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The Most Exciting Bowl Matchups

The 40 bowl game matchups have been announced. Some games are attractive because of their importance but might not be all that close. Consider Washington versus Alabama in the Peach Bowl. It’s a playoff semifinal, so it’s a very big deal, more important than every other bowl game but one. However, Alabama might crush Washington, so it’s not a game one should expect to be exciting. The best games are the ones which are attractive in terms of the matchup yet also figure to be close. Here are the four best guesses in that regard:

Ohio State vs. Clemson

Fiesta Bowl

The other playoff semifinal – not Washington-Alabama – is the one that figures to be special. Clemson beat Ohio State in a very tough 2014 Orange Bowl. Coach Dabo Swinney of Clemson and Urban Meyer of Ohio State know each other well. Clemson’s Deshaun Watson is the hotter quarterback right now, as a Heisman Trophy finalist, whereas no member of the Buckeyes was selected as a finalist for the award. However, Ohio State head coach Urban Meyer is excellent with extra time off to prepare. He should be able to get his own quarterback, J.T. Barrett, to play at a high level. Assuming Barrett does, we could be in for a classic shootout similar to the 45-40 game in which Alabama beat Clemson for last year’s national title. This time, if a shootout does occur, Watson and Clemson hope to be on the winning side. This game should be quite entertaining, and neither team figures to run away with the game in the second half.

Florida State vs. Michigan

Orange Bowl

This is a game which is very hard to predict, and that’s what makes it so interesting. Is Michigan the team which struggled past Indiana or the team which flattened Penn State and limited Wisconsin to just seven points? Is Florida State the team which blasted South Florida on the road and played Clemson even, or is this the team which lost by 43 to Louisville and played spotty defense against North Carolina?

Michigan has a great run defense. Florida State has running back Dalvin Cook, one of the best and most agile running backs in all of college football. Florida State’s defense has struggled for much of the season, but Michigan and quarterback Wilton Speight became less effective as the latter part of the season arrived. Speight was injured enough in November that he missed the Indiana game, which came one week before the regular season finale against Ohio State. This is a game in which strength goes against strength and weakness against weakness.

Penn State vs. USC

Rose Bowl

USC has won eight in a row. Penn State has won nine in a row. USC changed its quarterback from Max Browne to Sam Darnold early in the season, renewing the team and its offense. Penn State stuck by quarterback Trace McSorley and has been rewarded for his continued development. The Nittany Lions have great receivers. The Trojans have strong defensive backs such as Adoree Jackson. The key question in this game: Can Penn State power USC off the ball and win a highly physical game?

LSU vs. Louisville

Citrus Bowl

This is a matchup of Leonard Fournette of LSU and the Cardinals’ shaky rush defense. This is a matchup of Bobby Petrino and Ed Orgeron; in other words, an established coach versus a coach entering his first game as the permanent head coach of LSU. This is a clash between Lamar Jackson, a Heisman finalist, and LSU’s strong defense led by coordinator Dave Aranda. This is a blockbuster game even though it’s not part of the New Year’s Six collection of bowls.

At this point, it’s very likely that Jackson will have won the Heisman Trophy and this will be the biggest stage that he’s had to shine to this point. On top of that, he gets to go against an SEC defense. And don’t forget that LSU has some intriguing talent on their side of the ball too with a few members from their roster being projected for the first round of NFL Drafts. This will be one game you won’t want to miss.

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Written by Geoff Harvey

Geoff Harvey has been creating odds and betting models since his days in the womb, just don't ask him how he used to get his injury reports back then. Harvey contributes a wealth of quality and informational content that is a valuable resource for any handicapper.

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