College Football Week 16 – Five Bowl Games Saturday
It came upon a bowl game clear

Touchdown Tom’s predicting
Are you listening?
On the field, the teams are glistening
The bowls are alright
We’re happy tonight
Picking all the teams that will win


Touchdown Tom’s Annual Bowl Game Predictions:

New Mexico Bowl – Albuquerque, New Mexico
(University Stadium)
2:00 pm ET, December 19 – ESPN
Rich Rod sings “La Bamba”
Arizona 34, New Mexico 28

Las Vegas Bowl – Las Vegas, Nevada
(Sam Boyd Stadium)
3:30 pm ET, December 19 – ABC
The Utes throw a BYOB party. BYU can’t come
Utah 30, BYU 29

Camellia Bowl – Montgomery, Alabama
(Cramton Bowl)
5:30 pm ET, December 19 – ESPN
The Little Eers beat the Little Tails
Appalachian State 26, Ohio 24

Cure Bowl – Orlando, Florida
(Orlando Citrus Bowl Stadium)
7:00 pm ET, December 19 – CBSSN
Nothing Fatty about this Arbuckle
Georgia State 25, San Jose State 23

New Orleans Bowl – New Orleans, Louisiana
(Mercedes-Benz Superdome)
9 pm ET, December 19 – ESPN
Driskel sings “How Do You Like Me Now,” Florida
Louisiana Tech 35, Arkansas State 34

Miami Beach Bowl – Miami, Florida
(Marlins Park)
2:30 pm ET, December 21 – ESPN
These Bulls aren’t lonely
South Florida 30, Western Kentucky 27

Famous Idaho Potato Bowl – Boise, Idaho
(Albertson’s Stadium)
3:30 pm ET, December 22 – ESPN
The Aggies burn some rubber
Utah State 20, Akron 14

Boca Raton Bowl – Boca Raton, Florida
(FAU Stadium)
7 pm ET, December 22 – ESPN
The Owls Rhule
Temple 22, Toledo 19

Poinsettia Bowl – San Diego, California
(Qualcomm Stadium)
4:30 pm ET, December 23 – ESPN
Horse sense
Boise State 31, Northern Illinois 21

Go Daddy Bowl – Mobile Alabama
(Ladd-Peebles Stadium)
8 pm ET, December 23 – ESPN
Freddie the Falcon says: “That’s what it sounds like when Eagles cry”
Bowling Green 33, Georgia Southern 25

Bahamas Bowl – Nassau, Bhahmas
(Thomas A. Robinson National Stadium)
12 noon ET, December 24 – ESPN
There’s a reason the Raiders are Blue
Western Michigan 32, Middle Tennessee 30

Hawaii Bowl – Honolulu, Hawaii
(Aloha Stadium)
8 pm ET, December 24 – ESPN
Gunner Kiel’s over
San Diego State 28, Cincinnati 26

St. Petersburg Bowl – St. Petersburg, Florida
(Tropicana Field)
11 am ET, December 26 – ESPN
A Connecticut Husky disrupts King Marco’s Court
Connecticut 25, Marshall 20

Sun Bowl – El Paso, Texas
(Sun Bowl Stadium)
2 pm ET, December 26 – CBS
Luke is no fluke, but Brad’s just a fad
Washington State 36, Miami (Florida) 34

Heart of Dallas Bowl – Dallas, Texas
(Cotton Bowl Stadium)
2:20 pm ET, December 26 – ESPN
The Husky has the heart of a winner
Washington 30, Southern Miss 20

Pinstripe Bowl – Bronx, New York
(Yankee Stadium)
3:30 pm ET, December 26 – ABC
Is this a football game?
It’s the Dookies at the buzzer
Duke 35, Indiana 32

Independence Bowl – Shreveport, Louisiana
(Independence Stadium)
5:45 pm ET, December 26 – ESPN
The Hokies trot through the Hurricane
Virginia Tech 32, Tulsa 17

Foster Farms Bowl – Santa Clara, California
(Levi’s Stadium)
9:15 pm ET, December 26 – ESPN
Can’t grow Corn on Foster’s Farm
UCLA 34, Nebraska 28

Military Bowl – Annapolis, Maryland
(Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium)
2:30 pm ET, December 28 – ESPN
The Middies take the Panthers on a Chesapeake Bay cruise
Navy 29, Pitt 27

