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Independence Bowl
Texas AM vs Georgia
Bet Jamaica Line - Georgia -7 O/U 66
Few teams have been harder to figure out this season then the 2 teams that
will face off in the Independence Bowl tonight. Georgia has had a roller coaster
type season that the Georgia Fans are not use to. The Bulldogs finished the year
7-5 with wins over Arkansas, Auburn, and Georgia Tech, but they also lost games
to Tennessee and Kentucky. When this Georgia team is playing like they are
capable of they can play with just about anyone in the country, but when they
struggle they can get beat by just about anyone so the question that has to be
answered is which team is going to show up?
The answer to that question has a lot to do with what kind of Texas A&M team
shows up to play. Much like Georgia the Aggies have not been what you would
consider consistent. You have the good with them beating Texas Tech 52-30 and
giving Texas all they wanted 49-39, then you have the bad with them losing to
Arkansas 47-19 and to a bad Colorado team 35-34, and then you have the ugly with
them losing to Kansas State 62-14 and to Oklahoma 65-10. There has not been a
team that has been as inconsistent as Texas A&M has all year which makes them a
nightmare to predict, but much like with Georgia when they are on they are very
good, but when they struggle they are down right terrible. Head Coach Mike
Sherman has a very young team with a lot of potential, and he has a Top 10
recruiting class coming in next season, so a win over a top SEC program like
Georgia would really help this young team’s confidence.
PRIMETIME MATCHUP
If you are a fan of old school football with hard nosed defenses then this is
not the bowl game for you. The one area where both teams have really struggled
is on the defensive side of the ball. Georgia is ranked 10th in the SEC in
scoring defense and 7th in total defense, and Texas A&M is last in the Big 12 in
scoring and total defense. The question is which offense is going to have more
success over their opponent’s defense. Georgia’s offense has been solid, but not
dominant this season under Senior QB Joe Cox. He has thrown for almost 2500
yards and 22 TD’s with 14 INT’s. At times he has looked very good and at times
he has looked average at best, but with the emergence of the Bulldog’s rushing
attack in the last few games including a 339 yard performance against Georgia
Tech all Cox will have to do is make the throws when he has to and this offense
should be able to move the ball at will on this Aggie defense. If Texas A&M is
going to have any chance at keeping up with Georgia they have got to do what
they have failed to do most of this year and get some key stops in key
situations.
THE FINAL VERDICT
In a game like this where both teams really lack leadership on the defensive
side of the ball we like to go with a team that is able to establish the run,
and while off stats the Aggies put up more rushing yards a game we have more
faith in the Georgia rushing attack that has really come on late in the year and
has been going up against SEC defenses all year. RB Caleb King and Washaun Ealy
should be able to wear down this Aggie defense and make things easy on QB Joe
Cox. Cox is not a QB that will take a team and put it on his back, but when he
has time and can use the play action pass he has been very effective this year
and that’s what we expect to see from Cox and the Bulldogs.
Georgia -6.5
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