For true college football fans, there’s only two seasons in a year, regular season and bowl season. This year saw some major surprises that no one could have predicted. Though Bowl season has already begun, the top teams have yet to play, and the excitement is building leading to the January 6 meeting between the Noles’ and the Tigers.
The Rose Bowl
Beautiful Pasadena, CA will be the scene of the first of the big four bowls which used to alternate as the National Championship Game. The Fifth Ranked Stanford Cardinals will challenge the fourth Ranked Michigan State Spartans. The Spartans upset the previously unbeaten Ohio State Buckeyes to win the Big Ten conference and play in the rose bowl. The Spartans are 12-1 but the 11-2 Cardinals have a defense that stuffed an Explosive Oregon ducks team earlier this season. Look for the Cardinals’ hard nose style to overpower Michigan State in a 21-13 Stanford victory.
- Date and time: January 1st, 4:30 PM EST
- Kickoff: 5:10 p.m. EST
- TV channel: ESPN
The Fiesta Bowl
Glendale, Arizona will host the 2014 Fiesta Bowl on New Year’s Day at 8:30 P.M. The 12-1 Baylor Bears and heavy favorites against the fifteenth ranked University if Central Florida Knights. The Knights are 11-1 but they’ve had recent near misses against meager competition. The Bears should win this one handily and cover the 17.5 point spread.
The Sugar Bowl
On January 2 at 8:30 P.M. the eleventh ranked Sooners will travel to New Orleans, Louisiana to challenge the third ranked Alabama Crimson tide. After losing a heart breaking 34-28 loss to the Auburn Tigers in the Iron Bowl, The 12-1 Crimson Tide will be looking to take punish the 10-2 Sooners. The Oklahoma Sooners Beat the High Flying Oklahoma State Cowboys in their last game of the season but they won’t match up well against the Tide. Look for an angry Alabama team to dominate the grid iron and win by at least a touchdown.
The Orange Bowl
Miami Florida will host the 2104 Orange Bowl On January 3 at 8:30 on ESPN. The Clemson tigers are 11-2 and they didn’t even win the ACC but their high flying offense still make them very formidable. The seventh ranked Ohio State buckeyes had their national championship dreams dashed by the Spartans in the big ten Championship game and they will look to redeem themselves vs. the Tigers. The Buck Eyes 4th ranked run game may prove to be too much for the tigers to handle and their high flying offense could be grounded.
#1 Florida State Seminoles Vs. #2 Auburn Tigers
- Date and time: January 6th, 8:30 PM EST
- TV channel: ESPN
The Tournament of Roses National Championship Game will be played on January 6 in Pasadena, CA. The Tigers are the SEC champions which makes an astounding 9 straight appearances for that conference. This will also make Auburn’s second appearance in four years after they defeated Alabama on the last play of regulation in the Iron Bowl. The Seminoles are the nation’s top ranked team because they are the only legitimate competitor to remain undefeated all season. They have looked like the best team in the nation for quite some time now, and they come into the game scoring an amazing 53 points per and allowing only 10.7. Freshman Quarterback Jameis Winston may be the best player in the nation and he has passes for over 3,800 yards with 38 TD’s. Auburn has run all over everyone they’ve played this season and they sport the Nation’s number 1 rush attack. They accounted for a quarter of the rushing yards Alabama gave up all season and their offensive line is the best in the country. Number 21 Tre’ Mason will have to have a big day if the Tigers are to defeat the Seminoles.
Auburn needed a 108 yard field goal return to defeat Alabama and a Hail Mary to defeat Georgia. Their luck could run out as they face a Seminoles team that has won its games by a 6 touchdown average this season. Auburn is actually favored by as many as 8 points but they’ve had to squeak out victories whereas the Seminoles have thumped everyone they’ve played. Auburn’s one dimensional running game won’t be able to muster enough points to keep up with Jamaeis Wilson and the Seminoles offense. The Tiger’s quarterback Nick Marshall will have to throw to be successful and the Seminoles have the most interceptions in the country this season. Look for the Seminoles to pull away late and dominate the fourth quarter. The final score will be 30 to 42 with the National Championship going to Florida State for the second time in the history.
