2012 New Era Pinstripe Bowl Preview

Date: December 29, 2012 3:15 PM ET
Stadium: Yankee Stadium, Bronx, New York
Payout: $1,800,000 per team
Played: 2010-present
Former Names: N/A
Broadcasters: Chris Fowler, Jesse Palmer
Sideline Reporter: Tom Rinaldi

West Virginia: The Mountaineers' first season in the Big 12 began with great promise, as the team's 5-0 record included victories over No. 25 Baylor and No. 11 Texas. Then came five straight losses in Big 12 games, relegating West Viginia to the conference's seventh bowl tie-in. West Virginia looked stellar in last season's Orange Bowl, routing Clemson 70-33.

Syracuse: Doug Marrone has guided Syracuse to its second bowl game in his four years as head coach. In 2010, the Orange defeated Kansas State 36-34 in the New Era Pinstripe Bowl. They'll be hoping for a similar result against another Big 12 foe and former Big East conference-mate. The Orange beat West Virginia in their past two meetings, including a 49-23 beatdown last season.

	West Virginia			Syracuse
Overall Record	7-5		Overall Record	7-5
Conference Record	4-5		Conference Record	5-2
Bowl Record	14-17		Bowl Record	13-9-1
Last Bowl Win	2012 Orange		Last Bowl Win	2010 Pinstripe

All Time Series: 32-27 Syracuse
Line: West Virginia by 3.5

Helmet Stickers: Week 8

ACC—No. 7 Clemson is 8-0 for the first time in eleven years after a 59-38 win over North Carolina. Quarterback Tajh Boyd threw five touchdowns and no interceptions en route to 367 passing yards. Tigers defensive end Kourntnei Brown had two touchdowns: an interception returned for a touchdown and a fumble returned for a touchdown.  The Tar Heels turned the ball over six times, while the Tigers lost just one fumble. Clemson scored 35 of their 59 points in the third quarter.

Big 10—No. 16 Michigan State gave No. 6 Wisconsin its first loss of the season, 37-31. Michigan State started the game down 14-0, but came back in the second quarter scoring 23 unanswered points on a safety, two offensive touchdowns, and a blocked punt returned for a touchdown. By the end of the fourth quarter Wisconsin had the momentum and tied the game at 31-31. The Spartans had 1:26 to put a drive together. Michigan State drove to the Wisconsin 44-yard line and had time for a final play with four ticks left on the clock. Kirk Cousins launched a Hail Mary into the end zone. It was deflected and caught by Spartans wide receiver Keith Nichol who pushed across the goal line to win the game. Michigan State had 0 penalties in the game.

Big 12—Texas Tech upset undefeated No. 3 Oklahoma in Norman on Saturday night, ending a 39-game home winning streak. Texas Tech was a four touchdown underdog. Red Raiders quarterback Seth Doege threw for 441 yards and four touchdowns. Wide receiver Alex Torres caught three of his touchdown passes. The Red Raiders built up a 31-7 lead just over two minutes into the second half. The Sooners go their act together after halftime, but it was too little too late. The Red Raiders held on to win the game 41-38, possibly keeping the Sooners out of the national title game.

Big East—Syracuse took down No. 15 West Virginia for the second straight year. The Orange upset the Mountaineers last year 19-14 in Morgantown. West Virginia promised revenge in 2011. The Orange blasted the Mountaineers 49-23 in the Carrier Dome, picking up their first home win over West Virginia in ten years. Quarterback Ryan Nassib threw four touchdowns, three of which were caught by tight end Nick Provo, and ran for another touchdown. Wide receiver Dorian Graham returned a kickoff 98 yards for a score in the second quarter. The Orange defense sacked Geno Smith twice, batted down two of his passes, and intercepted two of his passes. Syracuse’s 49 points were the most they have ever put up against West Virginia.

C-USA—UAB picked up its first win of the season in Week 8 with a 26-24 win over UCF at Legion Field on Thursday night. Trailing by 1 with 21 seconds left in the game, Ty Long put a 40-yard field goal through the uprights to win the game for the Blazers. UAB had 27 first downs and 501 yards of offense. UAB quarterback Jonathan Perry, filling in for an injured Bryan Ellis, completed 31 of 42 passes for 327 yards. Perry also rushed for 33 yards on eight carries. After the game, UAB head coach Neil Callaway said, “The satisfaction of winning a football game is mighty big for us.” The Blazers ended a seven-game losing a streak, dating back to November 27, 2010.

