Tuesday, December 30, 2008

Holiday Bowl: Oklahoma State (9-3) vs. Oregon (9-3)


The 2008 Holiday Bowl will pit the Oklahoma State Cowboys (9-3, 4Th in the Big 12 South) vs. the Oregon Ducks (9-3, tied for 2Nd in the Pac 10) in San Diego. The Big 12 has beat the Pac 10 in four of the past six Holiday Bowls, including last year, when Texas defeated Arizona State 52-34.

Oklahoma State is playing in their third straight bowl game, including last year's 49-33 win over Indiana in the '07 Insight Bowl. Cowboys coach Mike Gundy is 2-0 in bowl games as a head coach, entering his fourth season. The Oregon Ducks are playing in their fourth straight bowl game under coach Mike Bellotti, who is in his 14Th year as head coach, as dean of the Pac 10 coaches. Last year, the Ducks beat USF 56-21 in the '07 Sun Bowl.

The Cowboys three losses were all in the second half of the season at Texas, at Texas Tech and vs. Oklahoma, while the Ducks three losses cam in the middle half vs. Boise State, at USC and at California. Both teams played Washington State, with the Cowboys opening the season with a 39-13 win, while Oregon took care of business at Washington State 63-14 in the fifth game, coming off a loss to Boise State.

Conventional wisdom says with a Big 12 team squaring off with a Pac 10 team that the audience is in for an offensive showdown in the 2008 Holiday Bowl. Oklahoma State enters the game coming off an offensive showdown, but a 41-61 loss against in-state rival Oklahoma. While the Ducks, closed out the regular season with three wins, including a road finale at in-state rival Oregon State with a sound 65-38 win.

Cidsports' Prediction

Oklahoma State 38
Oregon 35


peace

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