Kentucky (7-5, 4-4 SEC) v. Clemson (8-4, 5-3 ACC), Friday, December 29th, 1 PM, ESPN HD, XM Satellite Radio Channels 191-193.
The Stats
Line: Clemson -10
Edge goes to:
Offense: Clemson
Defense: Clemson
Special Teams: Both. Kentucky is extremely good at blocking kicks and extra points, however Clemson has some of the best returners in the ACC.
Intangibles: UK. Kentucky has not been to a bowl game in seven years. They are more than happy to be playing in a bowl game and even happier to be sitting at 7-5. Winning this game would be a true step in actually turning a terrible program around. Clemson, on the other hand, seems to be dealing with a sour mood in the locker room. This team knows what they could've achieved this season and is pissed that they didn't. Their heads and their hearts just aren't in it.
The last time these two teams met in a bowl was December 31st, 1993 at the Chik-Fil-A Peach Bowl. Clemson, led by MVPs Emory Smith (Emmitt's little brother) and Brenston Buckner, won in the final minutes by a score of 14-13. Yours truly was in attendance to see the Wildcats get edged out by the Tigers... one of my more memorable games from a team that also sported Patrick Sapp and Dexter McLeon.
What won't black people do to confuse white people? Video unrelated, but c'mon, we had to show it to you.
Our panel of DFIG hacks say:
Willy Mac: The sole key to the game is stopping Kentucky WR Keenan Burton. And with Duane Coleman on the sidelines, it's not going to be easy. Burton reminds me more of Sydney Rice, who pecker-slapped the Clemson Defense at the Clemson/USC game by gaining 103 yards receiving on 8 catches. He really made a difference in that game, and if Burton has a similar game... oh boy. I mean, the Clemson defense is pretty good... at stopping the run, too bad Kentucky passes the ball A LOT more than they run it. Other notes:
- Kentucky is going to put eight in the box and force Proctor to pass, much like everyone else has. Proctors passing is like kryptonite for our team. And I don't mean like a little, I mean, flashback to Superman Returns and he straight up gets stabbed with a kryptonite shard, Lex Luthor straight breaks the shit off, and he's stuck on an island made out of kryptonite... that's how bad his passing is for our team. Hopefully now that he has Rendrick back in a line up of stunners, all he has to do is get it NEAR a receiver... which he's not real good at anyways. Remember when teams used to make Woody Dantzler pass it??? Yeah, same thing. He's got the short bullet passes down, but when he needs to throw it long its the ol' heave and hope. Plus, Proctor doesn't have the same ankle shattering running abilities that Woody did.
- Kentucky is f*cking incredible at creating turnovers the past few games. Clemson is f*cking incredible at turning the ball over the past few games. Clemson has to hang on to the ball and not turn it over. Kentucky will do anything short of a reach around and a blowjob to create a turnover.
- My apologies for ditching you guys there after the USC game, but I had finals, etc.
- If our defense can really pressure Kentucky QB Andre Woodson, he will fold faster than Reggie Ball. Gaines Adams needs to be a beast man in this game and he might need reinforcements from the good ol' bear cavalry known as our linebacker squad.
- If this game is close at the end, we will more than likely lose... of course you know this cause you've seen it happen time and time again.
Clemson 27, Kentucky 10
Should have read:
Clemson 20, Kentucky 28
One big goose egg of a loss.
Clemson = Linebacker/Bear Cavalry UniversityChili: One time I killed a man with my bare hands. That's not the point here. I'm here to talk about the game. This bowl of football. Which team will advance the lil pumpkin farther than the other team? Well, I don't know. I'd like to say Clemson, but then again, I have a diploma from there up on my wall, so I'm biased. Frankly, I'm sick of Clemson. I'm sick of a team constantly failing to meet expectations. Hell, not just expectations, we know how lofty fans' expectations can be, this team just hasn't even played up to their ability. Something has been wrong with the team since the Virginia Tech game. We've heard nothing but reports of bitching and complaining from players and general indicators of a shitty attitude amongst players. I'm also sick of Tommy's excuses. I'm so sick of Tommy that I'm even sick of people picking apart his comments and bashing him. It's just too easy, you might as well be picking fights with paraplegics. I don't hope Clemson loses, but I won't be surprised if they do. I won't really care all that much either. Music City Bowl? Who gives a shit. I'd almost rather not display that trophy. Anyway, here's some stats I ripped off a betting site: Clemson is 9-1 outside the conference lately, but 1-4 against the spread in the last 5 games. UK is 4-1 ATS and 5-5 out of conference. Yay. Here's a link to a decent preview - LLLINK.
Prediction: Mini Ditka 49, Clemson -3
or.... Clemson 23, Kentucky 14
"One dog goes one way, the other dog goes the other way, and this guy's sayin', 'Whadda ya want from me?'"
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