MAC—Eastern Michigan defeated Western Michigan by a score of 14-10 Saturday to win the Michigan MAC Trophy. Eastern Michigan defeated Central Michigan the previous Saturday. Sophomore running back Javonti Greene caught a 50-yard touchdown pass in the first quarter and rushed for a 50-yard touchdown in the fourth quarter. The Eagles are looking good at 5-3 after compiling only five wins total across the 2008, 2009, and 2010 seasons. The last time the Eagles had five wins in a season was 1995 when Eastern went 6-5.

MWC—Texas Christian University blanked New Mexico 69-0. The Horned Frogs broke their program’s record for most points scored in a game. The previous record was 68 points against Austin College in 1932. TCU’s defense held the Lobos offense to just 85 yards and forced three fumbles. Nine different Horned Frogs scored touchdowns. Senior kicker Ross Evans was 9 for 10 on PAT’s. TCU moves to 3-0 in Mountain West Conference games.

Pac-12—USC defeated long-time rival Notre Dame in South Bend 31-17. The Trojans have beaten the Fighting Irish in 9 of their last 10 meetings. USC outgained Notre Dame 443 yards to 267 yards and forced the Irish to turn the ball over three times in the second half. On one of those turnovers, a Notre Dame fumble on the USC 1-yard line, USC safety Jawanza Starling scooped the ball up and ran 80 yards for a touchdown. Matt Barkley completed 24 of 35 passes for 224 yards and three touchdowns. Curtis McNeal rushed for 118 yards, while Marc Tyler rushed for 63 yards. Stud wide receiver Robert Woods had 8 grabs for 119 yards. The Trojan defense held Notre Dame to just 41 yards rushing.

SEC—No. 1 LSU kicked No. 20 Auburn to the curb in a 45-10 home victory. The news all week was about the suspensions of Tyrann Mathieu, Spencer Ware, and Tharold Simon for testing positive for drugs. Louisiana State proved it did not need the three Tigers as it dismantled Auburn in its eighth straight double-digit-point victory this season. Freshman running back Kenny Hilliard rushed for 65 yards on just 10 carries. Running back Michael Ford was even better with 82 yards off of 12 carries. Both Jarrett Lee and Jordon Jefferson saw time at quarterback: Lee threw for 165 yards and two touchdowns, while Jefferson threw for 54 yards and a touchdown. LSU punter Brad Wing averaged 51.3 yards per punt on four punts.

Sun Belt—Western Kentucky upset Sunbelt frontrunner UL-Lafayette in Bowling Green Saturday by a score of 42-23. The win ended an eighteen-game home losing streak for the Hilltoppers and was the Hilltoppers’ first win at home over a FBS foe. Running back Bobby Rainey had a career-high three touchdowns and 206 rushing yards. Fullback Kadeem Jones rushed for two scores. WKU quarterback Kawaun Jakes had 15 completions on 18 passes, amassing 242 yards, a touchdown, and an interception. Western Kentucky has now won three straight games, its longest winning streak since joining the Football Bowl Subdivision in 2008.

WAC—Nevada got by Fresno State 45 to 38 in a Saturday afternoon shootout. Wolf Pack senior receiver Rishard Matthews had 148 yard on seven catches. On special teams, Matthews returned a punt for an 86-yard touchdown. Junior running back Mike Ball had 198 yards on the ground, with his longest carry being 41 yards. The Wolf Pack defense recovered two Fresno State fumbles. Nevada has now won fifteen straight home games. At 2-0 in conference games, Nevada is in first place in the WAC.

Toledo Got Screwed

Referees blow calls quite frequently, but usually they officiate well enough to not make bad calls that influence the outcome of a game. Well, last Saturday the refs screwed up BIG TIME and screwed Toledo out of a win that it should have had over Syracuse. The bad call was on an extra point attempt. PAT's are black and white compared to the gray areas on some pass interference and celebration penalties. There is no excuse for blowing this call. The Big East officials from this game should be fired.

