Jabbering JAG 127.9
That time of the year has finally arrived, lights are on everyone's houses, trees are up, presents are wrapped and college bowl games are in full swing. The final two teams for DIAA, DII and DIII will do battle for the right to call themselves national champions! In DIA 10 teams still wait to earn their season's fate and for two of those teams they have waited for several days just to hit the other team who is trying to be #1.
First the level 5 bowl game predictions...
FIESTA
ORANGE
SUGAR
ROSE
Now for the national championships!
The second rematch of a CC game in level 5 bowl games. Cal has no doubt shocked the world with the run that they made this season. They not only won the Pac-10 but they rolled through their opponents and sit pretty with an undefeated record. USC is a team who was expected from the get go to be here but that isn't to take away from anything that they did this season. Other than the CC title game loss to Cal they have played extremely well all season. Both teams boast top 10 SOS. Both teams will rely on QB play to carry the offense as both have signal callers who are in the top 15 in passing yards this season. Their defenses know what it takes to beat the other team and will have to play lights out to slow them down. This will be just the 5th meeting between these two coaches with ez37 taking 3 of the first 4 from jasonfreeman.
Cal comes in looking unstoppable, a team whose closest game all season was a 16 point win to #17 Minnesota. The Bear's redshirt JR QB is playing lights out and has tallied a bunch of yards against just about every opponent. Their defense also gives up just over two touchdowns per game.
USC was playing the part this season and looked untouchable. Once they got into conference play a couple of teams did try to exploit some weaknesses as the Trojans struggled a bit with both Arizona and Stanford. Then USC put their 43-game win streak on the line against Cal in the Pac-10 title game where they were, lets be honest, embarrassed. Nathan Soto will need to continue to be perfect (0 int this season) if USC has any chance.
Cal felt like they got no love this season and they had to prove the haters wrong time and time again. Can they pull off another huge win against USC and finish off this historic season?... Cal-35 vs USC-33
If you would have said these two teams were going to meet in the NC at the beginning of the season, I would have had my doubts but wouldn't have been entirely surprised. These teams have played tough competition all season as both teams have SOS rankings in the top 20. If you like passing attacks then this is a game for you as both teams average over 500 ypg through the air and they offset it with just enough rushing attempts and yards to keep you honest.
Lehigh comes in as the underdog in the game. A team who won the NEC and through playoffs they cruised through the first two rounds. They then faced TTech the OVC champs who were craving another national title shot. Lehigh clinched the win, barely, after nearly squandering a 24 point lead. They then got a rematch with NEC foe, Sacred Heart, in the final four. Lehigh didn't play a clean game by any means as they had 5 turnovers but racked up over 600 yards of offense. They took the lead with just under 11 minutes to go and never looked back.
EKU cruised through their regular season and looked untouchable. That is until they met TTech in the OVC title game where the Colonels couldn't quite keep up with the 4th quarter onslaught. EKU then found their groove again in the playoffs as they rolled through everyone. They didn't have a game closer than 32 points throughout the playoffs.
Another good matchup but also appears to be another David vs Goliath matchup. Who will prevail? Will the NEC unseat the OVC?...EKU-38 vs Lehigh-28
Two teams who are very familiar with the national title atmosphere will butt heads in this game. These squads have put up video game type numbers this season as both teams average over 60 points per game and have a combined 115 passing touchdowns to 0 interceptions but neither team played an SOS that was ranked in the top 25. This is going to be the 4th meeting between these tenured coaches and jmurphy8587 has yet to get on the board against gators06.
SJU is going to need outstanding play and a bit of work to help them emerge victorious in this title game. The Pumas come in looking impressive at 18-0 but having only played two top 25 schools in the regular season puts some holes in that. They also met a sim in their conference title game. It wasn't until playoffs where this team was tested consistently and they still did not disappoint as they continued to cruise through some tough competition.
SDU also comes in a perfect 18-0 but like their opponent didn't play a lot of tough competition on a consistent basis. The Coyotes played three teams ranked in the top 25. This team didn't miss a beat in playoffs though as they have outscored opponents 291-76 through the playoffs and one of those was a thrilling 3 OT win in the quarterfinals.
Both teams didn't play the toughest of schedules but neither really looked weak against the tough games they had. Which team will lose their perfect record and fall short of another national title?... SD-45 vs St. Joe's-38