Quick Lane Bowl – Detroit, Michigan
(Ford Field)
5 pm ET, December 28 – ESPN2
The Gophers dip the Chips
Minnesota 27, Central Michigan 26

Armed Forces Bowl – Fort Worth, Texas
(Amon G. Carter Stadium)
2 pm ET, December 29 – ESPN
The Fly Boys can’t plug the Dykes
California 31, Air Force 25

Russell Athletic Bowl – Orlando, Florida
(Orlando Citrus Bowl Stadium)
5:30 pm ET, December 29 – ESPN
The Smurfs flunk Art class
Baylor 34, North Carolina 30

Arizona Bowl – Tucson, Arizona
(Arizona Stadium)
7:30 pm ET, December 29 – ASN
The Rams scatter the Pack
Colorado State 26, Nevada 22

Texas Bowl – Houston, Texas
(NRG Stadium)
9 pm ET, December 29 – ESPN
The Red Raiders lose that smile
Because all the while
The Tigers can see for Miles
LSU 37, Texas Tech 35

Birmingham Bowl – Birmingham, Alabama
(Legion Field)
12 noon ET, December 30 – ESPN
Amazing what you can do when Muschamp is gone
Auburn 27, Memphis 24

Belk Bowl – Charlotte, North Carolina
(Bank of America Stadium)
3:30 pm ET, December 30 – ESPN
Dapper Dan sours the Howlers
Mississippi State 35, NC State 26

Music City Bowl – Nashville, Tennessee
(LP Field)
7 pm ET, December 30 – ESPN
The Aggies harmonize
Texas A&M 25, Louisville 23

Holiday Bowl – San Diego, California
(Qualcomm Stadium)
10:30 pm ET, December 30 – ESPN
The Cheese goes soft
USC 27, Wisconsin 20

Peach Bowl – Atlanta, Georgia (CFP/NY6)
(Georgia Dome)
12 noon ET, December 31 – ESPN
Sammy’s a peach; Shasta’s a pit
Florida State 37, Houston 29

Orange Bowl – Miami Gardens, Florida (CFP Semifinal No. 1)
(Sun Life Stadium)
8 pm ET, December 31 – ESPN
Stoops remembers
Oklahoma 35, Clemson 33

Cotton Bowl – Arlington, Texas (CFP Semifinal No. 2)
(AT&T Stadium)
4 pm ET, December 31 – ESPN
Saban never loses to a former assistant
Alabama 26, Michigan State 16

Outback Bowl – Tampa, Florida
(Raymond James Stadium)
12 noon ET, January 1 – ESPN2
Smokey sniffs out a Wildcat
Tennessee 17, Northwestern 14

Citrus Bowl – Orlando, Florida
(Orlando Citrus Bowl Stadium)
1 pm ET, January 1 – ABC
Harbaugh traps a Gator
Michigan 16, Florida 14

Fiesta Bowl – Glendale, Arizona (CFP/NY6)
(University of Phoenix Stadium)
1 pm EST, January 1 – ESPN
Brutus spikes the holy water
Ohio State 26, Notre Dame 18

Rose Bowl – Pasadena, California (CFP/NY6)
(Rose Bowl Stadium)
5 pm ET, January 1 – ESPN
Roses grow on Trees
Stanford 20, Iowa 17

Sugar Bowl – New Orleans, Louisiana (CFP/NY6)
(Mercedes-Benz Superdome)
8:30 pm ET, January 1 – ESPN
Chip Kelly can’t ride a horse
Oklahoma State 31, Ole Miss 30

Tax Slayer Gator Bowl – Jacksonville, Florida
(EverBank Field)
12 noon ET, January 2 – ESPN
Uga is a Lion slayer
Georgia 22, Penn State 16

Liberty Bowl – Memphis, Tennessee
(Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium)
3:20 pm ET, January 2 – ESPN
Bielema jumps on his wife
Arkansas 33, Kansas State 27

Alamo Bowl – San Antonio, Texas
(Alamodome)
6:45 pm ET, January 2 – ESPN
Kermit’s green
Oregon 27, TCU 23

Cactus Bowl – Tempe, Arizona
(Chase Field)
10:15 pm ET, January 2 – ESPN
The Devil burns the Musket
Arizona State 33, West Virginia 30

College Football Playoff National Championship – Glendale, Arizona
(University of Phoenix Stadium)
8:30 pm ET, January 11 – ESPN
Bob Stoops was never a Saban assistant
Oklahoma 21, Alabama 18

