The Weekend in Bowling - Saturday

PapaJohns.com Bowl

Southern Mississippi Golden Eagles (7-5) vs. Cincinnati Bearcats (9-3)

Legion Field, Birmingham, AL

December 22, 12:00 PM CT, ESPN 2

Why does Papa Johns sponsor a bowl in Birmingham? Is the state of Alabama known for their Italian cuisine? If a restaurant chain was going to sponsor a bowl in Birmingham, wouldn't you think it would be Cracker Barrel or Waffle House? Shouldn't this game be played in Louisville at Papa John's Cardinal Stadium? So many important questions, so few answers.

If you asked John Madden or Peter King, they'd tell you that Brett Favre could provide the answers. But Brett is a little ticked off at his alma mater after they pushed out long-time head coach Jeff Bower. Cincy probably wouldn't have had that hard of a time with Southern Miss even if the whole program was on the same page.

Biased Pick: Cincinnati 14, Southern Mississippi 4 (Pete Rose over Brett Favre, bet on it)

Actual Pick: Cincinnati 35, Southern Mississippi 21

New Mexico Bowl

Nevada Wolf Pack (6-6) vs. New Mexico Lobos (8-4)

University Stadium, Albuquerque, NM

December 22, 3:30 PM CT, ESPN

I can't tell if the State of New Mexico sponsors this bowl or if it doesn't haven't a sponsor and just decided to name the game after the state. If the game doesn't have a sponsor, I've got the perfect person in mind to help out: Mike Vick. What better way to rehabilitate your image than to sponsor a competition between student athletes? Plus, the Ron Mexico New Mexico Bowl has a nice ring to it.

I've got a rule of thumb that applies to this contest: always pick the team that is playing a bowl game in their home stadium. Is it really a bowl trip if you sleep in your own bed just a couple days before the game.

Biased Pick: New Mexico 54, Nevada 21 (Former Lobo Brian Urlacher beats Blackjack)

Actual Pick: New Mexico 24, Nevada 20

Pioneer Las Vegas Bowl

UCLA Bruins (6-6) vs. Brigham Young Cougars (10-2)

Sam Boyd Stadium, Las Vegas, NV

December 22, 7:00 PM CT, ESPN

The only thing more fun than a Saturday night in Vegas with a bunch of Mormons is a regular season rematch in a bowl game. That's what is on tap in the Pioneer Las Vegas Bowl. UCLA defeated BYU 27-17 in Week 2. But a lot has happened to the Bruins since then, including losing at home to Notre Dame and Coach Karl Dorrell being shown the door. The Cougars are on a mission. Their mission is to win 11 games this season....and convert you to their religion.

Biased Pick: BYU 9, UCLA 8 (Jim McMahon over Cade McNown)

Actual Pick: BYU 27, UCLA 17 (Turnaround is fair play)