See the video below. The extra point attempt by the Orange at 2:07 in the fourth quarter clearly never goes through the uprights. If the refs would have made the correct call, Syracuse would have led 29-27. Toledo would have then won the game 30-29 with the field goal the Rockets kicked on the last play of regulation. Instead, that field goal only tied the game at 30 apiece. The game went to overtime and Toledo lost.

After the game, the Big East admitted it had made the wrong call, but refused to reverse Syracuse's win. Apparently, once a game has been called, its decision cannot be overturned. Hopefully Toledo will not end up in a situation at the end of the season where it is one win short of going to a bowl game or where one nonconference loss affects the program in a conference standing tiebreaker. There needs to be accountability in the Big East's officiating. The blown call was unacceptable. Toledo got screwed.

Pittsburgh And Syracuse Join The ACC

Pittsburgh and Syracuse will join the Atlantic Coast Conference.
Over the past three weeks, amid talks of the SEC picking up a thirteenth team, Pittsburgh and Syracuse were negociating with the ACC about membership. Both schools were voted in as members of the ACC yesterday, and it was announced this morning that the Atlantic Coast Conference would become a fourteen-team conference. The schools have to pay a $5 million exit fee and give the Big East 27 months notice before leaving according to Big East bylaws. This would mean that Syracuse and Pitt would not be able to start playing in the ACC until the 2014 season.

The Big East is now left with seven football-playing members once TCU arrives next season. It appears TCU is the biggest loser, moving to a conference that has an uncertain future, and it is still almost a year before it arrives in said conference. Rumors are circling that Connecticut and Rutgers desparately would like to join the ACC now. If this happens, the Big East would be left with just five football-playing members.

In my August 14, 2011 post, I mentioned that of the six BCS conferences, the Big East and the Atlantic Coast Conference have the two weakest football brands of the six, and it is clear the conference dominoes are being driven by the sport of football. Thus, if superconferences were to emerge, and it looked like with Texas A&M looking to go to the SEC they would, the Big East and the ACC would be the most likely to get carved up. The ACC knew this and made a preemptive strike and become the first fourteen-team conference in order to remain relevant. Now, all of the pressure is on a crumbling Big East.

Will other conferences move to fourteen or sixteen teams to counter the ACC?

Will the Big East survive as a football conference?

What will be the next domino to fall in this wave of conference realignment?

2010 New Era Pinstripe Bowl Preview

December 30, 2010 3:20 PM ET

Stadium: Yankee Stadium, New York, New York

Payout: $2,000,000

Played: 2010

Once known as: N/A

Broadcasters: Bob Wischusen, Brian Griese

Sideline Reporter: Eamon McAnaney

Storyline: The inaugural Pinstripe Bowl brings back college football to the Bronx for the first time in 48 years, the last year of the Gotham Bowl. The game will be inside Yankee Stadium and feature teams that will be playing each other for the third time in the postseason since 1997—Kansas State won the 1997 Fiesta Bowl, while Syracuse won the 2001 Insight Bowl. Both teams looked to be on their way to great seasons when K-State started 5-1 and Syracuse started 6-2. Things went sour as Kansas State won two of its last six games and Syracuse won one of its last five games. The Wildcats and Orange both have poor run defenses, which could make for a lot of scoring. Orange running back Delone Carter ran for 1,035 yards during the season, while Wildcats standout Daniel Thomas had 1,495 yards in twelve games. Both teams rely on their running games more than their passing games, but Syracuse is closer to balanced. Whoever wins the first Pinstripe Bowl will put an end to their dismal second half of the season and win the rubber game in the Wildcats-Orange bowl history.

