Well, sports fans, yesterday’s games were exciting. First, in the Quick Lane Bowl, the GCR favorite Bowling Green (7-6/70) couldn’t hold off the Vegas favorite Minnesota (6-7/52), falling 30-24. A back and forth first half gave BG a 10-9 lead at the half, but the Golden Gophers scored 14 unanswered in the 3rd and never looked back.
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Texas St (8-5/95) spanked Rice (6-7/104) 45-21, as expected, in the First Responder Bowl. The Bobcats came into this game with 6 interceptions on the season and added 5 more against Rice. They won the turnover battle 6-0 which is all you need to know about show this game turned out the way it did.
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The nightcap that was the Guaranteed Rate Bowl saw Kansas (9-4/23) win 49-36 over UNLV (9-5/85) despite 18 penalties for 216 yards and throwing 3 interceptions. The Jayhawks were favored by -12.5 and the GCR didn’t expect them to cover. Despite Kansas’ best efforts to help the GCR’s accuracy, UNLV fell one point short.
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On to a new day and 4 new games. At 2:00 (all times Eastern) in the Military Bowl played in Annapolis, the Virginia Tech Hokies (6-6/77) of the ACC will take on the Tulane Green Wave (11-2/28) of the American. As we review the tale of the tape, remember OER stands for Offensive Efficiency Rating and DER stands for Defensive Efficiency Rating.
| Team | OER/PPG | DER/PPG | Opp’s Record – Rank | Vs Bowl Teams | Best Win | Worst Loss |
| VT | 112 (79th)/28.6 | 103 (107th)/24.3 | 76-73 (.510) – 62nd | 3-5 (.375) | Virginia (3-9/59) | Marshall (6-7/102) |
| TULN | 97 (136th)/26.8 | 157 (16th)/18.9 | 80-79 (.508) – 110th | 4-2 (.667) | Memphis (9-3/67) | SMU (11-2/20) |
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Vegas has the Hokies -10.5 and in the upset of the day, the GCR has Tulane to win and to cover.
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At 5:30, the North Carolina Tar Heels (8-4/43) of the ACC will take on the West Virginia Mountaineers (8-4/38) of the Big 12 in Charlotte’s Duke’s Mayo Bowl.
| Team | OER/PPG | DER/PPG | Opp’s Record – Rank | Vs Bowl Teams | Best Win | Worst Loss |
| NCAR | 141 (21st)/36.6 | 99 (131st)/27.1 | 76-73 (.510) – 72nd | 5-3 (.625) | Duke (8-5/25) | Virginia (3-9/59) |
| WVU | 117 (63rd)/31.6 | 103 (106th)/27.5 | 72-75 (.490) – 65th | 2-3 (.400) | Texas Tech (7-6/41) | Houston (4-8/90) |
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Vegas likes West Virginia -6.5 and while the GCR likes the Mountaineers to win, North Carolina will cover.
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At 8:00, in San Diego’s Holiday Bowl, the Louisville Cardinals (10-3/15) will attack the Southern Cal Trojans (7-5/36).
| Team | OER/PPG | DER/PPG | Opp’s Record – Rank | Vs Bowl Teams | Best Win | Worst Loss |
| LOU | 123 (47th)/30.9 | 140 (31st)/19.7 | 83-75 (.525) – 50th | 7-2 (.778) | Notre Dame (9-3/17) | Pittsburgh (3-9/68) |
| SCAL | 161 (4th)/41.8 | 84 (203rd)/34.9 | 83-67 (.553) – 28th | 3-5 (.375) | Arizona (9-3/21) | UCLA (8-5/54) |
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Vegas likes Louisville -7.0 and the GCR agrees. Cardinals win and cover.
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In our final game tonight, with a 9:00 kickoff, the Texas Bowl out of Houston, features the Texas A&M Aggies (7-5/40) and the Oklahoma St Cowboys (9-4/29).
| Team | OER/PPG | DER/PPG | Opp’s Record – Rank | Vs Bowl Teams | Best Win | Worst Loss |
| TAM | 130 (34th)/34.2 | 138 (33rd)/21.3 | 77-67 (.535) – 43rd | 1-5 (.167) | Auburn (6-6/46) | Miami FL (7-5/31) |
| OKST | 116 (65th)/29.5 | 105 (101st)/29.0 | 89-70 (.560) – 38th | 4-5 (.444) | Oklahoma (10-2/11) | South Alabama (7-5/87) |
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Vegas has OKST -3.0 and the GCR agrees. Cowboys win and cover.
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That’s it for today. Thank you, as always, for reading and sharing with others, G
