Bowl Game Previews: December 23-24
After a crazy college football season, we can finally enjoy some bowl games before we wrap a bow on the year. With Christmas right around the corner, there’s nothing better than having a bowl game on while wrapping Christmas presents.
This year has led to some interesting matchups, considering we have much smaller sample sizes to analyze. Most of these teams did not play any out of conference games. The measuring stick for these games is a little bit more jagged compared to recent years.
For many of these players, this will be the last time we get to see them before they get ready for the NFL Draft. There will be some players who opt-out from playing in their bowl game to prepare for the NFL Draft. That being said, this will provide an opportunity for some of the younger players on their team to showcase what they can do Infront of a national audience.
R+L CARRIERS NEW ORLEANS BOWL
Georgia Southern Eagles vs. Louisiana Tech Bulldogs
ESPN, Dec 23 at 3:30 p.m. EST
Georgia Southern finished the regular season with a 7-5 record while placing fourth in the Sun Belt East Division. Out of their last four contests, they have managed to win just one game. They will be playing Louisiana Tech who is giving up five yards per carry on the season. The offense is also averaging 298 yards per game. Georgia Southern ranks eighth in the nation with an average of 262.5 rushing yards per game. Look for them to take command of this contest by running the football.
Louisiana Tech ended their regular season with a 5-4 record while placing third in the Conference USA West Division. They are considered 4.5-point underdogs in this game. They are expected to struggle against Georgia Southern’s triple-option rushing attack.
We need to focus on Georgia Southern’s run game. The team split the carries between four different running backs this season. Senior running back JD King led all running backs with 625 rushing yards. He averaged 5.4 yards per carry on the season. At 5-foot-11 and 220 pounds, he has the size of your prototypical three-down back at the next level. He shares the backfield with junior running back, Logan Wright who rushed for 565 yards and four touchdowns on the season. He is another big-bodied running back who is listed at 6-foot-0 and 220 pounds.
Senior running back Wesley Kennedy led the team with six touchdowns. He also rushed for 447 yards while averaging 6.8 yards per carry. The fourth contributor out of this backfield is freshman running back Gerald Green. The former three-star recruit runs with a lot of burst and speed. He is a player to keep an eye on during the next few seasons.
The big story coming from Georgia Southern comes from the quarterback position where both Shai Werts and Miller Mosley are listed as co-starters. Werts is the master of the triple option. We should expect the team to run the ball at high volumes when he is in the game. He has been dealing with a shoulder injury that could keep him out of the game.
The team likes to pass it more with Miller while running the offense at an up-tempo pace. Neither quarter should be regarded as a usable dynasty asset. Miller struggles to complete passes downfield and Werts has only passed for 936 yards on the season.
Senior wide receiver Adrian Hardy broke out during his sophomore season in 2018 when he caught 75 passes for 1,145 yards and six touchdowns. He hasn’t been near as productive in 2020, but he still leads the team with 440 yards receiving along with a 21.5 percent market share of the team’s passing offense.
Israel Tucker is the teams starting running back. He’s a 5-foot-8 200-pound bowling ball. His best performance came when he lit up North Texas for 161 yards and two touchdowns. Tucker has failed to surpass the 1,000-yard mark during his four-year stat at Louisiana Tech, making him a less-than-desirable option in dynasty.
MONTGOMERY BOWL
Florida Atlantic Owls vs. Memphis Tigers
ESPN/ESPN2, Dec. 23 at 7:00 p.m. EST
This game opened at a 50.5 over/under and is expected to be a high scoring affair. Memphis is favored to win this game by 8.5 points. They finished the season with a 7-3 record while placing third in the American Conference. The Tigers are rolling into this bowl game-winning three of their last four contests. Memphis has the most dangerous offense between the two teams. They have scored 31 points per game on the season.
The Florida Atlantic Owls are considered the underdogs in this game. They finished their regular season with a 5-3 record and are heading into this bowl game after losing two straight games. This team is very quiet on the offensive side of the ball. They are averaging 20 points per game along with just 143 passing yards per game. On the contrary, they have been very stout on defense allowing just 325 yards per game.
