Bowl Pool 2012

Yes, it's time once again for that annual tradition: the Mike Lange-engineered college football pool.  Oddly, for a person who knows nothing about college football I generally do pretty well, and last year had to lose the last five bowls in a row to not win (which, of course, I did).  My tried and true approach is based on three factors: 1) which team is further south, 2) which team has the worst academic reputation, and 3) some obscure literary reference that amuses me.  This year I am once again going head-to-head with my bitter enemy Cyndi Brandenburg, who, despite her astonishing effort to cheat, has yet to defeat the forces of good (that is, of course, me).  I've also dragooned my son into participating this year, so there are multiple bragging rights at stake here.  Obviously, the entire bowl season boils down to today's Belk Bowl, also known as the National/Aiken 204 Championship.  Another arch-nemesis (why do I have so many?) Craig Pepin attended Duke (back when they were accredited, I think), who will be taking a pounding at the hands of the mighty University of Cincinnati Bearcats, who are not further south than Duke but dominates them in the category of academic inferiority.  So, here are the picks, with the winning team in bold, if not emboldened.

New Mexico Bowl
Nevada vs. Arizona
Scudder: Arizona 1-0
Brandybuck: Arizona 1-0
GSIII: Nevada 0-1

Idaho Potato Bowl
Toledo vs. Utah State
Scudder: Utah State 2-0
Brandybuck: Utah State 2-0
GSIII: Utah State 1-1

Poinsettia Bowl
Brigham Young vs. San Diego State
Scudder: Brigham Young 3-0
Brandybuck: Brigham Young 3-0
GSIII: Brigham Young 2-1

St. Petersburg Bowl
Central Florida vs. Ball State
Scudder: Central Florida 4-0
Brandybuck: Central Florida 4-0
GSIII: Ball State 2-2

New Orleans Bowl
East Carolina vs. Louisiana-Lafayette
Scudder: Louisiana-Lafayette 5-0
Brandybuck: Louisiana-Lafayette 5-0
GSIII: Louisiana-Lafayette 3-2

Las Vegas Bowl
Washington vs. Boise State
Scudder: Boise State 6-0
Brandybuck: Boise State 6-0
GSIII: Washington 3-3

Hawaii Bowl
Fresno State vs. Southern Methodist
Scudder: Fresno State 6-1
Brandybuck: Fresno State 6-1
GSIII: Fresno State 3-4

Little Caesars Pizza Bowl
Western Kentucky vs. Central Michigan
Scudder: Western Kentucky 6-2
Brandybuck: Western Kentucky 6-2
GSIII: Western Kentucky 3-5

Military Bowl
San Jose State vs. Bowling Green
Scudder: Bowling Green
Brandybuck: San Jose State
GSIII: Bowling Green

Belk Bowl - National Championship Game - Aiken 204 Championship
Duke vs. Cincinnati
Scudder: Cincinnati
Brandybuck: Duke
GSIII: Cincinnati

Holiday Bowl
Baylor vs. UCLA
Scudder: Baylor
Brandybuck: Baylor
GSIII: UCLA

Independence Bowl
Louisiana-Monroe vs. Ohio
Scudder: Louisiana-Monroe
Brandybuck: Louisiana-Monroe
GSIII: Ohio

Russell Athletic Bowl
Virginia Tech vs. Rutgers
Scudder: Virginia Tech
Brandybuck: Virginia Tech
GSIII: Virginia Tech

Meineke Texas Bowl
Minnesota vs. Texas Tech
Scudder: Texas Tech
Brandybuck: Texas Tech
GSIII: Minnesota

Armed Forces Bowl
Rice vs. Air Force
Scudder: Rice
Brandybuck: Air Force
GSIII: Rice

Pinstripe Bowl
West Virginia vs. Syracuse
Scudder: West Virginia
Brandybuck: West Virginia
GSIII: West Virginia

Fight Hunger Bowl
Navy vs. Arizona State
Scudder: Arizona State
Brandybuck: Arizona State
GSIII: Navy

Alamo Bowl
Texas vs. Oregon State
Scudder: Texas
Brandybuck: Oregon State
GSIII: Oregon State

Buffalo Wild Wings Bowl
Texas Christian vs. Michigan State
Scudder: Texas Christian
Brandybuck: Texas Christian
GSIII: Texas Christian

Music City Bowl
North Carolina State vs. Vanderbilt
Scudder: Vanderbilt
Brandybuck: Vanderbilt
GSIII: Vanderbilt

Sun Bowl
Southern California vs. Georgia Tech
Scudder: Southern California
Brandybuck: Southern California
GSIII: Georgia Tech

Liberty Bowl
Iowa State vs. Tulsa
Scudder: Tulsa
Brandybuck: Iowa State
GSIII: Iowa State

Chick-fil-A Bowl
Louisiana State vs. Clemson
Scudder: Louisiana State
Brandybuck: Louisiana State
GSIII: Louisiana State

Gator Bowl
Northwestern vs. Mississippi State
Scudder: Mississippi State
Brandybuck: Mississippi State
GSIII: Mississippi State

Heart of Dallas Bowl
Purdue vs. Oklahoma State
Scudder: Oklahoma State
Brandybuck: Oklahoma State
GSIII: Purdue

Outback Bowl
Michigan vs. South Carolina
Scudder: South Carolina
Brandybuck: South Carolina
GSIII: Michigan

Capital One Bowl
Nebraska vs. Georgia
Scudder: Georgia
Brandybuck: Georgia
GSIII: Georgia

Rose Bowl
Wisconsin vs. Stanford
Scudder: Stanford
Brandybuck: Stanford
GSIII: Wisconsin

Orange Bowl
Northern Illinois vs. Florida State
Scudder: Florida State
Brandybuck: Florida State
GSIII: Northern Illinois

Sugar Bowl
Louisiana vs. Florida
Scudder: Florida
Brandybuck: Florida
GSIII: Florida

Fiesta Bowl
Oregon vs. Kansas State
Scudder: Oregon
Brandybuck: Oregon
GSIII: Oregon

Cotton Bowl
Texas A&M vs. Oklahoma
Scudder: Texas A&M
Brandybuck: Texas A&M
GSIII: Texas A&M

Compass Bowl
Pittsburgh vs. Mississippi
Scudder: Mississippi
Brandybuck: Mississippi
GSIII: Mississippi

GoDaddy.com Bowl
Kent State vs. Arkansas State
Scudder: Arkansas State
Brandybuck: Arkansas State
GSIII: Kent State

National Championship (sort of)
Notre Dame vs. Alabama
Scudder: Alabama
Brandybuck: Alabama
GSIII: Notre Dame

Tie-breaker - points in the National Championship (sort of) game.
Scudder: 31
Brandybuck: 37
GSIII: 10