We Interrupt Our Bowl Season To Bring You The Following Bulletin

 

Navy QB Reynolds is FBS All-Independent Player of the Year

 

December 19, 2013--Baltimore Sun.  Navy sophomore quarterback Keenan Reynolds was chosen as the Football Bowl Subdivision All-Independent Offensive Player of the Year, it was announced Wednesday. Nine Navy football players were chosen to the All-Independent team. In his second season with the Midshipmen, Reynolds set an NCAA single-season record for rushing touchdowns by a quarterback with 29; tied the NCAA mark for most touchdowns in a game against an FBS opponent with seven, against San Jose State; broke the nearly 100-year-old Navy single-season scoring mark with 176 points, eclipsing the previous mark of 174 by Bill Ingram in 1917; and set the school record for points in a season with 224. Reynolds heads into the Dec. 30 Bell Helicopter Armed Forces Bowl against Middle Tennessee State ranked No. 1 in the country in scoring, averaging 14.7 points per game, No. 1 in rushing touchdowns with 29 and No. 2 in rushing yards by a quarterback with 105.0.

And now back to our regularly scheduled program which is already in progress.

Sam & The Dude at the alleys in The Big Lebowski

There are 35 sponsored postseason bowl games, and of course the FCS, Division II, and Division III national championship games.  I really don't have the stomach to preview/review all of them over the next couple of weeks, so I'll be selective...and as thorough as possible.  Naturally I'll cover our regular cast of characters (USC, BYU, Navy, Oregon, and BC) and will weigh in on the bigger prizes as well (Orange, Sugar, Rose, Fiesta, and BCS Championship).

41st Amos Alonzo Stagg Bowl

Tune in to ESPNU, Friday, 7:00 p. m. ET/4:00 p. m. PT

#1 Mount Union vs. #5 Wisconsin-Whitewater.  Eighth time in nine years that these two teams are meeting for the national championship...blah, blah, blah.  What you may not know is that Whitewater actually leads the series 4-3, including the last three in which the teams have met.  Most D-III experts are focusing on the prolific Mount Union offense and the stingy Whitewater defense.  So I'll shift gears and compare the Purple Raider defense and the Warhawk offense.

Mount Union's schedule included five Top 25 teams, who combined to score 169 points (38.8/game) against them.  The remaining nine teams scored only 72 total points (8 pts./game).  This does not bode well for the Raiders, who will be going up against a Whitewater offense that averaged over 28 pts./game against four Top 25 teams and 35.8 points/game against all comers.  Warhawk QB Matt Behrendt has thrown for over 3,000 yds. and 36 TDs and has only been picked off once all season.  Mount Union's defense allows an average of 210 passing yds./game and will have to face not only Behrendt but dependable RB Jordan Ratliffe, who has rushed for 1,113 yds. and 7 TDs himself.  While Mount Union has a far better 3rd down conversion rate than UW-W (57%-44%) the Hawks are better on 4th down (47%-41%).  If the game becomes a battle for field position, expect Whitewater to go for it on 4th down and put themselves in increasingly better position to score.  Then consider that the Hawks actually have more success scoring when inside the red zone, at a rate of 85% compared to the Raiders' 72%.  Whitewater has 19 fewer penalties against them than Mount Union.  The Raiders have lost 17 fumbles, the Hawks only eight.  Mount Union QB Kevin Burke, D-III Offensive Player of the Year has been intercepted eight times, while UW-W's Behrendt only once.

No doubt it will be another epic in the long history of games played between these two outstanding programs.  For the only the third time in this season's 31 playoff games, expect the underdog to prevail.  PICK:  Wisconsin-Whitewater

Royal Purple Las Vegas Bowl

 

Tune in to ABC, Saturday, 3:30 p. m. ET/12:30 p. m. PT

#21 Fresno State vs. USC.  A bowl game named after an automotive product (synthetic motor oil).  OK, no wisecracks about lubricants.  The Smack is uber-intrigued by this matchup.  These two have actually played each other before, with the series split 1-1.  In 1992 the Bulldogs shocked the Trojans 24-7 behind QB Trent Dilfer, he of the Super Bowl winning Baltimore Ravens of 2000-01.  The last time they met (2005), it took a come-from-behind effort in the 4th quarter for the #1 Trojans, on the strength of 294 yds. of rushing by Reggie Bush, to overcome the Bulldogs.  When was the last time you saw FSU ranked and USC unranked?

This is also the earliest in the season that the Trojans have played a bowl game.  Both teams are dealing with emotional issues:  Fresno State with a final-game loss to San Jose that spoiled its perfect season and shot at a BCS bowl, and USC with the loss of its head coach and interim coach within the same two months.  Teams with potent passing games have befuddled the Trojans all year, and the Derek Carr-led Bulldogs should pose plenty of challenges for the strong USC defense.  On the other side of the ball, RB Silas Redd is out with an injury, and the SoCal offense will be staring down the barrel at five different Fresno State defenders each with at least seven tackles-for-losses, as well as ten sacks as a unit.  Reputation is making the Trojans the betting favorite, but I'll take the Bulldogs in an upset.  PICK:  Fresno State.

P. S.  Fresno State and USC are scheduled to meet in the 2014 season opener.