COLLEGE BOWL PICKS/PREVIEWS: PART 4*

It's after Christmas, before New Years. You're full of food and alcohol, the weather outside sucks, and the college football is getting better and better. God bless America. Here are the previews for three games to be played tomorrow:

2:30 PM - ESPN
Military Bowl Presented by Northrop Grumman - Washington, DC
East Carolina Pirates vs. Maryland Terrapins
The Terps won 8 games, and went 5-3 in the not-so-good ACC. ECU was 118th in points allowed, so expect Maryland's ho-hum offense to rack up a few TDs. The Terps are playing close to home, and ECU was 1-2 against ACC opponents this season. Maryland wins with ease.



6:00 PM - ESPN
Texas Bowl - Houston, TX
Illinois Fighting Illini vs. Baylor Bears
Illinois can run the ball, they just can't throw it. Baylor, on the other hand, has a solid and balanced offense. Baylor also has home field, as their campus in Waco is less than 200 miles away. Baylor should win in a rout.



9:15 PM - ESPN
Valero Alamo Bowl - San Antonio, TX
#14 Oklahoma State Cowboys vs. Arizona Wildcats
OSU contended for the Big XII South title, falling 6 points shy of Oklahoma in the Bedlam game. But don't let Arizona State's 5 losses, and 4 straight to end the season fool you. Two of those losses were at Stanford and at Oregon. Another was in double OT by 1 point. The Wildcats were 9th in the country in passing, and have a respectable defense. I'm picking Arizona in an upset.



We'll have more previews for you tomorrow as the bowl games keep on coming.

BRUINS WIN THEIR FIRST SHOOTOUT

This game wasn't as exciting as Thursday night's. But it could be more important. The B's are starting a 5 game road trip, and they got it off to a good start with a win, despite having never led the game.

The two goals they allowed were unfortunate and maybe a bit unlucky. Kampfer made a bad decision and gave the puck away, which David Booth turned into a goal. Florida's 2nd came off a freaky deflection that probably came off a high-stick, but we'll have to wait for the Zapruder Film to be declassified to determine that with certainty.

Krejci scored both the Bruins' goals, giving him 7 on the season. Which is a little low. Hopefully, as he continues to gel with new linemates Wheeler and Ryder, he'll be able to make more plays for himself. He scored 22 in 08-09, and 17 last season. There's no reason he shouldn't be scoring 20 goals every year. He has the awareness, he has the skills.

The Bruins still need to improve their neutral zone play, particularly their breakout. On Krejci's 2nd goal, the forwards did a good job of coming back to the defensemen, like receivers cutting back to their pressured quarterback. That opened up space in the zone, and allowed for a great entry, with possession, with speed, and with angles.

Guess what, the Bruins are now tied with the Canadiens atop the division, which elevates them from the 8th seed to the 3rd seed. They have a big test tonight against the Southeast leading Lightning.

Photo Credit:
AP Photo