) ECU 4) Houston 6) Temple 7) USF 8) Tulane 8) Tulsa 10) SMU 10) UCONN

My AAC predictions weren't bad, with ties in mind I got six correct out of the 11 teams in the conference. My biggest mistake was Memphis who I predicted to finish seventh and who tied for 1st with wins over both UCF and Cincinnati. I didn't realize how good of a coach Fuentes was, nor the potential for a year 0 in his first leading to a large jump in "year 1". My biggest overrate was SMU who fired June Jones mid-season and didn't win until last week over UCONN.

College Football Playoff - Chapmionship Game

The final game of the year and the final college football preview. We've seen unbelievable games. Sat through noon slates and #Pac12AfterDark. Most of  all we eagerly await the return of #MACtion. For now we'll have to entrance ourselves in the inaugural playoff championship game and a match up of two of the most exciting teams in the country.

Monday, January 12th, 2015:

CFP National Championship Game presented by AT&T: #4 Ohio State (68.90) vs #1 Oregon (97.35) (Arlington), 7:30 pm ESPN, The first thing that stands out here is that we have the Heisman trophy winner against the Buckeyes third string quarterback. Cardale Jones played well in the Big Ten Championship game and at a slightly lower level against Alabama but didn't make too many mistakes and had the pressure taken off by the coaching staff by leaning on the running game. Let's talk about the running game. Ezekiel Elliot rushed for 230 yards on 20 carries against Alabama and afforded Ohio State the game icing 85 yards touchdown run. On defense Ohio State was good not great, allowing five yards a carry to the Tide as a whole but over three a carry to Henry. The defense was bend don't break most of the night but will meet a whole new test in Arlington. Marcus Mariota and the Ducks head into the championship game healthier on the line and potent on offense. Mariota is accurate and makes wise decisions and Ohio State will have to stay disciplined to not allow the run game to gash you with mismatches between the tackles. On defense the ducks have been better than at any point during their run. Allowing a little over 22 points a game and just .286 points per play out of the Pac-12 makes them one of the best defenses in the country. These teams are pretty evenly matched. Ohio State has the edge in coaching, slightly, and Oregon has a good cushion at QB with Mariota, which is my deciding factor. Power Pick: Oregon by 28.45 My Pick: Oregon 52-45 Line: Oregon -6.5

So there we are, I may be wrong, but it's gonna be a lot of fun to watch.

P.S. Thank you for reading this year and hopefully you'll be back. Draft season is quick approaching and that's always a fun time for me.

2014 Rambling Sports Bowl Part 3 CFB Preview

The best of the best. These are the bowls we wait all year for and that should make for a great couple of days. Enjoy them while they last because they will be gone quickly.

Wednesday, December 31st, 2014:

Chick-Fil-A Peach Bowl (4): Ole Miss (63.94) vs TCU (45.13), 12:30 pm ESPN, This may end up being the best and most entertaining of the bowl games. TCU comes in with one of the best offenses in the country, not without hiccups, and a defense that has been honed by Gary Patterson to slow down spread offenses. Hugh Freeze and co. are look for redemption and a win over TCU in the Peach Bowl would be a great place to start and clean some of the blemish off the sheen of the program. Power Pick: Ole Miss by 18.81 My Pick: TCU 48-35 Line: TCU -3

VIZIO Fiesta Bowl (10): Arizona (70.09) vs Boise State (34.25), 4:00 pm ESPN, I've seen a lot of people a little skeptical of the match-up and whether Boise State has what it takes to stick it out for the entirety. I think so, Arizona is good but very flawed and outside of Scooby Wright, has a propensity for lapses. Boise has been very good on offense once again but the defense will need to play their best game if they are going to hang or beat the Wildcats. Power Pick: Arizona by 35.84 My Pick: Arizona 31-28 Line: Arizona -3

2014 Rambling Sports Bowl Part 2 CFB Preview

Alright I've screwed with part two and three a bit and decided to lump all the non-New Years Eve and New Years Day games plus Kansas State-UCLA. I thought there was a clear delineation between the games below and the next set of games. So I got side-tracked Christmas week after leaving part 2 too long and didn't get this done before the December 27th games.

Monday, December 29th, 2014:

AutoZone Liberty Bowl (18): West Virginia (27.69) vs Texas A&M (63.00), 1:00 pm ESPN, A match-up of air raid masters who cut their teeth at Houston before moving up in the college football hierarchy. Neither team played a ton of defense but the Mountaineers showed some moxie on the defensive side of the field. That is except for Myles Garrett who has been an absolute beast of a freshman defensive end and a fine replacement for Jadeveon Clowney for freak of the year. Power Pick: Texas A&M by 35.31 My Pick: Texas A&M 48-45 Line: West Virginia -1.5

Russel Athletic Bowl (7): Oklahoma (62.91) vs Clemson (51.92), 4:30 pm ESPN, This is a match-up of a team with playoff aspirations preseason and a team that may be underrated due to a thrashing from number 3 Florida State or may just be a good team that played no one else. I know Oklahoma has the talent advantage, and with Watson out I don't see how Clemson can put up enough points to beat the Sooners. Power Pick: Oklahoma by 10.99 My Pick: Oklahoma 31-27 Line: Oklahoma -4

2014 Rambling Sports Bowl Week 1 CFB Preview

Bowl season is here and it certainly is the most wonderful time. This preview covers the games from 12/20 to 12/26 and there are some fun games, some duds and some that I just don't know what's gonna happen. Enjoy it while it lasts because soon football will be gone.

