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San Jose State are in this bowl game only because of their academics. On the field Spartans finished 5-7 but because there were not enough bowl eligible teams to fill the 80 slots they were invited to fly across the country to face Georgia State in basically their backyard. Panthers (6-6) won four straight to go bowling for the first time in their history and only two years after joining FBS. The momentum is clearly on their side.

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New Mexico is a team that runs like crazy. Lobos are ranked 8th in FBS with 246.6 YPG and scored 37 TDs on the ground which is good for fifth place. At the same time the Wildcats are 89th against the run but more importantly they have allowed 26 TDs on the ground which is 24th worst in all FBS.

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When you have FCS' #3 offense against #7 offense what can you expect other than a shootout? Sam Houston State is averaging 43.3 PPG and 45 PPG since their November 7th loss at McNeese State. Jacksonville State is averaging 39.4 PPG including 46.9 PPG at home. And both defenses are pretty leaky lately: SH St. allowed almost 30 PPG in the playoffs while Jacksonville State allowed 121 points combined in the last four games.

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For Mount Union it's another title appearance. For St. Thomas it's the second championship game in the school history. Purple Raiders have reached the final for 17th straight year and they defeated St. Thomas 28-10 in 2012. For Mount Union it's a well-known situation and I think this will show at least in the beginning.

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Nobody has scored more than 13 against ND State in Fargo since the middle of October. Bison in 7th in all FCS in scoring defense and has allowed 26 points combined at home in the last 16 quarters of play. And while Richmond shocked #2 seed Illinois State last Friday they played in front of only 5356 spectators while tonight the expected crowd is more than 19 000.

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Jeff Fisher is 1-4 in prime time games as a St. Louis head coach. And his only win was a long time ago (excuse me for the Star Wars reference). There are only three games left until he's fired and the countdown starts tonight.

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Call it a denial bet but I'm not sold on Rams defense. It's one thing to shut down the dysfunctional Lions and something else to face a team that is fighting for its playoff hopes. And after all the Buccaneers are averaging 24.1 PPG in away games.

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Of the three teams that can clinch a playoff berth today Cincinnati is the only one that doesn't need help. A win will give Bengals the AFC North title for the second time in three seasons, a #1 seeding in AFC and just the second season sweep over the Steelers in the last 17 years! And one side note: home teams are 10-1 with John Parry as a referee in 2015 which is twice the league rate! He was also in charge of Bengals' win in Week 5 against Seattle and they are 3-0 lifetime with him on the field.

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This line is way off target as almost every other bookmakers offers the O/U at 21.5 or 22.5 points so take it before it lasts. Baltimore is the only team in the last two months not to score at least 20 against the Rams who will be without #1 DE Robert Quinn and top CB Janoris Jenkins is doubtful with a concussion. Lions' owner Martha Ford put everybody on notice to be fired at the end of the season so basically the team that has way more to prove is Detroit.

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2-10 Browns losers of seven straight starting Johnny Manziel two weeks after demoting him to third string with no secondary, spotting the second worst scoring D in the league and already given up on any hope favored against a team that should've won three of the last four if not for an absolute travesty of officiating against Arizona? Niners are coaching and playing for their jobs while Browns are only eyeing pick #1 in the draft.

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Ever since McCoy was traded to Buffalo there was a bad blood spat between him and former coach Chip Kelly. McCoy went on a big tirade against Kelly during a conference call on Wednesday and revenge is the only thing he'll have on his mind today. And Buffalo coach Rex Ryan is a big fan of revenge games so he'll do anything to let McCoy to stick it to his former bosses. And the short yardage specialist Karlos Williams is out with a concussion so Shady will get the bulk of carries once Bills get into the red zone.

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Adrain Peterson criticized the game plan against the Seahawks that limited him to eight carries and just three in the second half. The previous time he showed his displeasure with the coaching staff (after 13 carries for 45 yards against Green Bay) he was rewarded with 29 touches the next week. Vikings need to control the clock tonight to keep their vaunted defense off the field. And while it's not easy to run against the Cardinals teams are still averaging over 22 carries per game.

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Minnesota will be without half of its starters on defense tonight. And the reserve formation will have to face the highest scoring offense in the league! Arizona is averaging 15 PPG at home in the first half in 2015 although the trend is not positive in the last three games. It's also worth noting that the Cardinals are playing better defense away than at home (8.6 PPG to 10.2 PPG in the first half) and while I don't expect the Vikings to do much damage on offense we probably just need them for a TD or two field goals (don't forget Blair Walsh has a great range and he's playing indoors).

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Niners are 32 on offense (6.8 PPG) and defense (14.7 PPG) before halftime and on the road their numbers are dreadful (5.8 - 22.6). Plus this is an actual 11 AM start time for them. Chicago is right in the NFL Wild Card mix with a win and there's an added intrigue to the game - both Bears' OC Adam Gase and DC Vic Fangio were considered favorites at different points to become Niners' head coach in January only to be spurned in favor of Jim Tomsula. If there's one game this season they will do anything to win - this is it!

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Arizona won here last year with Ryan Lindley. Now they have Carson Palmer while the Rams will start Nick 'Santa Claus' Foles. It isn't prestigious at all when you have more INTs than TDs 11 games into the season and with all the injuries the defense is not able to compensate his mistakes anymore. Rams have played hard at home so I don't expect a blowout but Cardinals are playing for a first round bye and can't afford a slip up.

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Tennessee has won one home game in the last 707 days. And it was against Jacksonville. Jags has one win away from home in the last 735 days. And it was a result of a last second missed call. Titans play much better under Mike Mularkey while Jacksonville laid an enormous egg at home to San Diego and is all but out of playoff picture.

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The irresistible force against the unmovable object in the American Athletic title game. Houston is #2 on offense in the conference with 42 PPG while there's no better scoring defense than the Temple's (18.8 PPG). However Owls' last two away games produced 167 points combined while the Cougars are averaging 44.9 PPG at home in 2015. Both teams have balanced offenses and it's not easy to concentrate on one certain aspect. So I bet there will be plenty of points today in Houston.

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As you already know - offense rules in C-USA. And in the conference title game we have the two highest scoring offenses. Western Kentucky is averaging 44.2 PPG while Southern Miss is on a tear with 41.7 PPG and 48.2 PPG in their 6-0 run to the C-USA West title.
This is also a meeting between the two most prolific passers in the conference - WKU's Brandon Doughty is averaging 348.7 YPG with 72.5% completion and 42 TDs while Nick Mullens has an average of 330.3 YPG with 64.2% completion and 35 TDs.
And unlike last year when the high octane offenses of Marshall and Louisiana Tech played a 26-23 dud on the soggy field in West Virginia this year the forecast for Bowling Green is perfect - 12 degrees and sunny.

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Last week was the first since the opening day of the season in which Vikings finished in single digits in scoring. But it was in freezing outdoor conditions. Now they are playing indoors against a team that has allowed 64 points in the three-game losing streak and with a chance to reclaim lead in NFC North.

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Matt Hasselbeck's luck has to end at some point. The oldest starting QB in the league is 3-0 this season despite posting a rating over 88 just once. Colts are 2-3 at home while the Buccaneers have won two consecutive away games. Jameis Winston is playing better on the road and with Doug Martin, Mike Evans and Vincent Jackson facing 23rd run and 29th pass defense it's time for the first win in Indy since the start of the century.