Smithers513 Bowl Season Picks

Welcome to the best time of the year. As the bowls progress, I will update my thread with more plays. As alwats, good luck and feel free to follow me on Twitter @Smithers513.

Nevada vs Louisiana-Lafayette +1

I had this game circled for several different reasons. To start, this game is going to be played in Lafayette’s backyard in New Orleans, and they will have a decided crowd advantage. The Cajuns have won this bowl the last three years, so there could be a complacency setting in for them, but with Senior QB Terrance Broadway’s finale being a near home game, I’m expecting a really strong performance from the Cajuns. These two teams mirror each other offensively, boosting very strong rushing attacks and can hit you over the top with a decent enough passing game once the running game has been established. I don’t see either team having much success slowing one another down, and think the first one to 40 points wins this game. Another thing I look at when capping bowls is trying to assess what each teams’ ceiling is. For me, ULL has the better ceiling than Nevada, and given the home state advantage, and a legendary QB playing his final game for his school, ULL is a side I’ll take.

Utah State vs UTEP +10

If you read my preseason C-USA preview, you’ll know that I was bullish on UTEP and thought they were a team that could make a splash this year. There are quite a few intangibles going in the Miners favor in this one. To start, UTEP hasn’t won a bowl in 47 years. Utah State on the other hand has had a bit of a disappointing season given the preseason expectations, and will be playing for their third straight bowl win. I have to think that the motivational edge is slanted in UTEP’s favor for this one. Also, Utah State has lost three quarterbacks this year to injury. UTEP isn’t a strong passing team by any stretch, but they do have a very solid running attack. This game is going to be ugly, and I just don’t see how Utah State’s offense is going to be capable of putting this sizable spread away.  Utah State’s wins this year have been pretty unimpressive to me, and they went 2-4 against the best half of their schedule. Just too many points for the Aggies to lay in an ugly game.

BYU vs Memphis -2, UNDER 56

Memphis QB Jacob Karam

I have two plays in this game, under 56, and I like Memphis to cover the 2. Memphis is a team that has been a cash cow for me this year and I’m not going to stop milking it now. For the Tigers, signing coach Justin Fuentes to an extension earlier this week was enormous. I don’t know how long Fuentes is going to be there, and my guess isn’t too many more years after this, but what he’s done in Memphis is awfully impressive. The Tigers defense has one of the better front 7’s you’ll find from a non-Power 5 team, and they’ve shown they can hang with the big boys this year in playing UCLA and Memphis very tough. I don’t think they’ll have much issue slowing down BYU’s ground game, and I just don’t think BYU has the capability to beat them over the top. If Memphis avoids turnovers and giving the Cougars a short field, I really like their chances to win this game somewhat comfortably in a low scoring game.