We need to remember that Kenneth Gainwell, Memphis’ stud running back opted out of the season to declared for the 2021 NFL Draft. He will not be in this game, but he is a player who needs to be on everyone’s radar because he will be one of the top backs in next year’s draft.
Damontie Coxie was considered a promising prospect heading into this season. However, he has left the program and has not played a game for Memphis since October of this year. He’s another player devy/dynasty managers need to pay attention to.
Junior wide receiver Calvin Austin has stepped up to lead the team with 1,025 receiving yards and is tied for the conference lead with receiving ten touchdowns. He has speed to burn and is dangerous whenever he gets the ball in his hands. He had six games with over 100 yards receiving. Tahj Washington is another wide receiver in the offense to watch on game day. He’s a freshman who caught 35 passes for 638 yards and six touchdowns which allowed him to own a 20.56 percent share of the passing offense. The young wide receiver has a reception of over 25 yards in eight straight games.
This team is led by senior quarterback, Brady White, who has tossed for 3,096 yards and 28 touchdowns in just ten games. He has been the glue that has been keeping this team together. On the season, he has completed 60.1 percent of his passes with a 146.8 quarterback rating.
Memphis has been one of the best programs at churning out running backs. Antonio Gibson has been the team’s latest breakout at the NFL level. Tony Pollard and Darrell Henderson have also made an impact in the league. Rodrigues Clark leads the team in rushing with 523 yards and two touchdowns. He has three 100-yard games. Another running back to watch in this game is junior running back Kylan Watkins. With double-digit touches in each of his last three games, he is starting to become an intricate part of the team’s offensive game plan.
Sean Dykes is an under-the-radar tight end. His pass-catching ability makes him a better fit for fantasy football than real football. With him catching 47 passes for 581 and seven touchdowns while owning an 18.72 percent share of the passing production, Dykes is a player we may want to pay attention too in the not so distance future. His size will prevent him from becoming an in-line blocker, but his ability to line up and run routes could make him a future fantasy asset if he can develop his game when he hits the next level.
Florida Atlantic doesn’t lend much to hang our hat on from a fantasy football standpoint. Junior running back Malcolm Davidson is a player to monitor for next year. Unfortunately, he will be out due to a foot injury. He is a hammer at 5-foot-11 and 220 pounds. He runs with good burst for his size. He only rushed for just 298 yards this season but averaged 7.1 yards per carry.
Dual-threat quarterback Javion Posey hasn’t been flashy but has been a key figure in the offense as a redshirt freshman this year. He leads the team with 401 yards rushing. He may never be a must-own devy prospect but his rushing ability makes him a fun player to watch.
NEW MEXICO BOWL
Hawaii Rainbow Warriors vs Houston Cougars
ESPN, Dec. 24 at 3:30 p.m. EST
Vegas has this game with a 59.5 over/under with Houston favored to win by 11 points. This game is expected to be a shootout. Houston finished the regular season with a 3-4 record. They’ve had a tough schedule with losses to BYU and Cincinnati and they had six games postponed due to Covid.
Hawaii will be entering this bowl game with a 4-4 record while placing fifth in the Mountain West Conference. They run a fairly balanced offense, averaging 243.4 yards per game through the air and 155.1 yards per game with their rushing attack.
The main player to watch in this contest is Houston’s redshirt senior wide receiver Marquez Stevenson. He will be headed to the Senior Bowl this year which means there’s a good chance he will be drafted. He broke out as a sophomore back in 2018, catching 75 balls for 1,019 yards and nine touchdowns. His 2020 campaign spans a small sample of five games, making it hard to analyze his progress to his senior season.
Hawaii’s senior running back Calvin Turner could be a diamond in the rough come draft season. He is a 6-foot-1 and 195-pound receiving back who led the Rainbow Warriors with 458 receiving yards and seven total touchdowns. He owned a 23.52 percent market share of the team’s passing production. He previously played for Jacksonville University for three seasons where he rushed for 1,380 yards and 15 touchdowns while playing on both sides of the ball as a quarterback and a defensive back.
- 2024 NFL Draft: What We Expect for Day 3 - April 27, 2024
- 2024 NFL Draft: What We Expect for Day 2 - April 26, 2024
- 2024 NFL Draft: What We Expect for Day 1 - April 25, 2024