All-time Series: 1-1

Line: Pick

	Kansas State			Syracuse
Overall Record	7-5		Overall Record	7-5
Conference Record	3-5		Conference Record	4-3
Bowl Record	6-7		Bowl Record	12-9-1
Last Bowl Win	2002 Holiday		Last Bowl Win	2001 Insight.com

Big East Home Attendance Figures

	Cincinnati			Connecticut
Nippert Stadium			Rentschler Field
S11 Indiana State	30,807		S11 Texas Southern	37,359
S25 Oklahoma	58,253		S25 Buffalo	36,738
O9 Miami (OH)	33,909		O2 Vanderbilt	40,000
O22 South Florida	32,670		O29 West Virginia	40,000
O30 Syracuse	32,072		N11 Pittsburgh	35,391
N20 Rutgers	30,265		N27 Cincinnati	40,000
D4 Pittsburgh	27,496
AVERAGE	35,067		AVERAGE	38,248
	Louisville			Pittsburgh
Papa John's Cardinal Stadium			Heinz Field
S4 Kentucky	55,327		S11 New Hampshire	50,120
S11 Eastern Kentucky	51,427		S23 Miami	58,115
O9 Memphis	48,427		O2 FIU	45,207
O15 Cincinnati	55,106		O23 Rutgers	50,425
O23 Connecticut	48,591		O30 Louisville	48,562
N13 South Florida	43,887		N26 West Virginia	60,562
N20 West Virginia	51,772
AVERAGE	50,648		AVERAGE	52,165
	Rutgers			South Florida
Rutgers Stadium			Raymond James Stadium
S2 Norfolk State	46,311		S4 Stony Brook	40,201
S25 North Carolina	52,038		S25 Western Kentucky	40,206
O2 Tulane	47,963		O2 Florida Atlantic	38,434
O8 Connecticut	48,431		O9 Syracuse	41,917
N13 Syracuse	49,911		N3 Rutgers	39,465
N26 Louisville	37,422		N20 Pittsburgh	43,844
			D4 Connecticut	41,809
AVERAGE	47,013		AVERAGE	40,839
	Syracuse			West Virginia
Carrier Dome			Mountaineer Field
S18 Maine	37,758		S4 Coastal Carolina	57,867
S25 Colgate	38,068		S18 Maryland	60,122
O16 Pittsburgh	40,168		O9 UNLV	58,234
N6 Louisville	40,735		O14 South Florida	54,955
N20 Connecticut	41,465		O23 Syracuse	58,122
N27 Boston College	42,191		N13 Cincinnati	56,593
			D4 Rutgers	48,386
AVERAGE	40,064		AVERAGE	56,326

AVERAGE ATTENDANCE BY SCHOOL

West Virginia	56,326
Pittsburgh	52,165
Louisville	50,648
Rutgers	47,013
South Florida	40,839
Syracuse	40,064
Connecticut	38,248
Cincinnati	35,067

The Big Least

It is crazy to think that one team from the Big East will land a spot in a BCS bowl in January. Have you watched any Big East games this season? The sloppy scrimmages being shown during primetime on weekday nights are not good promotion for the Big East brand.

The Big East is absolutely horrible this year, going 2-11 against foes from other automatic qualifying conferences: Connecticut beat Vanderbilt, West Virginia beat Maryland. The Big East is 14-15 against all out of conference FBS opponents.  Not a single team from the Big East is currently in the AP Top 25. That’s quite a resume.

Out of conference games mean a lot in the Big East, since there are only seven conference contests per season. Syracuse still has Boston College at home on November 27^th, and South Florida travels to Miami on the same day. These are must wins for the Big East in terms of respect and getting teams into the postseason. It is almost assured the Big East will not have enough bowl eligible teams to play in its six bowl tie-ins. It is almost assured Big East teams will be underdogs in all of their respective postseason games. Oh well, there’s always college basketball.

Helmet Stickers: Week 8

ACC—Clemson finally beat Georgia Tech after losing four straight times to the Yellow Jackets. The Tiger defense held Georgia Tech to their lowest point total of the season, 13. Yellow Jackets’ quarterback Joshua Nesbitt was harassed all day, only passing for 83 yards and running for 2 yards. Clemson’s 27-13 victory gets them back to .500 in ACC play.

Big 12—There were three undefeated Big 12 teams heading into Week 8. Missouri was the only one to stay perfect. Mizzou knocked off Oklahoma, 36-27 at home. The Tiger offense and defense outperformed the Sooners in all aspects of the game, controlling the ball for over thirty-eight minutes. The sellout crowd of 71,004 stormed the field and took down the goal posts. This is the first 7-0 start for the Tigers since 1960. Gary Pinkel got his first win against the Sooners, and Missouri beat Oklahoma for the first time since 1998.

