Tag: Las Vegas Bowl

USC bowl opponent loses two key defenders to 2025 NFL draft

USC is enduring roster depletion for its bowl game, but its opponent, Texas A&M, is facing the same problem. It creates a very fluid situation in Las Vegas.

We are less than two weeks away from USC football concluding its 2024 season against Texas A&M in the Las Vegas Bowl.

The Aggies finished the season 8-4, including a 5-3 mark in SEC play. However, they will be without two key defenders in the matchup against the Trojans.

Since the conclusion of the regular season, Texas A&M junior defensive linemen Nic Scourton and Shemar Stewart have both declared for the NFL Draft. The expectation is that neither will play against USC in Las Vegas.

Scourton finished the regular season with 37 tackles, five sacks, two passes defended, and a forced fumble. Steward had 31 tackles, two passes defended, 1.5 sacks, and a forced fumble.

Given the Trojans’ makeshift offensive line, USC will certainly not complain about the news. The Trojans have already lost offensive linemen Mason Murphy, Gino Quinones, and Amos Talalele to the transfer portal. It is also not yet known whether NFL-bound seniors Jonah Monheim and Emmanuel Pregnon will play in the game or not.

Even with a relatively mobile quarterback in Jayden Maiava, USC could be in trouble up front in the Sin City. While their opponent being without two of its top defenders certainly won’t fix everything, it should hopefully at least make Maiava’s life a little easier.

Johnny Manziel thinks Texas A&M freshman QB Marcel Reed ‘needs to give the fans some hope’

“He needs to continue to take the next step and give the fans some hope going into next season. This is gonna be the guy and his team.”

Ahead of the Texas A&M football team’s game against USC in the Las Vegas Bowl, Johnny Manziel shared his thoughts on the upcoming matchup.

Johnny Football provided his analysis and opinion regarding the play of redshirt freshman QB Marcel Reed during the Aggies’ 2024 season and Conner Weigman’s departure on the Action Network’s Big Bets On Campus podcast.

“I think this is another chance for Marcel Reed to be able to go out and showcase his ability,” Manziel said. “He needs to continue to take the next step and give the fans some hope of going into next season – this is gonna be the guy, and this is gonna be his team. With Conner Weigman going into the portal, it very much is that.

“I think we need to see a little bit more offensive fireworks, and I think this is another chance for Collin Klein to go out and showcase his ability of being the play caller for this team moving forward.”

Texas A&M (8-4) battles the Trojans (6-6) on Dec. 27 at 9:30 p.m. CT at Allegiant Stadium on ESPN.

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Texas A&M star defensive end will reportedly opt out of playing in the Las Vegas Bowl

Nic Scourton will not play in the Aggies’ upcoming bowl game

Texas A&M’s 2024 season ended at 8-4 and 5-3 in SEC play, but if we’re being honest, head coach Mike Elko’s first season was a success compared to other first-year SEC coaches over the past decade.

With eight wins, the Aggies were guaranteed a decent bowl game. They accepted an invitation to face USC on Friday, Dec. 27, in the Las Vegas Bowl. This will be the first matchup between both programs since the late 1970s.

While the Aggies will take this opportunity to finish the season strong and win nine games for the first time since the 2020 season, one of A&M’s star players recently declared for the 2025 NFL Draft, junior defensive end Nic Scourton, will reportedly opt out of the game, according to 247Sports’ Matt Zenitz.

Scourton finished his lone season with the Aggies on a low note but produced impressive numbers despite his end-of-season drop-off. The junior recorded 37 tackles, five sacks, 34 pressures, and 14 tackles for loss during his final collegiate season. His 14 TFLs and five sacks led the team.

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Texas A&M’s bowl game destination/opponent has been announced

Texas A&M will take on USC in the Las Vegas Bowl on Friday, Dec. 27

It’s official: Texas A&M (8-4, 5-3 SEC) will take on the USC Trojans (6-6,4-5 Big Ten) in the Las Vegas Bowl. That means the Aggies will open and close coach Mike Elko’s first season with premier matchups.

Texas A&M’s 2024 season didn’t end the way many of us expected when the Aggies were 7-1 and undefeated in SEC play. After the season-ending loss of star running back Le’Veon Moss, the Aggie offense grew stale and ended the year with losses to South Carolina and Auburn and a 17-7 loss to rival Texas in the season finale.

Despite the poor finish, the future is bright under Elko’s guidance. The Aggies signed 25 commitments in the 2025 class, including five-star offensive tackle Lamont Rogers and five-star wide receiver Jerome Myles.

For USC, “QB guru” Lincoln Riley might be on the hot seat going into the 2025 season if the Trojans can’t adapt to the Big Ten. They ended the year 6-6 and with a losing record in conference play. However, some drama exists between both programs on the recruiting trail.

For the Aggies, Jerome Myles was once a USC commit before committing to Texas A&M. The Trojans flipped longtime 2025 QB commit Husan Longstreet late last month.

The SRS Distribution Las Vegas Bowl will be held on Friday, Dec. 27, and will air on ESPN at 9:30 p.m. CT.

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CBS Sports includes Florida in bowl projections after LSU upset

With Florida just one win away from becoming bowl eligible, CBS Sports’ Jerry Palm has included the Gators in his latest bowl predictions update.

Florida’s path to a bowl game has been in doubt all season long, but an upset win over the LSU Tigers on Saturday has the Gators just one win away from securing bowl eligibility.

As a result, CBS Sports’ Jerry Palm has included the Orange and Blue in its post-Week 12 bowl predictions. Palm projects Florida to matchup with Arizona State in the Las Vegas Bowl on Dec. 27 at 10:30 p.m. ET.

