First of i would like to provide some sympathy to Oregon State's Johnny Hekker, who had 4 punts for a 26.0 yard average last night in the MECCO Las Vegas Bowl. Sure Johnny managed a long of 64 yards but he also hurt his team with a punt of 12 yards that managed to go 25ft in the air spiraling then hit a wall of wind and proceed to fall straight down and roll backwards. In hid defense though, there has been 36mph wind gusts in the area making great conditions for the bowl game.
Speaking of the MECCO Las Vegas Bowl. I find it difficult and hard to believe that this was BYU's 5th consecutive trip to the city of sin. You would think that most of the BYU followers wouldn't approve of a trip and game played in a location that stands for almost everything they don't believe should be allowed, but hey i guess there out to prove us wrong as they have managed to knock off a Pac-10 school 3 out of the 5 times.
Christmas day is oh so close and its already time to hand out some gifts...
Lets start of with some surprise individual player awards. These guys might not have been the sexiest picks in the nation but they could be the most deserving. Almost the equivalent of receiving socks and underwear on Christmas morning, you need it, but its not what you wanted..
- Freshman of the Year- Austyn Carta-Samuels Wyoming QB. (1,953 yds, 10 tds, 115.97 rating, 366 rush yds, 3 tds) First off the kid has a name. He also led the cowboys to there first winning record and bowl game since 2004. The dual-threat qb also managed to catch a 30-yard td and record a 36-yard punt
- Player of the Year- Ricky Dobbs Navy QB. (901 yds, 5 tds, 1026 rush yds, 24 tds) Dobbs who has broken the single season FBS record for rushing tds in a season could also join an elite group this season if he passes for 99 yards in the bowl game(1000 yds rushing and passing in a season) While accumulating all of these stats Dobbs lead Navy to wins over Notre Dame and Army while almost upsetting Ohio St. in Week 1.
- Deffensive Player of the Year- Rahim Moore UCLA FS. (9 ints, 46 tackles, 7 psbu, 4 tfl, 1 sack) Only a sophmore Rahim lead the entire ncaa with 9 ints. Helped lead UCLA to a bowl game and a top-30 defense.
- Team of the Year- Temple (9-3, MAC East Champion, Invited to EagleBank Bowl) Temple started the 2009 season off with a Thursday night loss to cross town FCS foe Villi nova on a last second field goal. At that point many thought there was no chance head coach Al Golden could rebuild the program. However 9 wins later the Owls made it to the MAC Championship game and a bowl game for the first time in 30-years.
Closing thougth: A big thanks goes out to South Alabama as last night they knocked off the #18 Florida Gators in Gainsville. Sure Billy Donovan's squads haven't been the same since the back-to-back championships, but anytime an underdog wins on the road it is impressive. The Sun Belt has flexed its muscle when it comes to SEC schools as this is the second ranked team to fall from the Mid-Major conference. (Western Kentucky defeated #24 Vanderbilt last week)
Andrew Likes:
- #23 Utah vs California San Diego County Credit Union Poinsettia Bowl. 8pm ESPN-Utah shocked the nation last bowl season by knocking of Alabama in the sugar bowl. California will be with out Jahvid Beast. Utah 31 Cal 24
- #21 Ole Miss at #6 West Virgina Mens Bball 7:30 pm ESPN2- A quality basketball matchup here. The Rebels who have to be glad its almost full basketball season have only one loss to the higher ranked Villanova. West Virgina is lead by a 3-forward monster trio of Devin Ebanks, Kevin Jones, and De'Sean Butler. If Ole Miss cant contain them there in trouble. WVU by 9
- FAU at Georgia Mens Bball 7pm PPV- My beloved Owls take the road here at UGA after getting blown out by Miami in Sunrise. Georgia just knocked off Illinois in a big game and are relying on F Trey Tompkins (15.9 ppg). FAU will most likely have some struggles guarding Tompkins. If G Ray Taylor can score and dish the ball around, FAU may catch Georgia napping for the Holidays. UGA by 7
