Tag: Bowl Season

First look at USU vs Kent State in Frisco Bowl

Ags look to secure 8-win season against MAC foe Kent State in Frisco Bowl

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The what bowl?

The Aggies learned their bowl destination during Selection Sunday: USU will travel to Frisco, Texas to take on the Kent State Golden Flashes on December 20th.

This is a relatively new bowl game. It was originally the Miami Beach bowl until ESPN bought the rights to it in 2017. With that taken into account, the bowl has only been around for six seasons. This year’s sponsor is Tropical Smoothie Cafe. The name doesn’t exactly roll off the tongue, but it’s about the kind of game Utah State deserves after a disappointing 7-5 season.

Kent Who?

Located in Kent, OH, the Golden Flashes have had an unimpressive 6-6 season. However, they do have an alright 5-3 mark in conference play, good for 2nd in the MAC east division. They’ve lost badly to all the teams they were supposed to lose to (at Wisconsin, at Auburn, at Arizona State) and they’ve beaten a couple of okay MAC teams (Buffalo, at Eastern Michigan). They had a shot to beat Toledo,  but couldn’t finish a 2-pt conversion. Though they didn’t win the game, they did beat Toledo out for a bowl berth. All in all, the Golden Flashes are decidedly middle of the pack in the top-heavy MAC.

Is there history between these teams and will the game be any good?

There is minimal history between Utah State and Kent State. These schools have met twice, with both contests in the 1970s. The Aggies lost in 1973 in Logan, but got revenge the following year on the road in a close one. The burning question is this, though: is this game going to be any good? Well, if stats are to be believed, it could turn out to be a surprisingly decent match-up.

Kent State has a wholly decent QB in Dustin Crumm. The signal-caller has passed for 2,333 yards with a strong 18-2 touchdown-interception ratio, a far prettier number than what Jordan Love has amassed for the Aggies this year. On the other hand, Crumm has also been sacked 39 times. That unfortunate stat is good for the bottom ten in the NCAA. Against a USU defense that has struggled to get pressure, it will be interesting to see which opposing unit produces better: the Golden Flashes’ offensive line or the Aggie defensive line.

Stopping the run has been a major issue for Kent State. They’ve given up 2,992 yards on the ground this season, which averages to over 5 yards per opponent rush. Matched up against USU’s middling 84th ranked rushing attack, the Aggies may actually have a few struggles if Jaylen Warren isn’t healthy enough to back up Gerold Bright. Time will tell when these teams clash on December 20th.

I’m expecting a relatively even gridiron tilt. With that being said, I wouldn’t be surprised one bit if one team runs away with the score. Both of these teams have shown the propensity to get blown out in big games. Kent State hasn’t been bowling since 2012, so they’ll certainly have something to play for. USU needs to show up ready for a fight.

See you in Frisco. It beats freezing in Boise (sorry, Nevada).

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ESPN bowl projections: Matchups against historical programs

Currently at 9-3, Texas could end up anywhere this bowl season. ESPN projects the Camping World Bowl and the Alamo Bowl for the Longhorns.

Currently sitting at 9-3, which bowl game the Longhorns will make is still up in the air. They could go as high as the Allstate Sugar Bowl or they could end up as low as the Texas Bowl. According to ESPN’s bowl projections, Texas is somewhere in between there.

Here is a look at where ESPN thinks the Longhorns will be bowling:

First, Kyle Bonagura projects Texas to participate in the Camping World Bowl in Orlando, FL. Since 2015, it has been a bowl game between Big 12 and ACC teams. If the Longhorns were to play in the Camping World Bowl, it would be the first time they would participate in it. What sticks out is their opponent, Notre Dame. Two of the most historic programs of all time, both schools are in the top 10 in all-time wins in NCAA history.

Playing as recent as 2015 and 2016, the Fighting Irish and the Longhorns have played a total of 12 times, with Notre Dame leading the series 9-3. The latest game in 2016 is the infamous “Texas is back folks!” game when Tyrone Swoopes scored a touchdown to beat the No. 10 ranked Irish in Austin, 50-47.

With Mark Schlabach projecting both Oklahoma and Baylor to get spots in a New Year’s Six Bowl game, that would leave the second-best Big 12 bowl game, the Valero Alamo Bowl, open for the Longhorns. Texas has not played in the Alamo Bowl since doing it in back to back seasons in 2012 and 2013 when they played Oregon State and Oregon respectively. Playing Pac 12 opponents, Schlabach says Texas will face the Trojans of USC.

These two teams have a lot of recent history and if they met, would be playing each other for the third year in a row. The Longhorns lost a heartbreaker on the road in 2017, while they beat the Trojans by 23 at home last season.

As usual when talking about Texas and USC, you have to mention the 2006 Rose Bowl game for the National Championship. Widely considered the greatest college football game of all time, Texas fans will be remembering this game for the rest of their lives.

Even if the Longhorns are not able to make the most prestigious bowl game this season, these matchups could still be some fun ones. Especially when you are playing against historical blue blood programs like Notre Dame and USC.

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