The Race for Last

Well Patricia has secured the title with gravy by predicting the Ohio State upset. The only race we have now is for last. Currently, RC, Monique, and the commissioner (that's me) are tied for last. Tomorrow the last game of the bowl pool is played in San Antonio. UCLA versus Kansas State. If UCLA wins, RC and Monique will share last place. If Kansas State wins, I will secure last place.

We will call this the "Stinky Shoe" award. It will go to the worst picker. I can't wait to see who loses.

Meet Art Briles

Baylor was beating Michigan State by 20 points going into the last quarter of the Cotton Bowl. The score was 41-21. Bryce Petty the quarterback of the Bears threw for over 500 yards. Briles' team then proceeded to give up three unanswered touchdowns and lose 42-41. The last touchdown came with 17 seconds left.

It allowed this person to make an astonishing comeback in our friendly family bowl pool:

Patricia just admitted her strategy to me. First, she picked against every Texas team. That was good for two wins and one loss. Then, she decided whether the team she was picking represented a right wing cause or not. If it did, she picked against them. What about Auburn v Wisconsin you ask? She really didn't know where Auburn was but she knew there was a bad governor in Wisconsin now. Oregon v Florida St.? C'mon now. It was a brilliant strategy that led to a clinched victory with two games remaining. Congratulations, Guapa, you won.

Incredible

The winner of the Pool will be decided now. It's between Patricia and Kirsten. With Michigan State's unbelievable win, Pat has tied Kirsten. Their only remaining difference is the Rose Bowl. Pat has Oregon. Kirsten has Florida State. Here we go.

Wisconsin in Overtime - This is Kirsten's to Win or Lose

Does this look like someone who can pick college football? Well, it is. She wins the overtime Outback Bowl and leaps ahead and in the driver's seat.

Stay away from mayhem. Get yourself some solid insurance: car, home, life, etc. You are in good hands with Allstate. We also like to hang out in New Orleans on New Year's Day and sponsor a kick-butt bowl game.

The second semi-final ends the day. Alabama faces Ohio State in a match up of traditional football powerhouses. The story here is the coaching match-up. Nick Saban is the devil. He never smiles. He just coaches up players and has created the biggest powerhouse in the country in Tuscaloosa. When he was coach of Michigan State and the Texas job opened up after John Mackovic was fired I said that Texas should go after him. I was right. We got Mack Brown instead. Saban has won four championships in that time at LSU and Alabama. Mack got Texas one thanks to Vince Young. I should not complain, I know. It's just... never mind.

Urban Meyer won two titles at Florida. He then had to leave mysteriously. He sat out a year and wound up at Ohio State. (I've heard a reason why, but it's not confirmed so I won't print it - what am I? A journalist?) He has gone through 3 quarterbacks this year, and with the exception of a hiccup against Virginia Tech, has just kept on winning. Ohio State destroyed Wisconsin in the Big 10 championship game. Meyer runs a spread offense and has speed no other Big 10 team has. This game should be delicious. Saban can be beat. Alabama has lost its last two Sugar Bowls. Ohio State's only victory against an SEC team in a bowl had to be vacated though. Alabama is an 8 point favorite. (TCU and Baylor are pissed.)

Patricia and Kirsten have picked Ohio State. Wow.

New Year's is always a big day in the Pool. If someone goes 5-0 they can come back and win this thing from way off the pace. Cook some food, get on your couch, and enjoy the day. Love, the Commish.

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Couldn't have said it better myself. Let's get some 401K's after the game, shall we?

One of the big semi-final games. Oregon versus Florida State! Oregon has Heisman Trophy winner Marcus Mariota. He is Samoan from Hawai'i. He is known for being humble. Florida State has Heisman Trophy winner Jameis Winston. He is known for being brash. Both should go to the pros next year. It will be interesting to see who gets drafted first. Mariota has a better temperament, but Winston, according to Sports Illustrated, is an incredible prototype of a quarterback. He reads defenses better than anyone and coupled with his power and winning attitude on the field, the article concludes he is one of the greatest college quarterbacks of all time. 

Oregon is ranked #1 in the country. The only game they lost was when their best offensive lineman was hurt and Mariota was pressured on every down by Arizona. Florida State plays with fire every week it seems, but always pulls out an ugly win. Oregon is a 7.5 point favorite. Wow! Pat has Oregon; Kirsten has Florida State. 

Buffalo Wild Wings Citrus Bowl

My home away from home: Buffalo Wild Wings. Two words: Caribbean Jerk, the most delicious sauce ever. Get the traditional bone-in or the boneless, some celery, some blue cheese, some fries, and a beer on draft. Heaven. Pat and I had a great time there on Tuesday night. We even kicked butt in the trivia contest. Fly down to San Antonio and we'll go. Let's make it happen.

This game features the surprising Minnesota Golden Gophers versus the Missouri Tigers. Missouri cracks me up. They go to the SEC East as an afterthought to balance out Texas A&M, and what do they do? They win the East title two out of three years. Of course they get killed by the SEC West champions in the SEC title game, but they've actually done better in the SEC than A&M. Ha! Missouri always seems to have a great defensive line and this year is no different. Minnesota has a running back named David Cobb who leads the Golden Gophers. Missouri is a 4.5 point favorite. Pat and Kirsten both have Missouri.

Goodyear Cotton Bowl

A fine tire is made by the folks at Goodyear. So celebrate the New Year with a set of four Goodyear tires for your vehicle. Guaranteed good driving with Goodyear tires.

The bowl game features the green of Michigan State versus the green and gold of Baylor. Baylor coach Art Briles was pissed that Baylor did not get in the National Playoff. He is a coaching SOB who started in high school turning Stephenville, Texas, into a state powerhouse. He went to Houston and then got hired on by Baylor. He features a high octane offense and specializes in developing quarterbacks, like Robert Griffin III. So he has another quarterback named Bryce Petty. Petty led Baylor to 11 wins. But his offense sputtered at West Virginia, sparking an awesome couch burning riot West Virginia is so famous for. Bad loss kept the Bears out of the playoff. Technically, they are the Big XII champions so they go to Jerry World to face Michigan State.

State has become the premier football team in Michigan. The Spartans feature a top ten defense and a decent quarterback themselves in Connor Cook. But Michigan State struggles against top offenses like Oregon and Ohio State. Baylor is only a 2.5 point favorite. I think Baylor wins big like TCU yesterday. Kirsten has Baylor and Patricia has Michigan State.

New Year's Day

Even though I'm at the bottom of the Pool, I have absolutely loved the Bowl season so far. The games for the most part are exciting, and we have a tight race in the Pool as always. Still have a healthy amount of people alive. Kirsten is going for the rare repeat, and Patricia is seeking another title for the Baker clan.But the Charlotte contingent is breathing down our necks with several top pickers including Papa Bear Tim. Here is the preview for today in rapid fire action.

The best thing from Australia is this:

But you get a decent steak from the Outback Steakhouse. I like the Blooming Onion. But you really can't survive in San Antonio with a dry steak. Too much competition from Texas style steakhouses. By the way, if you have an Outback Steakhouse in your area, tomorrow they are giving away Blooming Onions if Auburn wins and shrimp if Wisconsin wins. Wisconsin lost their head coach, and so the ex-coach and athletic director Barry Alvarez has decided to act as head coach for the bowl game. Fascinating!

Today's Outback Bowl features a Big 10 powerhouse in Wisconsin that features the running of Melvin Gordon. They got killed in their last game by Ohio State, but usually the Big 10 team in this game plays well. The opponent is Auburn, who narrowly lost to Florida State last year in the national championship. Auburn has a good running back/quarterback combo. So look for a run dominated game. Auburn is favored by a touchdown. Patricia has Auburn and Kirsten has Wisconsin.