Should that prediction come true, it would provide Billy Napier and the Gators a chance at redemption after falling, 30-3, against the Oregon State Beavers in the 2022 Las Vegas Bowl. Adam Mihalek’s fourth-quarter field goal kept Florida’s now 458-game scoring streak alive, but the rest of the game was a complete disappointment.

The Gators finished the 2023 season 5-7 and failed to reach bowl eligibility, so any postseason appearance would be a sign of improvement for Napier and Co. Of course, Florida must win one of its final two games against Ole Miss and Florida State to reach the six-win mark.

Florida is projected to beat a 1-9 Florida State team in the regular-season finale, especially with true freshman quarterback [autotag]DJ Lagway[/autotag] back in the fold.

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Jayden Daniels, who the Badgers defeated in 2021 Las Vegas Bowl, named Washington starting QB

Wisconsin has a history with Washington’s new starting QB

Former LSU and Arizona State quarterback Jayden Daniels was named the Washington Commanders’ starting quarterback on Monday.

The news comes as no surprise. Daniels excelled since the Commanders had selected him at No. 2 in the 2024 NFL draft.

Related: Every former Wisconsin Badger currently on an NFL roster entering 2024 training camp

We tend to make a Wisconsin connection to the big news of the day, which is why it’s time to revisit the time the Paul Chryst-led Badgers defeated Daniels, then at Arizona State, in the 2021 Las Vegas Bowl.

The game was the final one for the 2021 Wisconsin defense — one of the best in program history. It went out in style, holding the Sun Devils to 219 yards and 13 points.

Daniels, a future Heisman winner (2023, LSU) threw for 159 yards and an interception while adding 40 rushing yards.

Wisconsin iced the contest with a classic 10-minute, 0-point clock-killing drive late in the fourth quarter. It was one of the final wins of the Paul Chryst era, which then ended after a Week 4 loss to Illinois the following season.

In hindsight, the Badgers defeated one of the best quarterbacks in the sport. Daniels transferred to LSU before the 2022 season. His breakout 2023 campaign ended in a Heisman Trophy.

He is starting Week 1 for a Commanders team looking for a new direction under new head coach Dan Quinn. It’s safe to say Daniels has improved greatly since the meeting with the Badgers almost three years ago.

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What the experts are predicting: Sun Bowl

What’s your pick for this game?

Notre Dame and Oregon State will face each other in a Sun Bowl that already is giving a real boost to the economy of El Paso, Texas. The least these teams can do is give the locals a thriller in a sold-out stadium. With so many regulars on both sides missing, that might happen purely on accident. This will be a must-watch.

There are plentiful predictions for this game. Here are some of them:

Bryson Barnes and Utah offense get smothered in Las Vegas Bowl, score just 7 points

Utah’s season ended with a thud.

The Utah Utes were playing shorthanded all season long, primarily at quarterback. Cam Rising never took the field for Kyle Whittingham’s team, leaving Bryson Barnes and Nate Johnson — mostly Barnes — to handle the offense.

One of the things which attracted USC to new defensive coordinator D’Anton Lynn is that when Lynn’s UCLA defense went up against Utah’s limited offense, Lynn pounced on the opportunity. UCLA’s defense allowed only seven points to Utah’s offense. Utah scored 14 points, but seven of them were on a pick-six thrown by quarterback Dante Moore, who has since transferred to the Oregon Ducks. That 14-7 Utah win over UCLA was a selling point for D’Anton Lynn.

Utah’s offense looked a lot like that UCLA game when it played the Las Vegas Bowl against Northwestern on Saturday night. Bryson Barnes and the Utes’ offense were smothered in this game. They didn’t score in the first three quarters and managed only one touchdown for the game. Utah’s defense was — as usual — excellent, limiting Northwestern to just 14 points.

Utah’s offense was not able to exceed that modest point total. Northwestern 14, Utah 7.

Utah will have Cam Rising for 2024 in the Big 12 Conference. USC will be glad to not face Rising ever again (unless the teams somehow meet in a 2024 bowl game).

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SRS Distribution Las Vegas Bowl: How to watch Northwestern vs. Utah on TV or live stream

Northwestern will be the first Big Ten bowl team to play this bowl season. Here’s how to watch the Las Vegas Bowl on TV or live stream.

The bowl season may already be underway, but the Big Ten is ready to join the postseason fun on Saturday night. Northwestern, one of the more pleasant surprises in the conference this season, will open up bowl season for the Big Ten when it faces Utah in the SRS Distribution Las Vegas Bowl in Allegiant Stadium. The Wildcats will be an underdog against the soon-to-be-former Pac-12 school (Utah is leaving for the Big 12 after this season), but Northwestern has been an underdog all season long, so why stop now?

Here is how you can watch Northwestern look to record the first Big Ten bowl victory of the year on Saturday night.

Fox Sports, CBS peg Trojans to Las Vegas Bowl vs Maryland

Vegas wouldn’t be that exciting in these circumstances.

The bowl projections are going to be busy in the week leading up to the conference title games. The USC Trojans will be relegated to a smaller game after a 7-5 season and a massive disappointment in Lincoln Riley’s second year with the school.

A couple of outlets had the Trojans slotted to face Maryland in the Las Vegas Bowl, with both Jerry Palm of CBS and Bryan Fischer of Fox Sports having the Trojans-Terrapins matchup.

What’s interesting here is that USC-Maryland would be a future Big Ten matchup with the Trojans heading to the conference in 2024 amid all the shuffling across college football.

Maryland finished the year 7-5 after the Terps defeated Rutgers on Saturday. Those expecting a star QB battle between Caleb Williams and Taulia Tagovailoa won’t likely see that, with Williams expected to sit out in preparation for the 2024 NFL draft.

The Trojans went from contending for the College Football Playoff and Pac-12 title game in October to likely a spot in either the Las Vegas Bowl or Sun Bowl.

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