Football expert Phil Steele is the owner and publisher of Phil Steele’s College Football Preview, regarded as the college football bible. Get in-depth coverage of college and pro football 24/7/365 at PhilSteele.com.
Washington (+5 1/2) over Boise State (Las Vegas Bowl, Dec. 22): The best piece of advice I can give you when looking at bowl games is comparing apples to apples. While Boise is 10-2 and Washington is 7-5, I have these two very close in my rankings. Both played San Diego State, with Washington beating the Aztecs and Boise State losing to them at home. Motivation is also a key factor and the Broncos are clearly at a disadvantage playing in the same bowl for a third straight year.
Duke (+7 1/2) over Cincinnati (Belk Bowl, Dec. 27): One team has an interim head coach while the other is going “bowling” for the first time since 1994. If you look at the Blue Devils’ 6-6 record you may not be impressed, but they’ve had three or fewer wins in 10 of the last 13 seasons and that .500 record earned David Cutcliffe ACC Coach of the Year honors. Duke has the best offense Cincinnati has faced this year, and playing in front of an in-state crowd, the Blue Devils will keep it close.
LSU (-4) over Clemson (Chick-Fil-A Bowl, Dec. 31): Clemson finished the regular season ranked No. 6 in scoring offense (42.3 ppg) and No. 9 in total offense (518 ypg). Clemson was held to a season-low 295 yards versus my No. 20 defense (Virginia Tech) and scored a season-low 17 points versus an SEC foe South Carolina, which has my No. 8 defense. LSU has my No. 7 defense, and away from home held four SEC teams to 14 ppg, which included Texas A&M with its Heisman winner. I’ll always take an elite defense.
SEASON RECORD (NCAA): 11-16.