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| Arizona looks to defeat Nevada in the Gildan New Mexico Bowl |
Saturday marks the official start of the college bowl season. Bowl season will kick off with the Gildan New Mexico Bowl which is a match up between the Wildcats of Arizona and the Nevada Wolf Pack.
Gildan New Mexico Bowl:
How They Got Here:
Arizona: The Wildcats of Arizona started the season out strong by racking up three wins early, defeating Toledo in overtime, crushing Oklahoma State, and blanking South Carolina State 56-0. The Wildcats then were crushed by a powerful Oregon Ducks offense, gave Oregon State a closely contest game, they lost, and then fell to the Stanford Cardinal in overtime.
Arizona started turning their season around by beating Washington and then #9 USC, 39-36 despite an amazing game from USC receiver Marqise Lee.The next week Arizona was embarrassed by UCLA, losing 66-10. That improved their record to 5-4. Arizona finished out their season by beating Colorado and Utah, while losing their final game against in state rival Arizona State in a 41-34 thriller. The Wildcats finished at 7-5.
Nevada: The Wolf Pack of Nevada started off hot but had a disappointing end to their regular season. Nevada started out 6-1, but a bad couple of games made the Wildcats finish out 7-5, and put them in the Gildan New Mexico Bowl. Nevada had early wins in the season against California, Northwestern State, Hawaii, Texas State,Wyoming, and UNLV. Then some close games went against the Wolf Pack, as Nevada lost an overtime game to San Diego State and a close game to Boise State, nearly pulling off the upset.
Prediction: Both of these teams rely heavily on the running games, Arizona having Ka'Deem Carey, who is a sophomore running back who put up amazing numbers this season, with 1,757 yards and 20 scores. Nevada has junior running back Stefphon Jefferson, who rushed for 1,703 yards, and 22 touchdowns. Both offenses put up high numbers, while both teams have mediocre defenses that allow a ton of points. Expect this game to be a high scoring see-saw battle, the winner being the team that makes the least amount of mistakes, or the team who has the ball last. I see Arizona coming out on top in this one because Ka'Deem Carey is a machine, and I honestly think he could have been a legitimate Heisman candidate, even though Johnny Manziel deserved to bring home the trophy. Matt Scott, the quarterback of Arizona will play well against Nevada, and will be the difference in this game. Look for Arizona to get the stop they need late, to win this thriller.
I think Arizona wins this game 45-42.
Famous Idaho Potato Bowl:
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| Chuckie Keeton of Utah State looks to lead the Aggies to victory over Toledo |
How They Got Here:
Utah State: The Aggies of Utah State had a solid year this season, picking up 10 wins, and going undefeated in the WAC. Utah defeated Southern Utah, and finally defeated Utah for the first time in 15 years, 27-20 in overtime. Utah dropped only two contests all year, and that was a 6-3 loss to BYU, and a 16-14 loss to Wisconsin. The Aggies rely heavily on defense, as they rank eighth in points allowed in the nation, giving up just 15.4 per game. The team also is a good offensive team, as they rank in the top 40 in passing and rushing in the nation. Key wins for Utah State include victories over Utah, Louisiana Tech, and San Jose State.
Toledo: The Rockets of Toledo are representing the MAC, and had a solid season going 9-3 on the year. The Rockets rely mainly on their offense, as they put up around 33 points per game. Key wins for this team include wins over Cincinnati, Central Michigan, and Wyoming.
Prediction: I think that the Aggies will shut down the Toledo offense with their strong defense, and Utah State quarterback Chuckie Keeton will be too much for the Rockets to handle, as Utah State wins 34-21.
Credits:
Arizona Wildcats photo:
http://cdn.bleacherreport.net/images_root/slides/photos/002/789/910/hi-res-157253245_display_image.jpg?1354497724
Information for Gildan New Mexico Bowl:
http://scores.espn.go.com/ncf/preview?gameId=323500012
http://espn.go.com/college-football/team/_/id/12/arizona-wildcats
http://espn.go.com/college-football/team/_/id/2440/nevada-wolf-pack
Chuckie Keeton photo:
http://www.deseretnews.com/article/865562133/USU-football-Utah-State7s-Chuckie-Keeton-and-Tyler-Bennett-earn-WAC-Player-of-the-Week-honors.html?pg=all
Information for Famous Idaho Potato Bowl:
http://espn.go.com/college-football/team/_/id/328/utah-state-aggies
http://espn.go.com/college-football/team/_/id/2649/toledo-rockets
http://espn.go.com/ncf/preview?id=323500328
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