Picking Every Bowl: Independence Bowl, UAB vs. BYU

Radiance Technologies Independence Bowl
UAB (8-4) vs. BYU (10-2), Independence Stadium, Shreveport, La., 3:30 p.m., ABC
BYU -7 – O/U 54.5

One of the downsides of close to four dozen bowl games is that it forces an imbalance in certain games — like this one. Yes, the point spread is only seven points, but these two teams are on a completely different plane. BYU is the de facto Pac-12 champion, having gone 5-0 against the conference, including a win over eventual conference champion Utah. UAB isn’t even the fifth strongest team on BYU’s schedule, though BYU is probably the second-strongest team the Blazers will play this season. The best competition UAB has faced so far? Georgia (lost 56-7), Liberty (lost 36-12) and UTSA (lost 34-31). The Cougars will soften up the Blazers’ defense with a solid running attack and then assault them with an efficient passing game. UAB may keep it close for a while, but BYU’s strength will allow the Cougars to pull away in the second half. (On a side note, I lived near Shreveport for three years and passed the stadium dozens of times, yet never went inside even once. That’s true for most people in Shreveport. You should be able to see thousands of empty seats during the game, especially on both ends. But most of the attire you see will undoubtedly be dark blue or white. UAB is developing a solid program but lacks a large and devoted fan base. BYU fans, on the other hand, are rabid in their support of the program. This will almost be a BYU home game…)
Prediction: BYU 37-20
Result: UAB 31-28
The underdogs continue to own the day. BYU’s offense came to play, particularly RB Tyler Allgeier, who picked up 192 yards and three touchdowns. But BYU’s defense couldn’t solve the UAB offense, especially when the Cougars needed a critical stop. The Blazers’ RB DeWayne McBride had 189 yards on the ground, and QB Dylan Hopkins added three TDs through the air.

Record:
Bowl season: SU – 2-4; ATS – 1-5-0; O/U – 4-2-0
Overall: SU – 596-186; ATS – 370-326-6; O/U – 337-353-12

About Douglas Blaine

Capnpen is a writer who was a newspaper and magazine journalist in a previous life. A college journalism major, he now works as an English teacher, but gets his writing fix by blogging about a variety of topics, including politics, religion, movies and television. When he's not working or blogging, Capnpen spends time with his family, plays a little golf (badly) and loves to learn about virtually anything.

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