Picking Every Bowl: Camellia Bowl, Georgia State vs. Ball State

TaxAct Camellia Bowl
December 25
Georgia State (6-6) vs. Ball State (6-6), Crampton Bowl, Montgomery, Ala., 2:30 p.m., ESPN
Georgia State -6 – O/U 51

I know, I know. When the season started, you were thinking, my Christmas Day won’t be complete unless Georgia State and Ball State are playing against each other in a bowl game. Well, Merry Christmas — you get your wish! The Panthers and Cardinals (and I know that you knew those were their mascots) should make for a competitive matchup, but neither team is particularly good. Ball State limps into this game having lost three out of its last five games. The Cardinals did beat Army and were at least mildly competitive against Toledo, but they’re pretty terrible on both sides of the ball. (Ball State ranks 110th overall in offense and 92nd overall in defense.) Georgia State won six of its last seven games to close the season, including a close loss to conference champ Louisiana and a narrow win over Coastal Carolina. The Panthers are a tad better on both sides of the ball, but the big difference is in its rushing offense and rushing defense. Georgia State has the nation’s 10th best rushing offense, and they’re also a good bit better than Ball State at defending the run. The team that controls the tempo will win the game, and the best odds for that is Georgia State’s two-headed rushing duo of Tucker Gregg and Jaymest Williams, who rushed for a combined 1,709 yards and 18 touchdowns. When combined with QB Darren Grainger’s 553 rushing yards — and his relative efficiency when he needs to pass — the Panthers should stay in front of the Cardinals for most of the game.
Prediction: Georgia State 28-20
Prediction:Georgia State 51-20
The only real surprise here is how lopsided the game became and how quickly it got that way. Georgia State carried a 20-13 lead into halftime, but by the time the game went into the fourth quarter, the Panthers were up 48-13. QB Darren Grainger was a one-man wrecking crew, passing for 203 yards and three touchdowns while also leading Georgia State with 122 yards rushing and another touchdown. The Panthers added two defensive touchdowns to the mix — one on a scoop-and-score in the first quarter and another on a pick-six in the third quarter.

Record:
Bowl season: SU – 9-7; ATS – 6-10-0; O/U – 7-9-0
Overall: SU – 602-188; ATS – 374-330-6; O/U – 339-359-12

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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