CollegeKingRex
CTG Regular
First, the Music City Bowl...
This appears to be the bowl game where one team is happy to be here and will likely play harder than the other team, the 10-point favorite who is about four plays away from being a one-loss team. With a month left in the season, Clemson was being considered one of the best teams that probably wasn't going to win a conference title after running over Georgia Tech in a 31-7 win to go to 7-1. The Tigers beat eventual ACC champion Wake Forest, beat Florida State after the Noles handled Miami, and only lost to Boston College in a double overtime thriller.
Then the bottom fell out.
Virginia Tech blasted the Tigers 24-7 in a Thursday rout in Blacksburg, Maryland upset the Tigers 13-12 in Happy Valley and South Carolina did the same in the last week of the season. Now the Tigers limp in at 8-4.
Contrast Clemson with Kentucky, who hasn't been to a bowl since 1999 and appeared to be in a holding pattern until the Rich Brooks era came to an end. But the Cats then won four straight and was within a play of beating Tennessee in Knoxville to end the season with a fifth straight win. Clemson has lost 3 of 4, so the momentum will clearly be with the inspired Cats today.
Now Kentucky is a hot, exciting team with a big-time passing game and a quarterback in Andre Woodson who became good enough to consider leaving early for the NFL. A thrilling offense, and no defense whatsoever, made Wildcat games as fun to watch, in a sort of perverse way at times, as any in the SEC. UK became the team no one wanted to face.
Offensively, Clemson's lightning fast rushing tandem of C.J. Spiller and James Davis should be too much for the Wildcats to handle. Davis tied the single-season record for rushing touchdowns with 17, and Spiller set a single-season record with six touchdown plays of 50 yards or longer.
Kentucky has a decent running game, spearheaded by now-healthy Rafael Little. The UK tailback lives near the Clemson campus and as the Tigers stockpiled running backs, Little's "scholarship offer" came off the table from Tommy Bowden. He should be eager to perform well today. The Tigers allowed only six touchdown passes all season. Wake Forest's Riley Skinner was the only quarterback to throw for more than one touchdown pass against the Tigers all year. Woodson, meanwhile, threw 28 touchdown passes and had eight multiple-touchdown games.
The big Tiger offensive line should wear on the smallish UK defensive front that lacks proven depth. Either Clemson will run well early, or it'll start to hit home runs late by springing Spiller and Davis. Kentucky has the nation's second-worst defense for a reason. However, UK held Tennessee to 96 rushing yards and was the better team throughout despite losing in the end.
The Cats will have a noticeable crowd advantage, as their raucous fan base gobbled up all the allotment of tickets shortly after they became available.
I'm not sold on either side here, as it comes down to Clemson's motivation, as they are the better team. They have the most talented offense in the ACC (not saying too much this season)... They scored an average of 57 points against Louisiana Tech and Temple, the 119th and 117th defenses in I-A football this season. UK ranks 118th.
Prediction: Clemson 44, Kentucky 34
The play: OVER 57 1/2 for a big bet
Good luck! Back with more later...
:drink:
This appears to be the bowl game where one team is happy to be here and will likely play harder than the other team, the 10-point favorite who is about four plays away from being a one-loss team. With a month left in the season, Clemson was being considered one of the best teams that probably wasn't going to win a conference title after running over Georgia Tech in a 31-7 win to go to 7-1. The Tigers beat eventual ACC champion Wake Forest, beat Florida State after the Noles handled Miami, and only lost to Boston College in a double overtime thriller.
Then the bottom fell out.
Virginia Tech blasted the Tigers 24-7 in a Thursday rout in Blacksburg, Maryland upset the Tigers 13-12 in Happy Valley and South Carolina did the same in the last week of the season. Now the Tigers limp in at 8-4.
Contrast Clemson with Kentucky, who hasn't been to a bowl since 1999 and appeared to be in a holding pattern until the Rich Brooks era came to an end. But the Cats then won four straight and was within a play of beating Tennessee in Knoxville to end the season with a fifth straight win. Clemson has lost 3 of 4, so the momentum will clearly be with the inspired Cats today.
Now Kentucky is a hot, exciting team with a big-time passing game and a quarterback in Andre Woodson who became good enough to consider leaving early for the NFL. A thrilling offense, and no defense whatsoever, made Wildcat games as fun to watch, in a sort of perverse way at times, as any in the SEC. UK became the team no one wanted to face.
Offensively, Clemson's lightning fast rushing tandem of C.J. Spiller and James Davis should be too much for the Wildcats to handle. Davis tied the single-season record for rushing touchdowns with 17, and Spiller set a single-season record with six touchdown plays of 50 yards or longer.
Kentucky has a decent running game, spearheaded by now-healthy Rafael Little. The UK tailback lives near the Clemson campus and as the Tigers stockpiled running backs, Little's "scholarship offer" came off the table from Tommy Bowden. He should be eager to perform well today. The Tigers allowed only six touchdown passes all season. Wake Forest's Riley Skinner was the only quarterback to throw for more than one touchdown pass against the Tigers all year. Woodson, meanwhile, threw 28 touchdown passes and had eight multiple-touchdown games.
The big Tiger offensive line should wear on the smallish UK defensive front that lacks proven depth. Either Clemson will run well early, or it'll start to hit home runs late by springing Spiller and Davis. Kentucky has the nation's second-worst defense for a reason. However, UK held Tennessee to 96 rushing yards and was the better team throughout despite losing in the end.
The Cats will have a noticeable crowd advantage, as their raucous fan base gobbled up all the allotment of tickets shortly after they became available.
I'm not sold on either side here, as it comes down to Clemson's motivation, as they are the better team. They have the most talented offense in the ACC (not saying too much this season)... They scored an average of 57 points against Louisiana Tech and Temple, the 119th and 117th defenses in I-A football this season. UK ranks 118th.
Prediction: Clemson 44, Kentucky 34
The play: OVER 57 1/2 for a big bet
Good luck! Back with more later...
:drink:
