MegaLocks Friday night Bowl write-up..............
[FONT="]2017 IDAHO BOWL – CENTRAL MICHIGAN vs WYOMING
[/FONT]
[FONT="]WYOMING -3 CENTRAL MICHIGAN (45.5)
[/FONT]
[FONT="]MEGALOCKS LINE – Pick em[/FONT]
[FONT="]Sagarin ratings – Wyoming -1[/FONT]
[FONT="]“Vegas” Implied Projected Score: Wyoming 24.25 Central Michigan 21.25
[/FONT]
[FONT="]The Game[/FONT]
[FONT="]Potato Bowl time, yo ![/FONT]
[FONT="]This is a sneaky-good Friday afternoon match-up as Wyoming battles Central Michigan on the SMURF TURF in Boise, Idaho. Wyoming had a fine 7-5 record considering that their star QB Josh Allen missed some time with injury. FIRE UP CHIPS finished up with FIVE straight wins and ended up 2nd in the competitive MAC West.[/FONT]
[FONT="]The Match-Up[/FONT]
[FONT="]Wyoming offense vs Central Michigan defense[/FONT]
[FONT="]It’s been really tough to watch the Cowboys’ offense this season. Even with a healthy Josh Allen under center the Pokes struggled to move the ball on the ground and through the air. The big story is the status of Allen. Right now he is expected to play, but as you know, a lot can change between now and game day when you are talking about a potential first round NFL draft pick nursing a “sore shoulder”. We did our work assuming he will play, although to be honest, we would be a little surprised if he risked a ton of money by playing in this game.[/FONT]
[FONT="]Allen has struggled due to a lack of weapons at RB or WR. Allen had just 13 TD passes this season (missed time due to injury), their leading RB has 474 yards and their top WR has just 520. Only one receiver had a catch of over 50 yards and that was a yuuuuuuge 53 yard reception by CJ Johnson. The Pokes ended the season ranked #125 (!!) in total offense and managed just 4.7 yards per play (#11 Mountain West). They finished up the 2017 regular season #114 in 3rd down conversions.[/FONT]
[FONT="]FIRE UP CHIPS had an excellent season defensively finishing up ranked #2 in the MAC in yards per play allowed, #55 in total defense (FBS) and #7 in pass efficiency defense (FBS). Amaze your local sketchy massage parlor employee with this gem – Central Michigan was #1 in the FBS in forced turnovers. They allowed just 13 TD passes all season and picked off 19. It seems to us that with Josh Allen or NO Josh Allen the Pokes are going to struggle to score points.[/FONT]
[FONT="]Central Michigan offense vs Wyoming defense[/FONT]
[FONT="]FIRE UP CHIPS were pretty average statistically this season (#71 offense FBS) but they did heat up down the stretch scoring 56,35,42,42 and 31 in their final five games. QB Sugar Shane Morris is a mortal lock to clear 3,000 yards in this game and has been solid this year, although to be honest, we are not crazy about the 13 INTs. That is particularly true when going up against an excellent Wyoming defense that was #2 in the FBS in forced turnovers. FIRE UP CHIPS have a balanced offense with an underrated RB in J Ward (988 yards rushing, 41 receptions), a fine 1-2 punch at WR (C Willis, M Chapman 1,400 yards and 14 TDs combined) along with star TE Tyler Conklin who is healthy after missing a lot of the season due to injury. It is no secret that FIRE UP CHIPS started to roll on offense once he got healthy. The bad news ? The Wyoming defense is excellent (#22 FBS, #1 yards per play allowed in MW) and yielded just 3,13,14,13 and 20 points in their last five contests. They had a bit of a SOFT UNDERBELLY vs the run but were excellent defending the pass (T7 FBS – 10 TD passes allowed).[/FONT]
[FONT="]Motivation / Intangibles[/FONT]
[FONT="]Wyoming – This is a bit of a tough read. There is the Josh Allen distraction. And our Wyoming INSIDERS tell us that they are not super geeked up to be playing in Boise against a MAC opponent. Colorado St was close to home in their bowl game and we saw how much they loved it.[/FONT]
[FONT="]Grade – Below Average.[/FONT]
[FONT="]Central Michigan – It’s a LONG way from home. And it’s cold, yo. The good news ? They are on a roll and can play the “nobody respects us” card. The seniors on this team have unfinished business (0-3 last three years in bowl games).[/FONT]
[FONT="]Grade – Average to Above Average.[/FONT]
[FONT="]MEGA BOWL BITES
[/FONT]
[FONT="]As noted above both teams are excellent at forcing turnovers and are ranked #1 and #2 in the FBS…..The combined turnover margin of these two squads is (+24)……Central Michigan only played five home games this season and are used to being road warriors……Close your eyes if there are field goals attempted from over 40 yards….The teams combined to go just 5/10 from that distance.[/FONT]
[FONT="]Summary[/FONT]
[FONT="]Two really scrappy teams. Let’s goooo !
[/FONT]
[FONT="]Josh Allen. Will he play ? Will he sit ? We feel that FIRE UP CHIPS are the better team (it’s close) and that they can beat the Pokes regardless of who starts at QB. If Allen decides to pass on the game we think the Chips win the game by at least a TD.[/FONT]
[FONT="]Conclusion[/FONT]
[FONT="]Official play: Central Michigan +3 -106 (sent 5:12 pm EST Dec 19) (play down to +1.5)[/FONT]
[FONT="]2017 IDAHO BOWL – CENTRAL MICHIGAN vs WYOMING
[/FONT]
[FONT="]WYOMING -3 CENTRAL MICHIGAN (45.5)
[/FONT]
[FONT="]MEGALOCKS LINE – Pick em[/FONT]
[FONT="]Sagarin ratings – Wyoming -1[/FONT]
[FONT="]“Vegas” Implied Projected Score: Wyoming 24.25 Central Michigan 21.25
[/FONT]
[FONT="]The Game[/FONT]
[FONT="]Potato Bowl time, yo ![/FONT]
[FONT="]This is a sneaky-good Friday afternoon match-up as Wyoming battles Central Michigan on the SMURF TURF in Boise, Idaho. Wyoming had a fine 7-5 record considering that their star QB Josh Allen missed some time with injury. FIRE UP CHIPS finished up with FIVE straight wins and ended up 2nd in the competitive MAC West.[/FONT]
[FONT="]The Match-Up[/FONT]
[FONT="]Wyoming offense vs Central Michigan defense[/FONT]
[FONT="]It’s been really tough to watch the Cowboys’ offense this season. Even with a healthy Josh Allen under center the Pokes struggled to move the ball on the ground and through the air. The big story is the status of Allen. Right now he is expected to play, but as you know, a lot can change between now and game day when you are talking about a potential first round NFL draft pick nursing a “sore shoulder”. We did our work assuming he will play, although to be honest, we would be a little surprised if he risked a ton of money by playing in this game.[/FONT]
[FONT="]Allen has struggled due to a lack of weapons at RB or WR. Allen had just 13 TD passes this season (missed time due to injury), their leading RB has 474 yards and their top WR has just 520. Only one receiver had a catch of over 50 yards and that was a yuuuuuuge 53 yard reception by CJ Johnson. The Pokes ended the season ranked #125 (!!) in total offense and managed just 4.7 yards per play (#11 Mountain West). They finished up the 2017 regular season #114 in 3rd down conversions.[/FONT]
[FONT="]FIRE UP CHIPS had an excellent season defensively finishing up ranked #2 in the MAC in yards per play allowed, #55 in total defense (FBS) and #7 in pass efficiency defense (FBS). Amaze your local sketchy massage parlor employee with this gem – Central Michigan was #1 in the FBS in forced turnovers. They allowed just 13 TD passes all season and picked off 19. It seems to us that with Josh Allen or NO Josh Allen the Pokes are going to struggle to score points.[/FONT]
[FONT="]Central Michigan offense vs Wyoming defense[/FONT]
[FONT="]FIRE UP CHIPS were pretty average statistically this season (#71 offense FBS) but they did heat up down the stretch scoring 56,35,42,42 and 31 in their final five games. QB Sugar Shane Morris is a mortal lock to clear 3,000 yards in this game and has been solid this year, although to be honest, we are not crazy about the 13 INTs. That is particularly true when going up against an excellent Wyoming defense that was #2 in the FBS in forced turnovers. FIRE UP CHIPS have a balanced offense with an underrated RB in J Ward (988 yards rushing, 41 receptions), a fine 1-2 punch at WR (C Willis, M Chapman 1,400 yards and 14 TDs combined) along with star TE Tyler Conklin who is healthy after missing a lot of the season due to injury. It is no secret that FIRE UP CHIPS started to roll on offense once he got healthy. The bad news ? The Wyoming defense is excellent (#22 FBS, #1 yards per play allowed in MW) and yielded just 3,13,14,13 and 20 points in their last five contests. They had a bit of a SOFT UNDERBELLY vs the run but were excellent defending the pass (T7 FBS – 10 TD passes allowed).[/FONT]
[FONT="]Motivation / Intangibles[/FONT]
[FONT="]Wyoming – This is a bit of a tough read. There is the Josh Allen distraction. And our Wyoming INSIDERS tell us that they are not super geeked up to be playing in Boise against a MAC opponent. Colorado St was close to home in their bowl game and we saw how much they loved it.[/FONT]
[FONT="]Grade – Below Average.[/FONT]
[FONT="]Central Michigan – It’s a LONG way from home. And it’s cold, yo. The good news ? They are on a roll and can play the “nobody respects us” card. The seniors on this team have unfinished business (0-3 last three years in bowl games).[/FONT]
[FONT="]Grade – Average to Above Average.[/FONT]
[FONT="]MEGA BOWL BITES
[/FONT]
[FONT="]As noted above both teams are excellent at forcing turnovers and are ranked #1 and #2 in the FBS…..The combined turnover margin of these two squads is (+24)……Central Michigan only played five home games this season and are used to being road warriors……Close your eyes if there are field goals attempted from over 40 yards….The teams combined to go just 5/10 from that distance.[/FONT]
[FONT="]Summary[/FONT]
[FONT="]Two really scrappy teams. Let’s goooo !
[/FONT]
[FONT="]Josh Allen. Will he play ? Will he sit ? We feel that FIRE UP CHIPS are the better team (it’s close) and that they can beat the Pokes regardless of who starts at QB. If Allen decides to pass on the game we think the Chips win the game by at least a TD.[/FONT]
[FONT="]Conclusion[/FONT]
[FONT="]Official play: Central Michigan +3 -106 (sent 5:12 pm EST Dec 19) (play down to +1.5)[/FONT]
