Well…….It’s finally here! This Bowl Season we have endured games sponsored by everyone from RedBox to Idaho Potatoes to banks/credit unions/mortgage companies and even a box of Cheez-Its on our screens 30 times in a 3-hour game to get to this weekend! Also had some good laughs when we have looked into the stands of various games…..
A Man after ZT’s own heart and within 2 Chromosomes of ZT’s identical DNA!
Actually 2 solid contests for ZT and The Padre to prognosticate as we close out the 2019/20 season of College Football. ZT won’t miss Gary Danielson or Brian Griese but will fill the void from now until August with coaching changes ( love thinking about the 2020 Egg Bowl with Lane Kiffin vs. Pirate Mike Leach ), recruiting, transfer portal action and all the rest!
FCS Championship – Frisco, TX ( Where else would one play this game? )
Saturday January 11, 2020 11 AM CST
James Madison Dukes vs. North Dakota State Bisons
THIS is what we need leading into the CFP on Monday Night ( not the Waste Management Dumpster Bowl!! ). NDSU is 15-0. JMU is 14-1. They have been ranked 1 & 2 all season as well as seeded 1 & 2 for the playoff….. JMU only loss was to West Virginia in the season opener by a score of 13-20. ZT is just loving this one!!!
Some fun numbers for this one before ZT dissects each team in the same fashion he can a 3-meat triple burrito!
0 -> Number of INTs NDSU QB Trey “I have 2 first names” Lance has thrown this year in 277 attempts. Very similar stat to ZT’s Boston Marathon victories with fewer attempts.
4 -> Number of rushers on NDSU with over 600 yards! ( 3 RBs and Mr. 2 1st names QB )
9 -> Number of teams held to UNDER 100 rushing yards by The Dukes!
……Not EITHER of these DUKES—- The JMU Dukes!
12 -> Number of Tacos eaten by ZT @ San Antonio Taco Co. in Nashville in 1 sitting..
19 -> Number of rushing TD’s by JMU RB Percy Agyei-“is ZT considered” Obese….( did ZT just toss in a ” ” in the middle of a hyphenated word???? )… Last prognostication of the year so……
20 something -> Number of Stoli Doli’s ZT once consumed at a Capital Grille in a single evening. If you have ever had one, you will understand why an exact count was not possible to record.
25 -> Number of FG’s made by JMU kicker Ethan Ratke
OK…ENOUGH NUMBERS!!!!!
Both teams are led into this championship by 1st Year HC’s!! JMU by Curt Cignetti. He played QB at West Virginia and has coached under Johnny Majors, Foge Fazio, Chuck Amato ( coaching QB Phillip Rivers ), and Nick Saban before becoming HC at IUP, Elon and now the JMU Dukes. NDSU 1st year HC Matt Entz is no stranger to the Bisons. He was DC under now Kansas State HC Chris Klieman and he LOVES playing in the FARGODOME ( and who wouldn’t! ).
Ok….maybe a few more numbers…… Look for the Bisons to do it all on offense. They average 37.8 PPG with 288 yds. rushing & 189 in the air. Remember, their QB has yet to throw an INT this season!! Defensively, they hold opponents to 11.8 PPG and under 270 yards total offense. Hey, they are 15-0 so don’t see much weakness. JMU averages 41.3 PPG with a more balanced 248 & 224 rushing/passing yds. per game. Dukes D holds opponents to under 15 PPG and 265 yards. Conventional wisdom would give the slight edge to NDSU with their tradition and history in the FCS. ZT is anything but conventional and notes dynasty’s such as Bama & the Patriots will both be watching this game from a Buffalo Wild Wings, so he continues to search deep and believes this is the “ZT Edge” when analyzing………… Red Zone Scoring:
NDSU 41-62 TD’s in the Red Zone w/ 52-62 Scores
JMU 55-79 TD’s in the Red Zone BUT 73-79 Scores!! Just enough to tip the scales like an Oreo Blizzard!!!! ZT says Dukes with a FG as time expires…..
JMU Dukes 26 NDSU Bison 24
Would you REALLY need an App to track this guy??
The OTHER Natty…..NOLA Monday January 13 7 PM CST
#3 Clemson Tigers vs. #1 LSU Tigahs
ZT is very excited about this one!!! Everyone talks about Clemson winning 29 in a row but it is bigger than that. Go to the end of 2015 and when you note the 2 losses to some team from Tuscaloosa, Clemson has won 69 of their last 71 games!!! LSU has a great history and expected to be in the mix this season. But 14-0, SEC Champs, and crushing OU ( led by former Bama QB Jalen Hurts ) in a semi-final game that was not as close as the 63-28 score is beyond anything a TIGAH’s fan really believed in August! So let’s look at each team and then prognosticate…. Clemson first…
Dabo wants to stare down a Tigah and get another Natty!
