whether they are letdown games or not is based relative to the year. in their wildest dreams of going 12-0 they couldnt have thought Utah would be their reward. thats the definition of a letdown game. it will be a huge feat if they can shake that disappointment because thats exactly what it is. all you have to do is ask which team wants to be there more? it wont be bama.
certainly the gump o-line and running game can control this one either way but we've see saban bowl teams not all that excited to play on more than one occasion. he'd never won a bowl game until he arrived in baton rouge.
might be true. i think the losses that have a large impact on teams include squads that have had their expectations built up for a long period of time. for example clemson was out of it because they had ridiculous preseason expectations. bama didnt have any so i doubt they will be as crushed. plus their coach will probably spin the idea that people are expecting them to come out flat and work it in their favor. teams come out flat generally a week after a loss, or during a jp game when it is overcast with only 60000 people there. this is a prime time game on jan 2nd. it probably doesnt hurt that the crowd will be 90 bama too. a team like florida that was favored in the seccg would be more flat imo. utah isnt a bad team either. they will come to play. i cant wait for cincy to destroy vt
If Bama had started off the season in the top 5, or if they had been a powerhouse for years now, I could see them having a letdown. But Bama's loss to Florida is not like LSU's loss to Arkansas last year. I assume that if one goes to a Bama forum to see how it reacted to their loss to FL, you wouldn't see anything like the implosion LSU forums had after we lost to Arkansas last year. Bama was 7-6 last year and 6-7 before that. Bama is thrilled to be where they are right now, going to the Sugar Bowl for the first time in 16 years. Remember how exciting it was for LSU when we went to the 2002 Sugar Bowl against Illinois? That was the first time we had been to the Sugar Bowl since 1987. Besides, even if Bama has a letdown (which I don't think they will), Utah would still have to bring it's A-game to beat them. Utah's talent level is pretty sad.
true, they looked at it as a rebuilding year but i guess that was us. plus, the bcs factor may excite them as noted. its not like UF as you said just going to another one of them boring bcs bowls. and they currently only remember shreveoport correct? ok im convinced, bama may be more excited than utah. not buying that. all coaches use that when they know their team isnt motivated. check us against ole miss. happens in most bowls too. true, not your average bowl especially given their recent history. definitely something i thought about and will help get them up either way. this is like the bcsncg for gump fans despite it being utah. certainly john thinks they suck but they are decent. this will happen. its the one game I know which side i like.
another reason not to touch this game -- they came out of the gates on fire last year. total shocker. i think they have dominated in every single night game this year and have been flat during the day. not sure thats means a whole lot in a bowl game. the fact that 1. vt won their conference. 2. gets an automatic bid to one of the most prestigious bowl games of all-time is nothing short of embarrassing.
SURE BETS: Florida WILL WIN the CRYSTAL this year. OHIO STATE WILL Lose again. Florida or Alabama would win the BCSNC no matter which one was in it. The SEC is the DOMINANT conference without a doubt. Ohio State finally played a contender before the bowl games this year and got their azz handed to them (USC). Their azz will be handed to them a 2nd time in their bowl game. Now........betting the points is another matter. I don't pretend to have a clue as to how many points will be scored. If LSU had of played their first team until the end of both national championship games, we'd have embarrased our oponents. But,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,we didn't.
