CFB Handicapping: Horned Frogs vs Bulldogs
One of the travesties of the current bowl situation is that it places a team like TCU is a low tier game against a relatively low tier opponent before we even ring in the New Year.
San Diego County Credit Union Poinsettia Bowl
TCU Horned Frogs (10-2) vs Louisiana Tech Bulldogs
Qualcomm Stadium – San Diego, CA
Wednesday December 21 – 8:00PM
Moneyline: TCU -370, La. Tech +340
Spread (ATS): TCU -10.5
Over/Under: 55.5
Odds courtesy of 5Dimes
TCU
The only good thing about this game is that it is the warmer climbs of SoCal as Fort Worth can get pretty blustery this time of year. Hopefully they will be motivated to put forth a maximum effort.
The Horned Frogs might not be the best two loss team in the nation but they are in the conversation. A new era has started with Casey Pachall at quarterback and the sophomore has proven he was ready to be handed the torch. This year they don’t score as many points but that has as much to do with the defense not being as stifling as before as anything – they really set themselves up in the past. Pachall is running an efficient attack that can kill opponents through the air and on the ground.
It has been a whirlwind season for TCU. They thought they were heading to the Big East but now it is the Big 12. They wound up winning the Mountain West but because of a couple of losses can’t sniff the BCS. Will a few weeks off be good for a team that has gone through all that or will the layoff already have them thinking about next year. There are so many bowl games to come this might be one to layoff of.
Louisiana Tech
I bet there are many that didn’t know Louisiana Tech actually won the WAC this year. [soliloquy id=”82219″]
It might not have been as tough with Boise State gone but Louisiana Tech won seven in a row to close the season and win the conference, dropping only their WAC opener against Hawaii. Their three other losses all came against bowl teams by a combined total of 9 points. Odds are this team is better than you or I think.
When you look at the Bulldogs numbers from the season it is hard to pinpoint why have been so successful. This is neither a great offensive or defensive team they just seem to be getting it done. Their key playmaker on offense is receiver Quinton Patton who had more than 1100 yards receiving and 10 TDs. Normally shutting down a receiver would be no problem for the Frogs but this year they have had games they struggled against the pass.
If this game was being played in the regular season we probably would be looking at a bigger number than we are. Those who were out in front on La. Tech have been laughing all the way to the back due to their 10-2 ATS record this season, but with so much time to break this one down those 10 points should be pretty solid. As I said above I don’t see a ton of value there. Maybe tease it one way or the other with another contest.
ATS Pick: TCU
Over/Under Pick: Over
Score Prediction: TCU 38 – Louisiana Tech 24
