Bell Helicopter Armed Forces Bowl Preview

By Ryan Liss “The Sportmeister”
www.sportmeisters.com

Two teams, not amazingly well known outside their respective circles, come together to do battle here on New Year’s Eve. What we will know after is how an offense works, and two of the top offenses battle head to head with two of the youngest coaches at the helm.

Bell Helicopter Armed Forces Bowl
Houston vs. Air Force
Dec 31st, Noon, Fort Worth

About Houston: The Cougars like the Texas-area bowls, as this is fourth straight bowl in their home state. Overall they are 8-10, and haven’t won a bowl game since 1980. Houston struggled earlier this season, losing three of their first four (including a moved game against Air Force), before winning six of eight, including two top 25 wins, to earn a berth at the next level. Houston is led by the strong and powerful arm of Case Keenum (4768 yards, 43 touchdowns), but also get contributions from the running game in 1,000 yard runner Bryce Beall (1112 yards, 6.3 average, 12 touchdowns), as well as Keenum (225 yards and five touchdowns). The receiving corps is led by Tyron Carrier (977 yards, 9 touchdowns), Mark Hafner (892 yards, 11 touchdowns), and L.J. Castille (511 yards, 8 touchdowns).

About Air Force: While Houston is known for their passing prowress, the Falcons prefer to fly on the ground, with the fifth best rushing attack in the nation at 269 yards a game. It is that running game that brings them to their second straight Armed Forces Bowl, and their 8-9-1 bowl record. In a tough Mid-Western Conference, the Falcons managed a three game win streak and a five game streak, but have lost their last two in a row to befell them to 8-4. The Falcons are not the type of team that focuses on one main person, but instead uses the triple option formation, led by mid-season freshmen replacement Tim Jefferson (373 rushing yards, 557 passing yards, five total touchdowns). The running game is strong thanks to Todd Newell (594 yards, 4.2 average), Asher Clark (531 yards, 4.6 average), and Kyle Lumpkin (440 yards). Shea Smith leads the running game with six touchdowns.

About the Bowl: This is not the first time these two teams have met this season, as due to a hurricane, the Falcons were able to mount a 24 point lead and held on for a 31-28 victory. This time though, the stakes are different, as the nation’s top passing offense (429 yards a game for Houston), against the fifth best running game of the Air Force Academy. The big story will be how the young coaches, led by the first year Kevin Sumlin of Houston, and Troy Calhoun of Air Force, and how their game styles will adjust after the last meeting between the two. Both schools have offensive firepower, and it will be interesting to see how the two defenses adjust. Houston’s west coast spread offense requires the secondary of Air Force to look around and focus on not one receiver, but more of a zone style offense, and for Houston, they cannot just stack the box of eight guys to stop the run, but have to monitor the different options of running the ball.

The Pick: Air Force 35-24. The Falcons will use their running game for clock control and should handle the Cougars very easily again.