Saturday, December 20th, 2014:

R+L Carriers New Orleans Bowl (35): Nevada (24.78) vs Louisiana (23.25), 11:00 am ESPN, Nevada-Louisiana this is a fairly evenly matched game if not the most exciting match-up. There are usually some fireworks in New Orleans and this year should be no different. Power Pick: Nevada by 1.53 My Pick: Nevada 24-21 Line: Nevada -1
Gildan New Mexico Bowl (33): UTEP (-2.44) vs Utah State (21.06), 2:20 pm ESPN, UTEP meets Utah State one state over to in a showdown of a Miners team that is a bit of a surprise and a Utah State team that has started four quarterbacks this season. Power Pick: Utah State by 23.50 My Pick: Utah State 31-20 Line: Utah State -10
Royal Purple Las Vegas Bowl (12): Colorado State (28.47) vs Utah (51.91), 3:30 pm ABC, This is one of my favorite under the radar games and unfortunately with NFL games this Saturday it is going to be buried. Colorado State is down their head coach who went to Florida but this is one of the best mid-majors against a very good major conference school. Power Pick: Utah by 23.44 My Pick: 28-24 Line: Utah -3
Famous Idaho Potato Bowl (32): Western Michigan (-7.87) vs Air Force (10.53), 5:45 pm ESPN, Western Michigan is a lot of fun and a great story of this college football season. They are also terribly underrated by my power ranks. Air Force is a team of pilots who don't put the ball in the air all that often. This one isn't gonna rival the NFL games but it should be some fun on commercials. Power Pick: Air Force by 18.40 My Pick: Air Force 24-21 Line: Western Michigan -1.5
Raycom Media Camellia Bowl (37): South Alabama (5.19) vs Bowling Green (11.85), 9:15 pm ESPN, South Alabama was pretty good in the Sun Belt this year and took advantage of a power shake up. Bowling Green finished second in the MAC even without their starting QB for most of the year. I think BGSU is better but this games strikes me as one that gets funky. Power Pick: Bowling Green by 6.66 My Pick: Bowling Green 24-20 Line: South Alabama -2.5

Monday, December 22nd, 2014:

Miami Beach Bowl (9): Memphis (24.44) vs BYU (24.32), 2:00 pm ESPN, Another great game and it's a stand alone on Monday afternoon in Miami. Memphis and Justin Fuentes took the country by storm making a second straight bowl game. BYU lost Taysum Hill but haven't been as bad as expected. This should be slugfest and a great one to watch this early in bowl season. Power Pick: Memphis by .12 My Pick: Memphis 21-20 Line: Memphis -2

Tuesday, December 23rd, 2014:

Boca Raton Bowl (24): Marshall (34.14) vs Northern Illinois (40.07), 6:00 pm ESPN, I may have put this game too low between the MAC champ and the C-USA champ. Both were by far the best team in their respective conferences. NIU has the better defense and the difference in offense isn't enough to make up for it. Herd with a second loss in 3 tries in a close but fun loss to the Huskies. Power Pick: Northern Illinois by 5.93 My Pick: Northern Illinois 38-35 Line: Marshall -10
San Diego County Credit Union Pointsettia Bowl (25): Navy (28.18) vs San Diego State (16.80), 9:30 pm ESPN, I want to get hyped for this game it's a solid match-up but with Marshall-NIU up before it and the late game on a Tuesday, my give a fuck is busted. It could be interesting so keep an eye but don't lose sleep pre-Christmas. Power Pick: Navy by 11.38 My Pick: Navy 38-21 Line: San Diego State -2.5

Wednesday, December 24th, 2014:

Popeyes Bahamas Bowl (31): WKU (19.60) vs Central Michigan (16.52), 12:00 pm ESPN, This is the slog of bowl season, the Christmas Eve games. There just isn't much to do on this it's a game and should get you through the early afternoon lull but that's about it. Power Pick: WKU by 3.08 My Pick: Central Michigan 23-20 Line: WKU -3

Hawaii Bowl (36): Fresno State (15.72) vs Rice (14.09), 8:00 pm ESPN, Woo Christmas Eve in Hawaii, and oh yeah we got a football game to play. Not much else to say neither of these teams is as good as they were last year. Power Pick: Fresno State by 1.63 My Pick: Fresno State 28-24 Line: Rice -2

Friday, December 26th, 2014:

Zaxby's Heart of Dallas Bowl (38): Louisiana Tech (.69) vs Illinois (25.46), 1:00 pm ESPN, ZAXBY's in a bowl that references hearts and not heart attacks. Illinois squeaked into a bowl game and gets a nice match-up and a fairly good chance at a win. Power Pick: Illinois by 24.77 My Pick: Illinois 17-14 Line: Louisiana Tech -6
Quick Lane Bowl (20): North Carolina (37.43) vs Rutgers (37.59), 4:30 pm ESPN, The last of this weeks interesting games are a pair of Power 5 squads that were enigmas all year. Rutgers started well, lulled and then finished strong to land in this spot. North Carolina lost to East Carolina early but rebounded nicely in a mediocre ACC. This should be a really even match-up and at worst a good hangover watch. Power Pick: Rutgers by .16 My Pick: North Carolina 21-20 Line: North Carolina -3
BITCOIN St. Petersburg Bowl (29): UCF (34.45) vs NC State (16.26), 8:00 pm ESPN, This one is a look to the future as both teams had good enough seasons but neither is where they hope to be soon. UCF took a small step back in the first year post-Bortles and should be even better next season. NC State was a surprise and needs to build off of a surprising year. Power Pick: UCF by 18.19 My Pick: UCF 38-24 Line: UCF -2