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I'm an 18-year-old freshman to be at USC who lives and dies with the Trojans, Lakers, and Angels. In addition to writing, commenting, and editing here at ArmchairGM, I also have my own sports website, SoCal Sports Hub.com (http://socalsportshub.com). More By The Beast
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Bowl Preview: Armed Forces, Sun, Humanitarian
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California v. Air Force: Armed Forces Bowl Cal finally seemed poised to seriously contend for a national title back in October as they were ranked second in the nation. However, their 5-0 start was nothing more than a mirage, as the Bears then lost six out of their last seven games, including a 20-13 defeat to Stanford in the Big Game. One of the biggest reasons for Cal's collapse was the erratic play of quarterback Nate Longshore and wide receiver DeSean Jackson. Ever since their September victory against Oregon, Longshore had been playing with a chipped bone in his right ankle, which was not known while he was playing. The injury forced Longshore to get rid of the ball quickly, which resulted in 11 interceptions over the last six games. While having big games against Tennessee and Oregon, Jackson struggled mightily with consistency and completely disappeared in several games. Cal's most consistent offensive threat was running back Justin Forsett (pictured), who rushed for 1,406 yards and 13 touchdowns. While Air Force certainly has a good enough offense with quarterback Shaun Carney and running back Chad Hall to put pressure on Cal's average defense, I can not envision Jeff Tedford letting the Bears lose other game to inferior opponent, especially when his quarterback finally appears healthy. California 31-28
Oregon v. South Florida: Sun Bowl Much like Cal, Oregon was another Pac Ten that had a chance to appear in the national championship game on January 7th. However, that opportunity fell apart on November 19th when quarterback Dennis Dixon went down with an injury in the first quarter. Without Dixon, the Ducks lost their final three games to Arizona, UCLA, and Oregon State. While they did finally show some life against Oregon State, it is hard to see the Ducks regrouping against a talented USF team. Back in October, South Florida (which is actually in Tampa) was ranked number two in the BCS. They feature an outstanding quarterback in Matt Grothe, who has run for 832 yards and 10 touchdowns and thrown for 2,473 with 13 TD passes. Oregon has a shaky pass defense that allows 250 yards per game so Grothe and the Bulls will have plenty of success. South Florida 35-24
Georgia Tech v. Fresno State: Humanitarian Bowl Make no mistake about it, Georgia Tech does not want to be playing in the Humanitarian Bowl in Boise, Idaho. After dominating wins against Notre Dame and Samford to open up the season, most Jacket fans were expecting a run at the ACC championship again and not a trip to Boise in December. Therefore, even with Tashard Choice and a far more talented team look for Georgia Tech to be anything but motivated for today's game. On the other side, Pat Hill's Fresno team is always motivated to play team from BCS conferences. Therefore, Fresno State upsets Georgia Tech simply because they actually want to be playing. Fresno State 34-28
Overall: 9-6