Offensively, it is hard to bet against a guy who hasn’t lost a game since in the back yard of his grandmother’s house at a family reunion (Pick 6 to Aunt Bessie). QB Trevor Lawrence hasn’t thrown an INT in over 200 attempts. While he can go toe-to-toe with Burrow, they got to get some good work from RB Travis ” Run” E-T-N ( spelled Etienne but ZT knows most of his readers used Hooked-On-Phonics in elementary school so…). He is a native of Louisiana with over 1,500 yards rushing and can catch a pass when needed. WRs Tee “shirt” Higgins and Justyn “the boss” Ross have combined for almost 2,000 yards and 21 TD’s.
Defensively, this will be interesting. Clemson is the 2nd ranked D in Red Zone Rankings……Sure people say “It was the ACC!!” but they held the Buckeyes out of the end zone early and that was critical since their offense was delayed heating up. ZT notes they are not as touted on the 1st team as last season ( due to 3 now playing on Sundays ), but they do have more depth than LSU so expect them to be the “fresher” squad in the 4th quarter. They do blitz more this year than in the past and do a nice job of mixing zone, man and Cover 0/1 looks. DC Brent ” I look like I just got goosed” Venables has won 3 Natty’s so he likely will be the best defensive mind LSU has faced this season!
Hey, Who was that with the big knuckles?
And now, how ’bout those Tigahs?
LSU Offense has been lights out all year and hard to believe it won’t be again on Monday. QB Joe “It’s ok to bow down to me” Burrow has to just pinch himself to believe this is happening after a trip through the transfer portal landed him on a team with a coach that has an over-sized Medulla Oblongata! Joe has over 5,200 yds. passing with 55 TDs with only 6 picks…Also ran for 4 TDs. Offense is the 1st to have a 5,000 yard passer, 1,000 yard rusher and 2 1,000 yard receivers. Much credit to OC Ensminger and Joe ” I once kissed Marsha” Brady. ZT’s favorite player is the Baby Rhino Clyde Edwards-Helaire who is more slippery than your Proctologist’s Index Finger!! All he did was rush for over 1,300 yards, 16 TDs and averaged 6.6 yards per carry. Question is can he stay healthy (nursing a hammy) and carry the load for 60 minutes? In the air, Bama’s WRs got most of the press but not sure Tigahs are not better! ( “Blasphemer” yell’s ZT’s Bama neighbor! ). A very physical group with Chase & Jefferson accounting for almost 3,000 yards and 36 TDs. They tend to pick you apart on shorter, physical routes then smoke your A$$ going deep, making defensive coordinators call their mama’s crying from the sideline!
Defensively, DC Dave “I once kissed a Panda on a Veranda” Aranda and squad have given up some points. If this was a typical LSU offense, they might have played in the Bourbon Bowl in late December (But it ain’t ZT so get back on track and quit drinking Nyquil!). This team has a solid D-Line and love their DBs led by Grant Delpit and their 17 INTs. They just need to keep Clemson to 28-31 and let the offense do their thing.
SO….where do we go with all this? After the “Terror in Santa Clara” last year, we all want a GREAT CFP National Championship Game!! ZT believes we get it! Only 15 of 84 Heisman winners have won the National Championship —-Garbage Stat! Right up there with not changing your underwear until your team wins ( only guaranteed to attract flies once you lose 3 in a row! ) Toss all those other odd stats out as well!! ZT believes it will be who wins the battle between LSU’s prolific offense and Clemson’s versatile defense. Dabo has the will and can usually find the way but Coach O and the Tigahs are on a magical ride and don’t see this carpet crashing on Monday in what amounts to a LSU home game. For those who like to wager, betting is very lopsided on the Tigahs including 2 Vegas sports books reporting 8 bets of 6-figures, all on LSU. ZT says take the points but your National Champion will be LSU!
LSU TIGAHS 35 CLEMSON Tigers 31
ZT and the Padre are shutting down until August but excited about next year! Padre will embark on a ritual of having his teeth chiseled to replicate UF mascot Albert the Gator in time for SEC Media Days. ZT has a goal of eating a frozen pizza, drinking a Natty Light, and taking a leak in at least 21 states this year. ( Kind of an odd 21 “gun” { wife says small pistol} salute for 2020!!!). Will advise in September!
Pigskin Prognostications by the Piedmont Padre and Zimmern's Twin 