SEC Bowl Previews: Part I
Aggies head to Houston, Kentucky takes on Clemson, and Mizzou wants to hit 11 wins.
By: Bossman Slim, Hammer
Some great matchups to start out bowl season for the SEC Wednesday-Friday.
With opt-outs and transfers, bowl season is a shell of its former glory. Maybe one day the powers that be will figure out a way to return bowl season to high-powered matchups we love, even aside from the playoff. Even with opt-outs and transfers, though, it’s never a bad day when college football is on your TV.
The regular season results saw Hammer take the Straight Up column by a game over Bossman, while Bossman took the cake in the Against the Spread column, having a heater of year. If only he actually dabbled in the sports betting arena.
Let’s hit the previews.
Bossman Slim: I’ll be perfectly honest: it’s hard to care about this one. This is the fourth time that Texas A&M will be playing in the Texas Bowl, and the second time these two teams will meet in said bowl. The last meeting in 2019 saw A&M eke out a 24-21 win behind Kellen Mond’s MVP performance. This year is going to be a battle of the junior varsity teams, as both have had some significant attrition in the transfer portal, though that see-saw is still heavily teetering toward the Aggies. A&M will be without seven starters, will be relying on their third-string QB, and are down to just three scholarship receivers and only 55 scholarship players. Meanwhile, Oklahoma State will have their starting quarterback and star RB Ollie Gordon II ready to rumble in Houston. With all of the attrition and change in College Station, I’m leaning toward Oklahoma State. The Aggies won’t want that to happen after just watching Oklahoma State get brutally dismembered by their chief rival Texas in the Big 12 Championship Game, but this one has the markings of an “upset.”
Oklahoma State 33
Texas A&M 21
The Hammer: If anyone thinks they have a good feeling about this game, question their sanity. It’s a complete unknown, especially for the Aggies. Since the conclusion of the season, Texas A&M has had 21 players enter the transfer portal and another couple of guys like consensus All-American Edgerrin Cooper declare for the NFL Draft. The Aggies will be without a bunch of their coaching staff as well, so this is a total skeleton crew making the trip to Houston from College Station. I have no clue what to expect out of that group. Meanwhile, Oklahoma State has been much more stable. The Cowboys have only had 8 players hit the portal and starting QB Alan Bowman along with starting running back Ollie Gordon (1,614 yards, 20 TDs) will both play in this one. Given that info, it’s hard not to lean Cowboys here. There are simply too many unknowns on the Aggies side to expect a win here.
Oklahoma State 24
Texas A&M 21
Bossman Slim: I can get behind this one. Both had subpar seasons by their standards but showed life at times. I’ll be interested to see if Kentucky’s passing attack can do anything against a Clemson secondary that has a few key losses. Starting safety Andrew Mukuba transferred to Texas and top corner Toriano Pride Jr. transferred to Mizzou. The Kentucky passing game had a few flashes this season but ultimately underperformed, so I’m interested to see if Liam Coen will take some shots early and often because…why the hell not? Kentucky has seen some attrition to the portal but little production has been lost, and they got great news when Ray Davis announced he would suit up for the bowl game. Clemson will be at full strength on offense and will present a tough challenge for the Wildcat's defense, though the Tigers have been inconsistent on that side of the ball all year. Scoring 16 points against a middling South Carolina defense doesn’t produce much confidence. This one is a toss-up to me, but give me Clemson in a close one.
#22 Clemson 27
Kentucky 23
The Hammer: Well, here is another game I really don’t know what to think about. That’s going to be a theme with most of these games, unfortunately. Clemson has had several starters in the secondary hit the portal but should be at full strength on offense, although that offense wasn’t very good during the regular season. Stud RB Ray Davis will play for Kentucky, which is great news but Clemson has a stingy run defense. Devin Leary is expected to play as well, but his season was really inconsistent so it’s hard to expect a great game from him. I anticipate this being a knockdown, drag-out fight that could go either way but ultimately I’m taking Clemson to handle business here in a close game.
#22 Clemson 24
Kentucky 17
Bossman Slim: This is going to be fun. With Kyle McCord transferring and Ohio State being down 17 total players to the portal, I’m thinking Mizzou can finish off the Buckeyes. It’s also possible Ohio State could be without stars Marvin Harrison Jr., TreVeyon Henderson, and J.T. Tuimoloau. Meanwhile, Mizzou will have many of the starters who led them to a 10-2 season intact for the Cotton Bowl. There’s a reason the Tigers are favored over the Buckeyes, which would normally not happen. Dare I say the Tigers should win this game. I’ve been riding in the front car of the Mizzou bandwagon train all year, and with Cody “Shredder,” Luther Burden, and Brady Cook all suiting up, give me the Tigers.
#9 Missouri 28
#7 Ohio State 27
The Hammer: Rumor has it Ryan Day is still out there looking for Lou Holtz so he can beat up an 86-year-old former coach. I’m unsure whether that will impact the Buckeye’s preparation, but I do know not having Kyle McCord could be tough. Sure, no Buckeye fan is that sad to see McCord go. He’s not CJ Stroud or Justin Fields or any of the other Buckeye legends to precede him. But, McCord was a good QB this year and obviously was their best option or else he would’ve lost the job. Whether Marvin Harrison Jr will play is still up in the air apparently, and that would drastically hurt Ohio State’s chances. One thing I do know in this game is that Eli Drinkwitz and Missouri will be ready. The Tigers had an awesome season and that’s the kind of program that wants to finish off a great year on a high note. There is a reason they’re favored here. Partially because they are a really good team, but also because that team will want to be there. I’m not sure Ohio State will reciprocate that feeling. Give me Brady Cook, Cody Schrader, Luther Burden, Eli Drinkwitz and the gang to take down the mighty Buckeyes.
#9 Missouri 27
#7 Ohio State 24
