Goin Bowlin' Previews -Emerald Bowl

Okay, so I've previewed a couple of bowl games so far this season, and claimed they were big time games.

I was lying.

What? Don't look at me like that. At least I'm admitting it.

Today though, I'm being serious. We finally have an interesting matchup involving two schools from top notch conferences. The Emerald Bowl is tonight in San Francisco, and it features UCLA and Florida State.

Granted, Florida State has had a down year when compared to its programs standards, but I'd still rather watch the Seminoles than Middle Tennessee State.

So far, after eight games I'm 6-2, which proves I should have been picking college games this season instead of the NFL.

Live and learn, I guess.

UCLA Bruins (8-4) vs. Florida State Seminoles (6-6)-ESPN 8PM Est.

The story for this season's Seminoles has been the same as it has been over the last few years. Great defense. Oakland Raider-esque offense. Abysmal. Horrid. It hasn't been fun to watch. It was so horrible that offensive coordinator, and coach's son, Jeff Bowden resigned during the season.

Their biggest problem is the offensive line. They've given up 25 sacks this season, and due to their inability to block, the Seminoles just don't run the ball at all anymore. When they do, they get nowhere. It'd be nice if they had a quarterback to mask that problem, but they don't. Hell, I'm not even sure who's starting for FSU tonight. Will it be Drew Weatherford or Xavier Lee? Lee replaced Weatherford after he went down with an injury, but neither of them looked very impressive at any point this season. FSU's biggest threat could be WR Greg Carr. The 6'6 Carr could provide a lot of favorable matchups against the UCLA secondary. Of course, the Seminole line will have to give their QB time to exploit them.

The UCLA defense won't make things that easy for the Seminoles. Remember, this defense held the explosive offense of USC to 9 points in the Bruins upset win in their last game. The Bruins pass rush is salivating at the opportunity to go against this Seminole line. DE's Justin Hickman and Bruce Davis combined for 25 sacks, and 35.5 tackles for loss on the season. If the Bruins eliminate the Seminole running "attack" early, those two could have a field day.

On offense, the Bruins don't really scare anybody. The quarterback position has been iffy since Ben Olson went out with a knee injury and was replaced by Pat Cowan. Cowan has showed some leadership ability lately, but needs to cut down on the turnovers. He has 7 interceptions to go along with his 9 touchdowns.

Running back Chris Markey could be the difference maker for the Bruin offense. He leads the team in rushing yards and receptions. If the Bruins are to have success on offense, they're going to have to run the ball right into the Seminole front seven.

The Seminoles are one of the fastest, most athletic defenses in the nation, ranked 8th overall. They aren't that big, though. The linebacking trio of Buster Davis, Geno Hayes, and Lawrence Timmons will be responsible for holding the Bruins run game to a minimum.

I expect this game to be a low-scoring defensive affair. Whichever team suffers the least amount of turnovers is probably going to win this one. We think that will be the Bruins.

PREDICTION: UCLA 17 Florida State 10