January 2 College Bowl Picks: Armed Forces, Taxslayer, Alamo, Cactus
By Joe Micik
Back to picking games the normal way: according to a half-baked sliver of logic rather than doing the opposite of the ol’ gut instinct.
The January 2 college bowl picks include four games: the Armed Forces Bowl, the Taxslayer Bowl, the Alamo Bowl, and the Cactus Bowl.
One of these games might even turn out to be good.
January 2 College Bowl Picks: Armed Forces Bowl
Houston vs. Pittsburgh (-3) | Fort Worth, TX | 12pm ET (ESPN)
This was the game we identified as being the most unwatchable of the ACC bowl games. Nothing has happened in the last few weeks to change that view.
Neither one of these teams is all that good, and the game should reflect that. Pittsburgh has a tremendous rusher in James Conner, but the Panthers were up and down all year in very frustrating fashion. After starting 3-0, Pitt lost six of seven before pulling the last two games out of their collective keister to make a bowl.
Houston would appear at first glance to have the better defense (19.5 ppg allowed) this season, but they also played an AAC schedule. Their best win was a resurgent Memphis team.
One thing that sticks out as bad for the Cougars is that a run-heavy team like BYU have gashed them on the ground, but otherwise they have kept it manageable. Go with the more local team in a low-scoring game.
Pick: Houston