Touchdown Tom
December 14, 2015
www.collegefootballweek.blogspot.com


Weekend Recap

What’s new? – Navy 21, Army 17 (Touchdown Tom said: Navy 31, Army 16). Navy does this all the time – for the 14th-straight time. But Army did make it close this year. I suspect that was because Navy coach Ken Niumatalolo appeared to have his head in Salt Lake City instead of Philadelphia. Navy’s play calling was awfully conservative. Navy finished its season at 10-2. Attendance in Philadelphia: 69,722

Week 15 Pick: 1 correct, 0 wrong (100%)
Season Results: 162 correct, 80 wrong (67%)


Heisman Trophy Presentation:

Alabama running back Derrick Henry won the Heisman Trophy at the presentation ceremonies in New York Saturday night. Henry received 1,832 points. Stanford running back Christian McCaffrey came in second with 1,539 points. Clemson quarterback Deshaun Watson was third with 1,165 points. Oklahoma quarterback Baker Mayfield (334 points) was fourth and Navy quarterback Keenan Reynolds was fifth (180 points).


FCS Quarterfinals:

Jacksonville State 58, Charleston Southern 38
Richmond 39, Illinois State 27
Sam Houston State 48, Colgate 21
North Dakota State 23, Northern Iowa 13


Division II Semifinals:

Shepherd 34, Grand Valley State 32
Northwest Missouri State 38, West Georgia 23


Division III Semifinals:

Mount Union 36, Wisconsin-Whitewater 6
St. Thomas 38, Linfield 17


Quotes of the Week

“Hiring Will Muschamp is like going to the dog pound and picking out that dog that’s forming at the mouth,” an Auburn caller on the Paul Finebaum Show.

“For whatever reason down at Florida the offense never quite got going, but I’m sure he learned a lot and he’s ready to go,” Steve Spurrier, on Will Muschamp’s new job at South Carolina.


Signs of the Week

Why Army Doesn’t Have Its Own Website? They Can’t String Together 3 Ws

I Tried To Change My Password To Navy, But Gmail Said It Was Too Weak

Army Was The Underdog In 1776

Battleship Is A Stupid Game


In the Huddle

Elsewhere around college football . . . Third-year Temple coach Matt Rhule got a six-year contract extension. Under Rhule, Temple has gone from 2-10, to 6-6, to 10-3 in three seasons…. South Carolina signed Will Muschamp to a five-year, $16 million deal, paying Muschamp $3.2 million a year…. Georgia signed Kirby Smart to a six-year deal.

Tennessee special teams coach Mark Elder was named the new coach at Eastern Kentucky…. Temple linebacker Tyler Metakevich won the Bronko Nagurski Award as the nation’s best defensive back, and the Bednarik Award as the nation’s top defensive player…. Former South Carolina coach Steve Spurrier donated his final paycheck from the University ($70,000 plus) to the Gamecocks Club.

Bowling Green hired Texas Tech associate head coach Mike Jinks as its new coach…. Georgia Southern coach Willie Fritz is the new football coach at Tulane…. Former Rutgers and Tampa Bay Bucs coach Greg Schiano is the new defensive coordinator at Ohio State…. Fordham coach Joe Moorhead is the new offensive coordinator at Penn State.

University of Maryland regents voted to change the name of the 65-year-old home of the Terrapins from Byrd Stadium to Maryland Stadium. The stadium was named after former university president H.C. “Curley” Byrd. Byrd was president of Maryland from 1935 to 1954. He was a noted supporter of segregation. A student-led initiative spurred the regents to change the name.

The five priciest bowls in the country, according to what tickets are going for on SeatGeek and StubHub are the Rose Bowl (Stanford-Iowa) $691; the Orange Bowl (Clemson-Oklahoma) $333; the Cotton Bowl (Alabama-Michigan State) $323; the Fiesta Bowl (Ohio State-Notre Dame) $226, and the Citrus Bowl (Michigan-Florida) $169…. Pitt offensive coordinator Jim Chaney is the new OC at Georgia…. Duke offensive coordinator Scottie Montgomery was named the new coach at East Carolina.

Touchdown Tom
www.collegefootballweek.blogspot.com


P.S.

Not exactly college football related, but there were five passings of note last week – Ray Gandolf, Dolph Schayes, Bonnie Lou, John Williams and Marjorie Lord.

