New Era Pinstripe Bowl: Miami (7-5) vs. Wisconsin (7-5)
Date: Thursday, Dec. 27 | Time: 5:15 p.m. ET | Channel: ESPN
Many people would have believed that the Miami Hurricanes and the Wisconsin Badgers could’ve been in the College Football Playoff picture. The former figured to be one of the best teams in the ACC while the latter figured to run away with the Big Ten West and have a chance of winning that conference. That’s not how things played out for either team, however, as they now face off in the Pinstripe Bowl inside Yankee Stadium.
Though Miami has a great defense and talent on offense, they have proven to have issues this year against teams that rely heavily on the run, and can do so while moving the ball effectively. Jonathan Taylor and Wisconsin fit that bill to absolute perfection, and that should propel them past the Hurricanes in this game.
Prediction: Miami 28, Wisconsin 31
Academy Sports + Outdoors Texas Bowl: Baylor (6-6) vs. Vanderbilt (6-6)
Date: Thursday, Dec. 27 | Time: 9:00 p.m. ET | Channel: ESPN
Neither the Baylor Bears nor the Vanderbilt Commodores were able to pick up the big win that they were looking for this season against top-tier competition in their conference. However, both teams did prove good enough to be able to earn bowl eligibility and will now face off in the Texas Bowl in what is actually quite an intriguing matchup.
With the way that these two defenses have played this season, you can expect both the Bears and Commodores to put up points on the board. Having said that, I have more faith in Kyle Shurmur at the helm of the Vandy offense to make a big play down the stretch. He’s the more veteran player with the better track record going against a slightly worse defense, which should be the difference in this matchup.
Prediction: Baylor 31, Vanderbilt 35