Ranking the 2013-14 Bowl Games

On the eve of the 2013-14 College Football Bowl season, let’s look at the best and worst games, to figure out which games to watch, and which ones to avoid.

5 Stars:

Rose Bowl Game presented by VIZIO – Stanford vs. Michigan State – If you love defense, this is the game for you.  Both teams have defenses that are among the best in the country.  This game will come down to which team can consistently put enough offense together to score more than the other.

VIZIO BCS National Championship – Florida State vs. Auburn – This game will be great for the exact opposite reason of the Rose Bowl.  Both of these teams have high-powered offenses, each featuring a Heisman finalist.  Florida State has the better defense, but Auburn has shredded some of the SEC’s best defenses in 2013.

4 Stars:

Discover Orange Bowl – Clemson vs. Ohio State – This game is very intriguing considering it is two teams that thought it would be their year.  All Ohio State had to do was beat Michigan State in the Big Ten Championship Game, and they are playing for a national title.  Clemson was dismantled by Florida State early in the year, and it kind of put them in a long-shot situation.

Chick-fil-A Bowl – Duke vs. Texas A&M – Two competing story-lines in this game.  First there is Duke, who shocked the world and made it to the ACC Championship Game.  Then there is Texas A&M, who had a somewhat disappointing season, especially considering the return of Johnny Manziel.

Valero Alamo Bowl – Oregon vs. Texas – This game gets 4-star quality considering it is Mack Brown’s final game at Texas.  Oregon is significantly better than Texas, but the question will be how much does emotions play a part of the game.

3 Stars:

 

Allstate Sugar Bowl – Oklahoma vs. Alabama

Outback Bowl – Iowa vs. LSU

Capital One Bowl – Wisconsin vs. South Carolina

TaxSlayer.com Gator Bowl – Nebraska vs. Georgia

Hyundai Sun Bowl – Virginia Tech vs. UCLA

National University Holiday Bowl – Arizona State vs. Texas Tech

Franklin American Mortgage Music City Bowl – Ole Miss vs. Georgia Tech

Russell Athletic Bowl – Miami (FL) vs. Louisville

New Era Pinstripe Bowl – Rutgers vs. Notre Dame

Sheraton Hawaii Bowl – Boise State vs. Oregon State

Beef ‘O’ Brady’s St. Petersburg Bowl – Ohio vs. East Carolina

Royal Purple Las Vegas Bowl – Fresno State vs. USC

2 Stars:

GoDaddy Bowl – Arkansas State vs. Ball State

AT&T Cotton Bowl – Oklahoma State vs. Missouri

AutoZone Liberty Bowl – Rice vs. Mississippi State

Advocare V100 Bowl – Arizona vs. Boston College

Belk Bowl – Cincinnati vs. North Carolina

Fight Hunger Bowl – BYU vs. Washington

Texas Bowl – Syracuse vs. Minnesota

Military Bowl Presented by Northrop Grumman – Marshall vs. Maryland

San Diego County Credit Union Poinsettia Bowl – Utah State vs. Northern Illinois

Gildan New Mexico Bowl – Washington State vs. Colorado State

1 Star:

BBVA Compass Bowl – Vanderbilt vs. Houston

Tostitos Fiesta Bowl – UCF vs. Baylor

Heart of Dallas Bowl – UNLV vs. North Texas

Bell Helicopter Armed Forces Bowl – Middle Tennessee vs. Navy

Buffalo Wild Wings Bowl – Michigan vs. Kansas State

Little Caesars Pizza Bowl – Pittsburgh vs. Bowling Green

R&L Carriers New Orleans Bowl – Tulane vs. Louisiana-Lafayette

Famous Idaho Potato Bowl – Buffalo vs. San Diego State

Week 7 College Football Picks

It is approaching the mid-way point of the 2013 season, many of the good teams are a win or two away from becoming bowl eligible.  This week also means a big road test for many of the top-25 teams.

Last Week:  23-3 (.885)

Overall:  156-20 (.886)

Rutgers vs. #8 Louisville

#1 Alabama vs. Kentucky

#2 Oregon vs. #16 Washington

Boston College vs. #3 Clemson

#5 Stanford vs. Utah

#25 Missouri vs. #7 Georgia (Mark Richt might have to do his best coaching job, considering he is losing players left and right.)

#9 Texas A&M vs. Ole Miss (After impressing early in the season, Ole Miss is struggling as it gets into the meat of its schedule.)

#17 Florida vs. #10 LSU

California vs. #11 UCLA

#12 Oklahoma vs. Texas (Sorry, Mack Brown.)

#14 South Carolina vs. Arkansas (Biggest challenge for Steve Spurrier is to put the Clowney talk behind and be prepared for Arkansas.)

#15 Baylor vs. Kansas State

#18 Michigan vs. Penn State

#19 Northwestern vs. Wisconsin (Northwestern rebounds after losing to Ohio State last week.)

Iowa State vs. #20 Texas Tech

Akron vs. #23 North Illinois

Pittsburgh vs. #24 Virginia Tech

Navy vs. Duke

Virginia vs. Maryland

Syracuse vs. NC State

Georgia Tech vs. BYU

Western Carolina vs. Auburn

Bowling Green vs. Mississippi State (If Bowling Green ends, so might Dan Mullen’s tenure as Mississippi State’s head coach.)