The next installment in our rapidly increasing number of bowl previews is the…
South Carolina (9-4, 5-3 SEC) vs. Florida State (9-4, 6-2 ACC)
December 31, 2010 7:30 PM ET ESPN
Georgia Dome, Atlanta, Georgia
History
The Chick-Fil-A bowl is one of the oldest of the currently running bowl games. However, you may know it by a different name – the Peach Bowl. The Peach Bowl was first played in December of 1968 at Grant Field on the campus of Georgia Tech. After a couple of years it moved to Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium. In 1991 the game finally moved to the Georgia Dome where it has resided ever since.
The game originally started as a fundraiser, but after years of poor attendance it was taken over by other groups. That did not change again until Chick-Fil-A, an Atlanta based company, took over as sponsor in 1998. At that point, the game became the Chick-Fil-A Peach Bowl. In 2006, Chick-Fil-A earned total naming rights to the game, from where it became simply the “Chick-Fil-A Bowl”.
Originally, the game featured a matchup of a team from the ACC with an at-large opponant. Big Ten teams occasionally received invites, including Purdue (1-1), Iowa (1-1), Indiana (0-2) and Illinois (0-1). Despite 42 games having been played, the Buckeyes haven’t once been invited to play in this one. That became particularly true in 1993 when the game switched to being a matchup of the ACC and SEC.
The last couple games in this season haven’t been particularly competetive. Last year, Virginia Tech killed Tennessee 37-14, while the previous year saw LSU shatter Georgia Tech 38-3. However, in 2007’s game, Auburn and Clemson played in the only overtime matchup in the bowl games history, resulting in a 23-20 Auburn victory – a game that was watched more than even a couple of the New Year’s day bowl games.
South Carolina Gamecocks
South Carolina, or as they’re known around these parts “The Other USC” or toUSC, had a particularly successful season this year. For the first time, the Gamecocks showed that they could be the type of team that Steve Spurrier is known for. It was also a strong enough season to warrant their inclusion in the SEC championship game for the first time in school history. Unfortunately, that game didn’t work out so well for them as they lost to Auburn for the second time this season. Unlike the first game, however, the championship game quickly turned into a rout that ended with 56-17 Auburn win.
If not for a tough loss to Arkansas, the Gamecocks may have even made the BCS instead of the Razorbacks. South Carolina’s win over Alabama, last year’s national champion, was particularly impressive and a further proof of a step forward towards becoming an elite team in the SEC. A three point loss at Kentucky the next week seemed to put the lie to those thoughts.
toUSC is lead by one of the most exciting runningbacks in college football today – freshman Marcus Lattimore (6-0, 218). Lattimore has carried the ball 248 times for 1198 yards and 17 touchdowns this season. He’s also picked up 2 touchdowns and 364 yards through the air. Most impressive of all – he hasn’t had a single fumble all year long. The kid is a monster in the backfield and will be extraordinarily difficult for Florida State to stop.
Helping out on offense is junior quarterback Stephen Garcia (6-2, 227). Garcia massively improved on his play from the previous two years. His rating of 154.14 was a huge step up from his 119.33 a year ago. That rating is built on 205 completions for 2816 yards, 20 touchdowns and 11 interceptions. His 315 attempts makes him one the biggest part of the South Carolina offense, but is still well balanced with Lattimore’s 248 carries.
It’s clear looking at the stats that Garcia has a favorite target. Sophomore Wideout Alshon Jeffery (6-4, 233) has picked up 79 receptions for 1387 yards and 9 touchdowns this season. While Garcia has hit 5 other receivers at least once per game this year, only one has more than half of Jeffery’s receptions – but only a couple more at that.
South Carolina’s offense is very well balanced, but it is fragile. If any of their three key players were to get knocked out, it might spell doom for the Gamecocks. It’s unlikely for that to happen, however, given how tough all three players have been all season long.
Florida State Seminoles
In case you hadn’t heard, the Seminoles are back and ready to reclaim their place in the upper echelons of College Football. The source of the change? Jimbo Fisher finally taking the reins in Tallahassee. And what a change it was!
Early on, it seemed like absolutely nothing had chaged as Florida State succomed at Oklahoma in a 47-17 thrashing in the second week of the season. Things were about to turn around, though. Over the next 5 games, Florida State outscored their opponents 168-60 including wins against Boston College (24-19) and at Miami (FL) (45-17).
The next two weeks, however, proved there was still work to do as the North Carolina schools snuck out victories against the surging Seminoles. North Carolina State picked up a 4 point victory at home, followed closely the next week by a 2 point victory for the Tarheels in Tallahassee.
Florida State regrouped and closed out the season with three straight wins, including a 31-7 beatdown of Florida, eventually earning their place in the ACC title game. That game was a close fought affair that found the Seminoles unable to handle Virginia Tech as the Hokies secured the 44-33 win.
Unlike South Carolina, where the entire offense runs through only 3 players, Florida State operates through several players at each position. The most critical of these is former Heisman candidate, and senior quarterback Christian Ponder (6-3, 227). Ponder has struggled with injury a little this year, missing the ACC Championship game with a busted right elbow. Luckily, he will be back for at least some of the game. Florida State will be happy to have his 62.2% completion percentage, 2038 yards and 20 touchdowns back for this one.
Helping Ponder out in the backfield is sophomore runningback Chris Thompson (5-8, 186). He’s only one of many possible options at runningback for the ‘Noles, but his 108 attempts and 699 yards lead the team. His biggest play this year was a 90 yard touchdown strike against Miami (FL), a game which saw him ring up 158 yards on only 14 carries.
Ponder does a very good job of spreading the ball around to his receivers, hitting seven different guys for a reception per game or more. His favorite target, however, is junior Bert Reed (5-10, 167). Reed has hauled in 56 receptions for 589 yards and a pair of touchdowns on the season. He is not a big play threat, but FSU has plenty of other receivers to help out on that front. Reed is much more of a possession receiver and does a great job of taking advantage of what the defense gives him.
Who Are We Picking?
- Eric- South Carolina
- Jay- Florida State
- Jeff- Florida State
- Jim- Florida State
- Joe- Florida State
- Mali- South Carolina
This might be one of the first good football games this entire bowl season. South Carolina has the more explosive set of players, but Florida State has better depth and a broader range of options. This is one you almost certainly don’t want to miss.
Unless you want to protect your brain from the never-ending stream of Chick-Fil-A commercials.
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