just thought you guys might wanna read this guys views on these games.

**Music City Bowl, Minnesota vs. Virginia**


-- Friday’s college football action begins at noon EST from The Coliseum in Nashville, Tennessee. This will be the eighth Music City Bowl and the third time in the last four years that Minnesota will be in this game.

-- The Golden Gophers (7-4 straight up, 7-4 against the spread) have won three straight postseason games, including both of their two previous contests in Nashville. The club is 2-1 ATS during this stretch.



-- Al Groh and Virginia (6-5 SU, 5-6 ATS) are going bowling for their fourth straight season. The Cavaliers are 2-1 both SU and ATS, with the lone loss coming in last year’s MPC Computers Bowl against Fresno State, 37-34.



-- It seems like déjà vu all over again for Gophers’ head coach Glenn Mason. His troops have opened the season with winning streaks of four, five and four to open the last three years, but have faltered in conference play. Minny finished with a 4-4 mark in the Big Ten this year.



-- Minnesota loves to run the rock and this year’s group is averaging 279 YPG, ranked second in the nation. The two-headed monster of Laurence Maroney (1,355 yards, 10 TDs) and Gary Russell (1,045 yards, 18 scores) has been known to grind down opponents.



-- The Cavaliers’ defense are allowing 146.9 YPG on the ground, ranked 58th nationally.



-- UVA has been shaky on the offensive side of the ball this season. Quarterback Marques Hagans has tossed more touchdowns (12) this year, but has also been picked (11) off more as well.



-- The rule of thumb when handicapping bowl games is to thrown out all efforts at home since most schools will be playing outside of its environment. Minnesota is 3-2 both SU and ATS on the road this year, while Virginia has gone 1-4 both SU and ATS. The lone win for the Cavs came against Syracuse (27-24), who finished the season with a 1-10 record.



-- One factor that I believe you should look at when handicapping is how teams have fared against other bowl teams. That being said, UVA is 2-3 SU and 3-2 ATS, while Minnesota has gone 2-4 both SU and ATS.



-- Kickoff is scheduled for 12:00 p.m. EST, with ESPN providing national coverage.



**Sun Bowl, Northwestern vs. UCLA**



-- Did you know the Sun Bowl is one of the most storied bowl games, dating back to 1936? UCLA will be making its third trip to El Paso, going 1-1 in the first two stops, while Northwestern visits this venue for the first time.



-- A lot of folks are expecting fireworks in the Lone Star State come Friday afternoon, including the oddsmakers. Most books have UCLA listed as a three-point favorite, but the total is sitting at 75, which is the highest ‘over/under’ out of all 28 bowl games.



-- It’s hard to argue a play on the ‘under’ at this point, considering UCLA and Northwestern are ranked seventh and eighth nationally in total offense. Still, you need a minimum of 11 touchdowns to cash this ticket.



-- Then again, it appears that neither team has decided to play defense this year. The Bruins are giving up 457 YPG of total offense, ranked 113th in the nation. Seems pretty poor, but the Wildcats are ranked dead last, allowing 482 YPG.



-- Northwestern (7-4 SU, 7-4 ATS) wasn’t predicted to finish Big Ten play with a winning mark, but head coach Randy Walker led his troops to a 5-3 mark and a tie for third place in the conference.



-- The Wildcats’ attack is led by quarterback Brett Basanez, who is completing 65 percent of his passes for 3,206 yards and 19 touchdowns. Basanez has been complimented by the legs of running back Tyrell Sutton. The freshman has scampered for 1,390 yards and 18 total scores on the year.



-- UCLA (9-2 SU, 6-5 ATS) only lost two games this season, but both setbacks came by a combined 85 points against Arizona (52-14) and No. 1 USC (66-19).



-- The Bruins offense is led by a pair of players with the name Drew. Quarterback Drew Olson has passed for 3,055 yards and 31 scores, while completing 66 percent of his passes. Meanwhile, running back Maurice Drew has added 20 touchdowns, including three on special teams.



-- Northwestern is 3-2 both SU and ATS on the road this year. UCLA is 3-2 SU away from home, but only 1-4 ATS.



-- The Bruins are 4-4 SU and 3-5 ATS in their last eight meetings against Big Ten schools. The Wildcats are 0-3 both SU and ATS versus Pac 10 teams, including a 52-21 defeat to Arizona State on Sept. 17 of this year.



-- Both head coaches Walker (0-2 SU, 1-1 ATS) and Karl Dorrell (0-2 SU, 0-2 ATS) have never led their universities to bowl victories during their tenure.



-- Northwestern is 2-4 SU and 3-3 ATS versus opponents playing this postseason. UCLA owns an impressive 4-1 both SU and ATS mark, with the lone loss against the mighty Trojans.



-- CBS offers national coverage of this contest at 2:00 p.m. EST.



**Independence Bowl, South Carolina vs. Missouri**



-- ESPN provides national coverage of this game at 3:30 p.m. EST, which takes place at Independence Stadium from Shreveport, La.



-- Last year, Iowa State defeated Miami (Oh.) 17-13 in this bowl game, marking the first time in 10 years that a Southeastern Conference school did not win this game. The SEC has room to argue, since they didn’t send a team to Shreveport in 2004.



-- South Carolina (7-4 SU, 6-4 ATS) started the season 2-3 before winning five straight conference games under first-year head coach Steve Spurrier to become bowl eligible.



-- Spurrier’s offensive mindset hasn’t exactly kicked in during his inaugural season. The club is averaging 23 PPG and 308 YPG of total offense. Quarterback Blake Mitchell has completed 60 percent of his passes for 15 touchdowns, with has favorite target being the amazing freshman Sydney Rice (58 catches, 952 yards, 12 TDs).



-- Defensively, SC is giving up 22 PPG and 347 YPG of total defense, ranked 31st and 43rd nationally. A lot of people put stock into the SEC and how good the defensively they are as a conference, but you’ve got to look closer. Only one team (Auburn) is ranked (15) in the top-25 scoring offenses in the nation.



-- Missouri (6-5 SU, 5-6 ATS) like South Carolina will be playing its first game in 42 days after ending its regular season on Nov. 19. The Tigers enter this contest with three losses in their last four games.



-- The Tigers are a complete opposite of the ‘Cocks, with a strong offense and weak defense. Mizzou is averaging 30 PPG and 423 YPG, including 205 YPG on the ground.



-- Quarterback Brad Smith is averaging 288 YPG of total offense and has passed for 12 touchdowns, plus he punched in 13 scores with his feet. The senior will be playing in his last game on Friday.



-- Missouri has struggled outside of Columbia, going 1-3 both SU and ATS. South Carolina fared a bit better, posting a 2-2 both SU and ATS mark. The two losses did come against highly ranked teams in No. 7 Auburn (48-7) and No. 8 Georgia (17-15).



-- The Tigers have dropped their last four bowl games, including their last appearance in the 2003 Independence Bowl against Arkansas, 27-14. South Carolina will be playing its first bowl game since 2001. The Gamecocks are 3-0 both SU and ATS in their last three postseason stops and Spurrier owns a 6-6 all-time mark in bowl games.



-- Missouri is 3-3 SU and 2-4 ATS against other bowl eligible teams, while SC is 2-4 SU and 3-3 ATS.