Bowl picks: 1-5 and barely alive

These freaking bowls are @#!^%&!!@&%$#?! meaningless anyway.

In a cruel twist of fate I won the one bowl game involving my heart and lost the two that I had no clue/care about.

My conclusion: it's impossible to bet objectively on teams that you know nothing/could care less about.

The one game I did have something of a vested interest in, the USF/ECU Papajohns.com Bowl, I got right. The vested interest being that I've eaten a lot of Papa John's pizza in my day (you know, back when it was the king of delivery pizza before everyone wisely went back to traditional Italian pies.)

Let's summarize the carnage.

Bowl #4
Papajohns.com Bowl
USF 24, ECU 7
MY PICK: USF 24-14
LINE: USF -5 1/2
MY REC: 1-3

Hard to go wrong with this one even though it could have been classified as a 'heart bet' (local team.) But heart or not it didn't take a genius to realize that the Bulls were the better team, had the better players, and should have handily prevailed in the inaugural bowl in Birmingham.

Freshman sensation QB Matt Grothe did all his damage in the first half when he went 6-10 for 81 yards and a TD plus 7 rushes for 15 yards. But when he left the game late in the 1st half with a shin injury, Pat Julmiste played mistake-free ball the rest of the game and the Bulls held on for its first ever bowl victory.

Although USF allowed 317 yards of total offense as compared to its 286 the Bulls held star WR Aundrae Allison to 24 yards on 3 catches and had him befuddled & combative the whole game. A fumble by ECU QB James Pinkney on the second play of the game led to a USF score just a minute in and set the tempo for the day.

It was a great day for the USF program and annual 'hot coaching candidate' Jim Leavitt, and also a great moment for the World's Worst Gambler as I recorded my first victory of the silly season.

However the sweet taste of victory would not last long...

Bowl #5
New Mexico Bowl
San Jose St. 20, New Mexico 12
MY PICK: New Mexico 24-21
LINE: Utah -1 1/2
MY REC: 1-4

A world-class case of Clouded Logic bet. I went with New Mexico just for the mere fact that it was playing at home despite the Spartans having the better team.

I hope you people are learning something here.

Bowl # 6
Bell Helicopters Armed Forces Bowl
Utah 25, Tulsa 13
MY PICK: Tulsa 30-17
LINE: Utah -1 1/2
MY REC: 1-5

Another clear case of Clouded Logic. Utah had won 5 straight bowl games and is used to the postseason spotlight. Tulsa- just happy to be there.

The Utes got 405 yards of offense thanks to QB Brent Ratliffe's 23-34, 240 yard day and 165 yards on the ground; the Utes now have the nation's longest active bowl game winning streak at 6 straight games.

And if not for USF I would now have the nation's longest bowl losing streak at 6 straight games. Ah thank you Matt Grothe and USF- you guys saved me from another ignoble title- at least for another day.

It might be time to exercise another strategy for the next round.

I may have to go into Wife & Secretary Mode- you know where you pick the team based on uniform, geographical location, or cuddly animal logo.

Wish me luck.