Meineke Car Care Bowl: South Florida vs. Clemson

South Florida (7-5, 3-4 Big East) vs. Clemson (6-6, 4-4 ACC)

December 31, 2010 Noon ET

History: How proud would you have been to have earned a berth in the Queen City bowl? Prior to Continental Tires taking over in 2002, that was the proposed name for this event that was certified by the NCAA. Now, however, we care not just about your tires but your mufflers and fuel injectors and so forth– everything you need to get your wheels stylin’. Well, at least for this year- starting in 2011 the bowl’s sponsor cares more about how you look and less about how your ride appears.

The best thing about this bowl, for the last two years at least, has been that Chris Spielman has been one of the announcers for the event. This year, however, we’ve switched to the Brock Huard/Mike Bellotti for all of our post Christmas color commentary needs- if you haven’t been blessed by their “football in the Northwest is the best in the country… hey, did I tell you about me?” schtick, you’re in for a treat. Or, if you like football, feel free to watch this game after taking a chop-stick from your post-Christmas takeout feast and jamming it deep into each ear.

At least it’s not Pam Ward.

South Florida

It was a down year for the Bulls, who ended up with a losing record in the Big East after falling to UConn, Florida, West Virginia, and Pitt. But there’s building materials there- other than the game against the Gators, the Bulls were close in each of the contests they lost, and managed to win both of their overtime contests. And, they managed to beat “Ohio’s BCS Team” on the road. And we all know how difficult that is. First year coach  Skip Holtz has two freshman All-Americans as a part of his future; return man Terrence Mitchell and linebacker DeDe Lattimore.

South Florida brings a balanced attack to the field, with around 150 yards per game rushing and 160 yards per game through the air. Both Moise Plancher and Demetri Murray average 4.6 yards per carry, while quarterback BJ Daniels adds about 20 yards per game on the ground to go with his 140 passing ypg.  The Bulls defense has achieved 80 tackles for losses this year, including 28 sacks.

The Bulls are well known for their amazing students and creative, loyal fans (isn’t that right, Brett?); it will be great for them to make the trip to Charlotte with their free tickets. Especially since the alternative is to watch it on ESPN with the “expertise” mentioned earlier.  Seriously, you’re in college- make the drive.

USF/Buckeye Connections: I’ve got nothing- Ohio State has never played the Bulls. However USF’s win against the Hurricanes at the end of this season signaled the final straw for the Randy Shannon administration as well as dinging the Buckeyes’ strength of schedule. Additionally, Mark Snyder is the USF defensive coordinator, coaching linebackers for the Buckeyes during their 2002 championship run. Finally, Bulls coach Skip Holtz spent his childhood in Columbus while dad was a part of Coach Hayes’ staff. More on Woody later…

Clemson

Dabo Swinney’s team started out on a strong note, taking the Auburn Tigers to overtime before falling at home. This began a difficult stretch, as the lost to Miami and North Carolina before righting the ship against Maryland. Their other two losses (Boston College and Florida State) were both by less than a touchdown, and they ended the season by dropping the Palmetto Bowl to cross rival USCe.

All American and Hendricks Award Winner Da’Quan Bowers highlights a strong and aggressive Clemson defense. The junior leads the nation in sacks with 15.5, and is projected to be the #2 pick overall in the upcoming NFL Draft. The defense leads the ACC in only allowing just under 18 points a game.

Offensively, the absence of CJ Spiller has been balanced between running backs Jamie Harper and Andre Ellington, although the latter will miss the game due to an injury. Quarterback Kyle Parker has over 2000 yards in the air this year; he spurned professional baseball in order to play for the Tigers this season. Also, keep your eyes on Dwayne Allen- the tight end has become a favorite target for Parker and the Clemson offense.

The Tigers have some of the greatest traditions in college football, but will not be able to bring Howard’s Rock or The Hill to Charlotte with them. Which may be a good thing… (33 second mark)

Random fun fact- Clemson is one of only two teams in FBS to have a purple and orange color scheme, and both are in the ACC. The other? Va Tech. And now you know.

Clemson/Buckeye connections: Like I even have to mention it.

Who Are We Picking?

• Eric- Clemson
• Jay- Clemson
• Jeff- Clemson
• Jim- Clemson
• Joe- Clemson
• Mali- Clemson

Dabo is doing good things with the Tigers, and has had more time to develop his team with his players (although that doesn’t always work out). In addition, the Bulls are young and didn’t have much success in one of the weaker conferences in the nation (not that the ACC has much to brag about). We think that the Tigers will win this in front of a fan base that’s sure to be larger due to the proximity of the game.