Monday, December 22, 2008

Streit's Bowl Picks: December 23-24

There are two games on the mid-week slate of the Bowl schedule for this week. First up is the game that I consider to be best match up of teams who are not from BCS conferences. The second is the two teams who have gotten killed in the last two Sugar Bowls.

Poinsettia Bowl - #9 Boise State vs. #11 Texas Christian University

The blue turf Broncos turned in another undefeated season under coach Chris Peterson. Unfortunately, (or not unfortunately for Earl), Boise was left out of the BCS party in favor of Utah. The Broncos are led by freshman quarterback Kellen Moore, who had a stunning year completing 70% of his passes for over 3,200 yards and 25 touchdowns. The Broncos also feature Ian Johnson, the hero from the Fiesta Bowl win over Oklahoma. Despute his notoriety from the Fiesta Bowl win and marriage proposal to a hot cheerleader, Johnson's role has been reduced during his senior year. The Broncos offense averages almost 40 points a game but those points may be tough to come by against TCU. The Horned Frogs boast the #2 overall defense in the country and held Oklahoma to its lowest point total of the season. Their rush defense is particularly strong and only allowed a mere 48 yards per game (25 yards better than the # 2 ranked rushing defense of Texas). TCU's offense is no slouch either. TCU averages 35 points a game on the backs of quarterback Andy Dalton and receiver Jimmy Young. Look for some solid play from both teams as TCU gets the win.

TCU 27, Boise State 20

Hawaii Bowl - Notre Dame vs. Hawaii

Notre Dame lost to Syracuse. They are bad and Jimmy Clausen is a tool. After getting crushed by the Dawgs last year, June Jones left for SMU and Colt Brennan left for the NFL. The Warriors struggled this year, but still managed to make it a bowl. I couldn't care who wins this game as both teams blow. I would love to see Touchdown Jesus do the Haka dance. That would be awesome.

Notre Dame 24, Hawaii 17

Hopefully my picks in these games turn out better than the last. Currently, I'm 2-3.

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