Big East—Just when it looked like one team in the Big East was the leader of the pack, West Virginia got upset by a scrappy Syracuse team. Syracuse turned three interceptions into 9 points as the Orange shocked the Mountaineers 19-15. Syracuse had five sacks and prevented the Mountaineers from scoring except for two first quarter touchdowns. The Orange ended an eight-game losing streak to West Virginia and gained possession of the Ben Schwartzwalder Trophy.

Big Ten—Wisconsin followed up its big upset over Ohio State last week with another big win. The Badgers defeated the Hawkeyes 31-30 in Iowa City. With Wisky down 30-24 and facing fourth down, Badger punter Brad Nortman ran 17 yards on a fake punt to keep the go-ahead drive alive. Badger running back Montee Ball scored on an 8-yard run with 1:06 left in the game. The Hawkeyes were driving at the end of the game, but just ran out of time.

C-USA—Tulane got a much-needed win over UTEP on the road, 34-24. With 13:39 left in the game, the Miners tied the Green Wave 24-24. The Green Wave responded by scoring a touchdown and a subsequent field goal after regaining possession off an interception. Tulane had 461 yards of total offense while UTEP had 286 yards.

MAC—The Ohio Bobcats took the Miami (OH) RedHawks to the woodshed, 34-13, in a game that would decide the top dog in the MAC Eastern Division. Ohio’s defense was phenomenal, getting five sacks, four interceptions, and recovering two fumbles. The Bobcat defense also halted the RedHawks’ running game to just 11 yards. Despite committing 10 penalties for 105 yards, the Bobcats silenced 17,144 at Yager Stadium. Ohio is now 4-1 in conference play.

MWC—TCU routed Air Force 38-7 in Fort Worth to stay undefeated. Sophomore running back Ed Wesley rushed for 209 yards. The Horned Frogs held Air Force to just 184 yards rushing. Air Force was the top rushing team in the nation coming into the scrimmage, averaging 346 yards per game. The Horned Frogs outgained the Falcons 562 to 231.

Pac-10—With Nick Foles out due to injury, there were questions whether backup quarterback Matt Scott could lead the Wildcats to victory. Scott went 18 for 22 through the air, including two touchdowns. Scott had 233 yards passing and 65 yards rushing; Arizona didn’t miss Foles, nor miss a beat as it walloped Washington 44-14. The Wildcats are 6-1, their best start since 1998.

SEC—In the battle of two unbeatens, Auburn bested LSU by a touchdown. Auburn established their run game and didn’t look back. The Auburn Tigers ran for 440 yards, the most the LSU Tigers have allowed in a game in their entire history. Cam Newton had 217 of those rushing yards in addition to throwing for 86 yards. Newton now has the record for most rushing yards by a SEC quarterback in a season with 1,077. Auburn is the only undefeated team left in the SEC.

Sun Belt—Western Kentucky ended the nation’s longest losing streak by beating Louisiana-Lafayette 54-21 on the road. The Hilltoppers had lost 26 straight games before Saturday. The win also marks the Hilltoppers first win since moving up to the Football Bowl Subdivision in 2009. Western Kentucky quarterback Kawaun Jakes was 18 for 22 with 262 yards and a touchdown. The Hilltoppers were 75% on third down conversions.

WAC—The Warriors of Hawaii routed the Aggies of Utah State 45-7 in Logan, Utah. Warrior quarterback Bryant Moniz passed for 389 yards, while running back Alex Green ran for 172 yards and four touchdowns. The Warrior defense had a coming-out party, holding the Aggies to just 181 yards of offense. Hawaii is now 4-0 in Western Athletic Conference games and 6-2 overall. Hawaii just might be a team that can give Boise State trouble on November 6th.

Independents—The Navy Midshipmen came up with a big victory over rival Notre Dame by a score of 35-17. Most of Navy’s production was on the ground; the Midshipmen only passed twice the entire game. Navy also did not have a single penalty. Navy lost forty-three straight meetings to the Fighting Irish between 1964 and 2006, but has now won three of the last four meetings. Navy has Notre Dame’s number.