Picking Every Bowl: Sugar Bowl, Ole Miss vs. Baylor

Allstate Sugar Bowl
January 1
Ole Miss (10-2) vs. Baylor (11-2), Caesars Superdome, New Orleans, 8:45 p.m., ESPN
Ole Miss -1.5 – O/U 57.5

The final big bowl game of the season (definitely not counting January 4th’s Texas Bowl) will be little more than an afterthought, but it shouldn’t be. These are two very good football teams that are worthy of playing in a major bowl game. Mississippi has the biggest name in the game — quarterback Matt Corral, who is not coming back for his senior season, but who is coming back for this game and not opting out like so many others. Corral is a special talent and has elevated Ole Miss throughout the season. He is the focal point of a very potent offense that ranks as the nation’s fourth best. Corral wins with both his arm and his legs, and he keeps plays alive long after they seem to be dead. In that respect, he’s a lot like Oklahoma’s Caleb Williams — a quarterback that Baylor’s defense solved on its way to winning the Big 12. The Bears have a ton of balance in their program. Their offense is a nice mix of rushing and passing (with exactly the same number of yards gained both ways), and their defense is super stingy against the run, but has a little vulnerability against the pass. Ole Miss just seems vulnerable on defense, but was able to dial up their pressure when it mattered late in the season. Ole Miss had huge games against both Texas A&M and Mississippi State, and both of those offenses have more potency than Baylor. Even so, the Bears will be motivated in this game, as will the Rebels. With a ton of speed and talent on both sides, it’s doubtful that we’ll know the outcome until late in the evening. With the game on the line, I’m banking on the team with the best player to have the biggest moment, and that’s Matt Corral.
Prediction: Ole Miss 31-28
Result: Baylor 21-7

Record:
Bowl season: SU – 25-12; ATS – 21-15-1; O/U – 15-22-0
Overall: SU – 617-193; ATS – 388-335-7; O/U – 346-372-12

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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