BBVA Compass Bowl

Panthers draw Southern Methodist

The NCAA College Football BBVA Compass Bowl will pit the Southern Methodist Mustangs against the Pittsburgh Panthers. The Mustangs, out of Conference USA, come into the bowl with 7 total wins and 5 losses, while the Panthers, from the Big East Conference, have 6 total wins and 6 losses. Both teams ended their year on a win, and there is no doubt that both teams will be fighting for that championship.

SOUTHERN METHODIST MUSTANGS

The Mustangs ended the season ranked 22nd overall in the FBS rankings in passing yards with 277.8 yards per game, and with 118.2 rushing yards, they rank 98th. The Mustangs scored an average of 25.7 points per game this season, giving them an FBS ranking of 71st, and opponents were only allowed to score an average of 24.5 points per game.

The Mustangs recorded an exciting season. They lost their season opener to the number 8 ranked Texas A&M, but they went on to win five consecutive games. Their fourth win in a row found the Mustangs toppling the number 20 ranked TCU in overtime, 40-33, for an exhilarating upset.

The Mustangs have some key players to thank for their success. Their senior quarterback, J.J. McDermott, threw for 3,182 yards and 16 touchdowns this season. Junior running back, Zach Line, recorded 17 touchdowns and a total of 1,224 rushing yards.

Other notable players include junior wide receiver, Darius Johnson, who concluded his season with 998 receiving yards and 7 total touchdowns, and 2 of those touchdowns came in the upset over TCU. The Mustangs other key wide receiver, Cole Beasley, led in total receptions for the season with 79, and with 12.1 yards per reception.

PITTSBURGH PANTHERS

The Panthers finished the season with an overall FBS ranking of 76th in passing yards with 211 per game, and they rank 68th in rushing with an average of 151.2 yards. The Panthers scored an average of 25.8 points per game, and with an overall FBS rating of 33rd, they only allowed opponents to score 22.4 points per game.

Although injuries befell the Panthers this year, they still put up quite a fight. Most notably was their fifth game of the season, when they convincingly upset the number 16 ranked South Florida, 44-17.

The Panthers have some athletic talent to be grateful for. Junior quarterback, Tino Sunseri, has a 63.9 percent pass completion rate, and he logged in a total of 14 touchdowns. Four of Sunseri’s touchdowns were from rushing yards, and one of those four came during the mighty upset against South Florida.

Senior running back, Zach Brown, who worked hard to fill in the gap left by a season-ending injury to golden boy, junior running back, Ray Graham, carried the ball 82 times this season for 5 total touchdowns. Lastly, the Panthers main wide receivers, sophomore Devin Street, and junior Mike Shannahan, did their jobs well. Street finished his season with 692 total reception yards and 2 touchdowns, while Shannahan finished his season with 4 touchdowns.

THE BOWL GAME

All in all, the BBVA Compass Bowl should not disappoint. The Mustangs and the Panthers have been fairly matched. The Panthers will need to be aware of the Mustangs efficient passing game, just as the Mustangs will need to prepare for the Panthers and their running game.

BBVA Compass Bowl formerly the Birmingham Bowl Overview

The Birmingham Bowl is one of the newer bowl games that make up the postseason for the top division of collegiate football. Started in 2006, the bowl has been held in Birmingham, Alabama since its inception. The bowl's operations, like many college bowl games in the so-called third tier, is owned by an ESPN subsidiary, and the sports network has naturally held broadcast rights to the game since its creation. At Allpro this is part of our $100k college bowl parlay challenge as well.

The first sponsor of the football game was Papa John's Pizza, who renamed the event the Papajohns.com Bowl in an effort to draw attention to the pizza chain's web site. The company declined to renew their sponsorship contract, making the 2011 event the first competition to be held under the name of the Birmingham Bowl.

The Birmingham Bowl is played at Legion Field in Birmingham. Legion Field is best known as the former home of the annual football game between the Alabama Crimson Tide and the Auburn Tigers. Two other schools in the state, Alabama A&M and Alabama State, also play their annual matchup against each other at the stadium, and it was the host of the first two Southeastern Conference championship matchups. The stadium seats over 70,000 football fans.

In the first two years of the Birmingham Bowl, participants were selected from Conference USA and the Big East football conference. Today, the agreements in place for the Birmingham Bowl state that they will select a team from the Big East, as well as having the ninth pick of bowl-eligible teams from the powerhouse Southeastern Conference. In some years, however, there are not enough teams in the SEC that have won the minimum number of games to become eligible for postseason competition. In that case, the bowl committee may select a team from the Sun Belt conference, although they have chosen to select an at-large team instead in certain years. The representative from the Big East has won all four editions of the Birmingham Bowl so far.

In the first three years of the Birmingham Bowl, the event was held before or a few days after Christmas, which is typically when bowls with lesser prestige and tradition (the third tier) played their games. For the 2009-2010 season, however, the Birmingham Bowl was played after New Years, on January 2, 2010, which is historically the time of year when the most prestigious bowls (those that now make up the Bowl Championship Series) were held. In the 2010-2011 season, the date is being pushed back even further, with the event scheduled to be held on January 8th, 2011.

The Birmingham Bowl is a huge event for the city of Birmingham. ESPN estimates that the last four football games have added more than 41 million dollars to the local economy, as football fans from the competing schools and other tourists from around the nation visit the city to take in the game. Hosting the event has become a source of pride for sports fans in The Magic City.

If you can't wait for bowl season to begin or need a break, don't forget we also have a full slate of NFL odds every week to blend in between your bowl games. Just like with our college football betting lines we have all types of NFL props, fantasy wagering, wagering by position and much more. The Birmingham Bowl Game Preview & point spread, along with the Birmingham Bowl odds will be published at the end of the regular college football season.