Still, I've been doing this for a while and it was no problem transitioning from one game to another, also catching some NFL football and the endings of the bowl games.
First game of the day in a nearly empty Camping World Stadium in Orlando Really empty.
I watched the first quarter of this one, then moved on to the next. The Ragin' Cajuns opened the scoring and then it was pretty much all Tulane. The Green Wave found little opposition from the Ragin' Cajuns defense, rushing for a Cure bowl record 483 yards. My wife was kind of upset with the announcers constantly saying "Ragin' Cajuns." She wanted to know whey they couldn't just say "Cajuns." Because they're the Ragin' Cajuns babe, and the should always play in the New Orleans Bowl.
Actually two teams from southern Louisiana should have been in the New Orleans bowl. Bowl games make no sense.
Tulane 41 Louisiana-Lafayette 24
What Did I Eat: Nothing, although I did have a Queen City sausage extra hot mett before the game.
Bowl Swag: Holloway Force jacket; sunglasses with carry case; Energizer powerbank; duffle bag; Pebble Beach slides; dopp kit; Sportek long-sleeve contender T-shirt; cap. Pretty ho-hum stuff for a nothing game.
Game Grade: 1 star.
My pick: Ragin' Cajuns
New Mexico Bowl - Utah State vs North Texas
Picked up this game in the first quarter, watched the entire second quarter and then checked back from time to time.
This was a trip to the woodshed for the Mean Green. Utah State's coach took the job at Texas Tech and took all his coordinators with him. It didn't phase the Aggies at all. They ran and passed all over North Texas, led by quarterback Jordan Love. They also knocked out the North Texas quarterback and ran the back up out of the game.
Playing at altitude didn't suit the Mean Green either, they were gassed by the half.
Utah State gave my Michigan State Spartans all they could handle in the season opener and was one of the Spartans best wins.
Utah State 52 North Texas 13
What Did I Eat: Nothing
Bowl Swag: Gift suite; Oakley Jupiter Squared sunglasses; Oakley 5 Speed backpack; Bluetooth speaker; water bottle; beanie; Montgomery pen; Pacific Headwear trucker’s cap. A pen? Do students even write things by hand any longer?
Rating: 2 stars, just because it was fun watching Utah State run their offense so well.
My Pick: Utah State
I came into this game as soon as the New Mexico Bowl went to halftime. It stayed close in the first half although my wife said it was boring.
This was a nice showcase for Fresno State's Ronnie Rivers who ran for 212 yards and two touchdowns. Jeff Tedford has done a great job in Fresno, racking up a 22-6 record in his two seasons as head coach and he will be back on the radar for a power five school soon.
This game also had a connection to my Spartans, who lost to the Sun Devils in the desert heat back in September. MSU is the only Big 10 team that continually plays early season games in the west and falls prey to bad play and the heat.
Fresno State 31 Arizona State 20
What Did I Eat: Some Kroger spicy Cajun snack mix. I guess I should have had that during the Cure bowl
Bowl Swag: Las Vegas Bowl: Gift suite; collectible Las Vegas item TBD; dad hat; beanie; fanny pack. Gift to be determined? Weak.
Rating: 3-stars. This is almost always the best game of the first round of games.
My pick: Fresno State
I hit the first quarter here from spectacular Cramton Bowl in Montgomery, Alabama. Not much heat in this match up. Georgia Southern held the lead at the half but Eastern came back to the take the lead in the game late. Georgia Southern got the ball back with enough time and kicked the game winning field goal in a game that turned out to be the best of the day. Sometimes you just never know where the good play is going to come from.
There was a pretty nice crowd for this game, thanks to a loud So. Georgia fan base.
Georgia Southern 23 Eastern Michigan 21
What Did I Eat: Nothing
Bowl Swag: Gift suite; Fossil watch; Samsonite rolling duffel bag; beanie; Big Game football. You'd think football players would have plenty of footballs. We'll see a lot of Fossil watches all the way through BowlQuest.
Rating - 3.5 stars
My pick: Georgia Southern
New Orleans Bowl - Appalachian State vs Middle Tennessee State
This game has the night to itself and while it should have been Tulane and the Ragin' Cajuns, we get the Mountaineers and whatever the MTSU mascot is (being told its Blue Raiders, whatever that is).
I was pretty tired of games and made it to somewhere in the middle of the second quarter before tapping out. Another rout. App State receiver Malik Williams threw for two touchdowns if that gives you any idea how easy it was for the Mountaineers.
It was another game where a head coach, App State's, left for another job, Louisville. Didn't bother the team at all.
The story going into the game was the MTSU quarterback Brent Stockstill playing his last game for his dad who is the head coach. Nice story, not so nice outcome.
App State 45 Middle Tennessee 13
What Did I Eat: A bunch of shrimp with some really spicy cocktail sauce. My wife bought the shrimp precooked so it needed to be eaten and I was the guy for the job. Probably about three shrimp too many.
Bowl Swag: Gift suite; Fossil watch. Another watch.
Rating - 1 star, this one was never really a game.
My pick: App State
Not a bad start, 4-1 in the first five game. Next game, the Boca Raton bowl Tuesday night.
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