Ray Gandolf, a sportscaster for CBS who went on to work for ABC, died last week at his home in New York City. He was 85. An experienced actor, Gandolf broke into television news in the early 1960s. He began as a news writer before he started reporting sports and anchoring segments in 1974. In 1979, he became the sportscaster for “Sunday Morning” a CBS news program. He left CBS to become the weekend sports anchor for ABC in the early 1980s. In 1986, he co-hosted a show with Linda Ellerbee called “Our World.” “Our World” went off the air in 1987. Gandolf retired from ABC in the early 1990s. Raymond Gandolf was born on April 2, 1930, in Norwalk, Ohio. He received a bachelor’s degree in speech from Northwestern in the early 1950s. He went to New York City where he worked in the theater until the early 1960s.

Dolph Schayes, who polished his game on the Bronx playgrounds and played 15 seasons in the NBA, died last week in Syracuse. He was 87. At 6-feet, 8-inches and 220 pounds, Schayes played the position now known as power forward, becoming a stalwart for the Syracuse Nationals from 1949 to 1963, after earning All-American status at NYU. When the Nationals became the Philadelphia 76ers in 1963-64, he was the player-coach. Over his 15 seasons in the NBA, Schayes averaged 18.2 points and 10.2 rebounds a game. He made 84.9 percent of his free throws during his career. Adolph Schayes was born on May 19, 1928, in New York City. In 1945, as a freshman, he helped NYU reach the NCAA finals, where it lost to Oklahoma A&M (now Oklahoma State). In 1948, as a senior, he became an All-American and earned a degree in aeronautical engineering.

Bonnie Lou, a singer who achieved national stardom in the 1950s by singing and recording country and rockabilly hits and performing on television and radio, died last week in Cheviot, Ohio. She was 91. Bonnie Lou, a talented banjo and guitar player who sang and yodeled, began working on country radio as a teenager. She signed on to WLW-AM, a Cincinnati radio station, in the 1940s and stayed with the station after it expanded into television. She became a regular on “Midwestern Hayride,” a country music variety program that was broadcast nationally on NBC in the 1950s. She remained with the show until it went off the air in 1972. Bonnie Lou’s breakout hits in the 1950s, “Seven Lonely Days” and “Tennessee Wig Walk,” reached the Top 10 on Billboard’s Country Chart in 1953. Her rockabilly song “Daddy-O,” released two years later made it to No. 14 on Billboard’s Pop chart. Her television schedule kept her from touring extensively, and she passed on a deal that would have brought her to New York and, perhaps, greater fame. She recorded more albums and made rockabilly versions of Bob Dylan’s “Blowin’ in the Wind” and Credence Clearwater Revival’s “Proud Mary.” Bonnie Lou was born Mary Joan Kath on October 27, 1924, in Towanda, Illinois. Her parents were farmers. She won a local talent contest at age 15 and a year later was singing on the radio in Bloomington, Indiana. At 18, she sang with a group called the Rhythm Rangers on KMBC in Kansas City, before moving to WLW. The name Bonnie Lou was invented by WLW’s station manager.

John Williams, a versatile sixth man for the Cleveland Cavaliers, died last week in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. He was 53. Williams, better known by the nickname Hot Rod, was a solid shooter and dogged defender during his 13 seasons in the NBA. Williams was drafted by the Cavaliers when he was embroiled in a point-shaving scandal that shut down Tulane University’s basketball program for several years. Williams was born on August 9, 1962, in Sorrento, Louisiana, near Baton Rouge. He was drafted by the Cavaliers in 1985. He left Cleveland after the 1994-95 season and played for the Phoenix suns and the Dallas Mavericks, retiring in 1999.

Marjorie Lord, an actress who achieved success as Danny Thomas’ wife on the comedy series “The Danny Thomas Show,” died last week at her home in Beverly Hills. She was 97. Lord played Bob Hope’s wife in the 1966 movie “Boy, Did I Get the Wrong Number!” She also kept busy on television with roles on “The Love Boat,” “Fantasy Island” and other shows. She also acted in several Broadway plays. Marjorie Wollenberg was born in San Francisco on July 26, 1918. Her family moved to New York City when she was a teenager. She began her movie career in “Border Café” and “Forty Naughty Girls,” both released in 1937. She later appeared in “Johnny Come Lately” and “Sherlock Holmes in Washington,” both released in 1943.