LAS VEGAS BOWL
UCLA vs. WYOMING
Dec-23 9:45/ESPN
SO, WHAT’S THE STORY WITH THIS ONE?
Historically, the ultimate college football David and Goliath. The have vs. have-not. Blue state vs. red state. Pretty uniforms vs. ugly uniforms. More contemporarily, neither has a win against a 1-A team with a winning record so that honor is up for grabs.
WHO THE HELL ARE THESE TEAMS?
UCLA makes it’s second trip across Highway 15 for their second Las Vegas Bowl in three years whereas they beat New Mexico 27-13. They lost in their last bowl so it’s been awhile since this team beat anybody that’s…good. Their offense is led by by the dual rushing attack of Maurice Drew and Manuel White combining for 1,642 yards. as well as 371 yards in receptions. That’s 1,995 APY with 20 touchdowns. QB Drew Olson can heave the pigskin but not always to his player with 13 interceptions on the year. Marcedes Lewis is a mutli-talented Tight End that can catch, score, and block with the best of them. The offensive line is also one of the strongest in the game allowing for this spectacular offense. The defense is simply atrocious allowing 222.3 yards of rushing per game. Their best defensive player Spencer Harvis is also out with an injury.
This is Wyoming’s first bowl appearance in 11 years since the 1993 Copper Bowl where they got slaughtered by Kansas St., 52-17. Their last win was the 1966 Sun Bowl against Florida St. There isn’t just one or two players that stand out. This is simply not a very talented team and the star of the program is probably coach Joe Glenn. There offense has been steady but their defense is poor against the run which is a scary sign when you have two of the best rushers on the other side of the ball. The only way Wyoming will be able to win is to keep up on the scoreboard.
WHAT THE HELL IS THE LAS VEGAS BOWL?
Operated by Sin City herself, in 1992 the city of Las Vegas saw opportunity after the dissolution of the California Raisin Bowl and took over the somewhat traditional MAC/Big West match up. Since 1997, it plays a MW team vs. the fifth place Pac-10 team. In 2003, the Las Vegas Bowl moved from being the traditional first bowl of the season and moved up a week to be one of the Christmas bowls. It should be noted the bowl has a tendency to have dismal attendance.
WYOMING-24
UCLA-21
MVP- Jovon Bouknight
WHAT HAPPENED?
To avoid the cliche of Wyoming ‘wanting it more, let’s say Wyoming really really really wanted to win this game, and they did. Their first bowl win since the 1966 Sun Bowl against one of the marquis franchises in college football. They came out of the gate and capitalized off a UCLA fumble and swung the momentum their way leading UCLA 13-0 by the end of the first quarter. UCLA came back and were up 21-10 midway through the third. QB Drew Olson went out of the game with an injury but untested backup David Koral held his own throwing for two touchdowns. Maurice Drew ran for 126 yards and the recievers were able to attain 329 yards. But they couldn’t hold off Wyoming’s 14 point fourth quarter including a touchdown with less then a minute to go. Jovon Bouknight caught for 107 yards, had a first down rush for 14 yards and even threw a touchdown pass. Fans from both teams showed up to Vegas and the crown was loud with energy.
WHAT DID WE LEARN?
That UCLA doesn’t like playing in third-tier bowl games. They really didn’t seem to wanna play football in the first quarter and their last minute drive to try to win seemed half-hearted. We also learned how far effort and heart can get you as Wyoming got the upset when slated as two touchdown underdogs.
