Welcome back for a second day of double posts. Earlier today we celebrated the midpoint of the Men’s Basketball Season with the Top 365. Tonight is about a Christmas Eve college football tradition. First, let’s review yesterday’s games.
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We started with the Boca Raton Bowl which was much closer than Vegas or the GCR thought it would be. Louisville (9-4/20) who were favored by 10.5 points, were up just 7-3 at the half. It wasn’t until under 4:00 in the 3rd before Toledo (8-5/55) allowed the Cardinals in the end zone again. 14-3 going into the 4th. It was like watching a different game. Toledo scored 19 including a 2-point score following a blocked extra point attempt. Louisville was able to get 13 on the board to win 27-22. A 49-point game in which 32 of those points came in the final stanza. Fun game. GCR 1-0 straight up and 0-1 against the spread.
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Then we shift to the New Orleans Bowl. Southern Miss (7-6/90) was the Vegas favorite and seemed to have an answer for every W Kentucky (9-4/66) score in the first half to take a 13-6 lead at the break. We have no idea what the Hilltopper coaches talked about at halftime, but the second half was very one-sided as WKY took the game 27-16. The GCR called for the upset so 2-0 SU and 1-1 ATS.
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The late game was the Scooter’s Coffee Frisco Bowl just north of Dallas. UNLV (10-4/52) was the 6.5-point favorite but could get nothing going on offense most of the game. Until less than 5:00 to go in the game they were only able to post a 50-yd field goal against Ohio (9-4/63). By then the 17 points by the Bobcats were just insurmountable. The MAC got a bowl win 17-10 and the head coach got a coffee bath instead of the normal Gatorade. The GCR selected the wrong team SU so 2-1 but did pick Ohio to cover so 2-1 ATS. Not a bad day.
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Tonight at 8:00 Eastern on ESPN we have the wonderful annual Hawaii Bowl which, once again, features the Hawaii (8-4/68) Rainbow Warriors, tied for 5th in the Mountain West. It is not unusual because this team travels more than any other for football games and often plays at home when they qualify. There is a rule that states that if a team plays a game in Hawaii, they can add a 13th regular season game. It is so normal for Hawaii to do that, a 6-7 Rainbow Warrior team is the default next team to make a bowl if not enough qualify – and you guessed it, that bowl would be the Hawaii Bowl. This year they only played 12, probably to cut down on travel as well as wear and tear on the players. They beat Stanford of the ACC to start the season, then dropped a game to the Big 12’s Arizona. They won 5 of the next 6 losing only to Fresno St before splitting the last four games. Their best win was against San Diego St (9-3/44) while their worst loss was to San Jose St (3-9/132). They went 2-3 against bowl teams. Their opponent is the ACC’s 7th place (tied) California (7-5/58) Golden Bears. CAL started off 3-0 including a win over Big Ten opponent Minnesota before losing to the Mountain West’s San Diego St (note: best win for Hawaii). They moved to 5-2 before losing back-to-back games to Virginia and Virginia Tech (3-9). They finished 2-1 but the loss was to 4-8 Stanford. Cal’s predictability this season was difficult to ascertain. They were 3-3 against bowl teams but lost to teams (VT and STAN) that they should have beaten. The best win was against Louisville (9-4/20) while their worst loss was to Virginia Tech (3-9/100). Vegas likes HAW-1.5 but the GCR is leaning towards CAL at 51.0%. Again, not a consistent team at all. CAL should cover.
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Enjoy the evening of football and, assuming you are not in Honolulu either, live vicariously through the two teams. Thank you for reading and sharing with others. There are no games tomorrow but look for Friday’s predictions (3 bowls) then since Friday is a travel day for the GCR, JoJo and G.
