Sorry for the lack of posting, despite it being Bowl Season. I’ve been enjoying the holidays and I really haven’t been on the computer much lately. First, I just want to say how awesome it was watching Kellen Moore win his 50th game and. And it was awesome last night watching Baylor and Washington light up the score board. Even though these games are like exhibitions, they’re still fun to watch. Okay, so now for the big game predictions:

• Fiesta Bowl - Oklahoma State over Stanford. 

I’ve been supporting OK State all season, and I don’t plan on stopping now. This is an intriguing 3 vs. 4 matchup. It’ll be interesting to see how Luck performs as he prepares for the upcoming draft. Having the Heisman snatched from him 2 years in a row, I’ll expect him to play angry.

• Rose Bowl - Oregon over Wisconsin

I have Oregon because of the depth and the speed. I really thought they had what it took to beat Auburn last year, and I thought they had what it took to go back to the NC game this season, but fell short in week 1. I think they’ve adjusted as the season went on. But, we’ve also seen in the past that when teams have time to prepare for them, they don’t do so well (Ohio State, LSU, Auburn, Boise State). This one will be a lot of fun.

• Sugar Bowl - Virginia Tech over Michigan

I don’t even know if I’ll be watching this game or not to be honest. It’s just a prime example that the BCS needs to be reformed. But pertaining to the matchup itself, I think VT will get it done. In big time BCS games, coaching is extremely important and Beamer has been here before, where Hoke has not.

• Orange Bowl - Clemson over West Virginia

I think that the few weeks off will give Clemson some time to recharge and focus on this game. To say the least, West Virginia has underperformed despite the talent they have. They’ll be looking to finish up their time in the Big East with a big win, but Clemson has too much to play for, since conference championships and BCS bids aren’t something they achieve every other year. They’ll have to make the most of this rare opportunity.

• National Championship Game - Alabama over LSU

They should have won the first meeting. I know that LSU has all the momentum in the world going into this game, but I think Alabama is better defensively. I think that Jordan Jefferson has made more and more mistakes as the season has gone on, and unless he plays his absolute best, he’s going to have trouble. The uncertainty at the QB position is enough for me to take Bama in this one. Maybe, just maybe, they can hit a field goal or two.

xhokieo replied to your post: My Semi-Way Too Early BCS Bowl Predictions

^bc wisconsin will beat them in the big 10 championship. I would just like to ask why you think Clemson will beat VaTech again. I don’t see David Wilson letting go of the rushing lead. =)

Yeah, I have Wisconsin coming back for vengeance. The Clemson/Va Tech rematch will be a good one. It’s going to gain interest to the ACC title for the first time in a while. Clemson just seems unstoppable. Though it won’t be anything like the first meeting, I still will have to pick Clemson atm. We’ll see though how Clemson plays in the final stretch.

• BCS National Championship - Alabama vs. Oklahoma State
• Rose Bowl - Wisconsin vs. Stanford
• Fiesta Bowl - Oklahoma vs. Oregon
• Sugar Bowl - LSU vs. Boise State
• Orange Bowl - Clemson vs. Cincinnati

leads FBS players in passing efficiency with a 216.9 rating, completing 74.8 percent of his passes with 13 touchdowns and one interception.

1. Alabama
2. Oklahoma
3. LSU
4. Boise State
5. Oklahoma State
6. Stanford
7. Wisconsin
8. Clemson
9. Oregon
10. Houston

• National Championship - Alabama vs. Oklahoma
• Rose Bowl - Wisconsin vs. Stanford
• Fiesta Bowl - Oklahoma State vs. Oregon
• Sugar Bowl - Boise State vs. LSU
• Orange Bowl - Clemson vs. West Virginia

The MAC is all about Northern Illinois. Ever since Garrett Wolfe was at the program they’ve been building. They’ve gone to three straight bowl games and that includes the Humanitarian Bowl from last year when they smashed Fresno State 40-17. I think they’re going to go in and upset Kansas and the following week they host Wisconsin — It could happen.

The Big Ten + 2 looks different, feels different, and it certainly be different this year. 12 teams means a conference championship game. Two divisions. 

Leaders

I have to give it to Wisconsin. I say Ohio State still has top talent and will be competing heavily for the division, but it will take time for the adjustments, I believe. Wisconsin’s new QB is going to light up the Big 10, that’s all I gotta say.

Legends

Since I have Nebraska in my National Title game, I say they not only win the Legend’s division, but the conference entirely. I say this mainly because of their weak schedule. Look for Michigan State to be a huge competitor as well, but the run they made last year is a rare occurrence for them. Northwestern is a dark horse that might stir things up throughout the season. This will definitely be a year to remember in the Big Ten Conference.

After looking back to the 2002 season, I found that there are several teams that are new to the Preseason Top 10… at least in the past decade. Those teams are:

• Oregon
• Stanford
• Texas A&M
• Wisconsin

Let’s think about this. Given the fact that Ohio State has a ton of stuff going on right now that needs to be sorted, could it be that Michigan State should have been the sole winners of the Big Ten conference? Because if you take OSU out of the equation, then it would have been between Wisconsin and Michigan State. MSU beat Wisconsin to give them their only loss in the conference. So does that mean the team that drew the short straw in the BCS qualifying should have had an automatic trip to the Rose Bowl? Well, that might just have been the case if OSU had gotten caught before the bowl season began. Just something I thought about today… It might be too late to give them a Rose Bowl bid, but I think they should give them the conference after the Ohio State dust settles.