B1G Bowlapalooza 2013: Let's Talk About New Years Day

I went into today thinking I would write solely about Nebraska-Georgia, but let's all be honest. There are not a lot of new ideas I can enter into the fray that haven't been said. The matchup is a weird mess of teams who have been plagued by injuries, suspensions, up-and-down play, moments of greatness, and moments where fanbases lose their collective minds. Basically, it's what we saw last year only in Jacksonville.

With that said - and with Graham's penchant for bullets as my guide - I figured I would give some musings on what January 1st will bring for the conference. Feel free to comment on my football watching habits.

• The B1G sits at 0-2 and pundits have already lined up to point out that our new members are also 0-2. Assuming we believe 2+2=4, that's not such a great loss total going into what could be a brutal stretch of games for the B1G. As we've all pointed out before, this is a textbook setup to play up and play on the road. That really does suck, but that won't mean much in the bigger scheme of things. So the question becomes a strange mix of what will it take to gain credibility back. I'm thinking nothing short of the Rose and either the Capital One or Outback can be taken as a win. Heck, sweeping the SEC and losing the Rose will still feel like a small failure.
• Of course, that being said... I would take 2-1 against the SEC over any of the potential outcomes. If I had to take a stab at percentages (in winning chances), I'd go with Wisconsin at 50/50, Iowa at 45/55, and Nebraska somewhere around 33/67. That seems a little high for Nebraska perhaps, but I really do think Nebraska wins 1/3 against Georgia. That's not saying much, but it gives them a chance.
• I also believe the best matchup in general is MSU-Stanford. Even without Bullough, I think this is a well-coached Spartans team that can physically compete with a pretty solid Stanford team on both sides of the ball. As far as entertainment factor, however, I'm personally excited for Iowa-LSU because I really don't know what is going to happen. I'm really hoping that doesn't mean death for Iowa, but I'm still super excited to watch.
• I am not excited about Nebraska's game right now. Call me a pessimist, but I just don't know if Nebraska can win this game. Too much youth, too many injuries, too much drama. It's just a little too much for the team at this point. Win and some of this stuff gets taken care of, but lose (and probably in horrible fashion because that's what they do) and this offseason is another reason to drown myself in my other favorite sorrow - Cubs baseball.
• Wisconsin can beat South Carolina. Whether or not they will is always the crux of the issue. Spurrier losing to a B1G team on New Years Day would be great, especially if the Badger running game can smother the Cocks highlight-seeking defense. I'm hoping Penn State was a wakeup call to the Wisconsin team. Prepare and play hard, and I see this as a real good chance at the upset. (EXECUTE EXECUTE EXECUTE)
• If the B1G goes undefeated tomorrow, we're throwing a party online. Not even sure what that means, but seriously... party.
• And for those of you rooting against the conference because you hate your fellow schools... if your team wins and the others all lose, feel free to throw your own party in your own corner of the web. Nobody liked you anyways.
• Note: if that school is Nebraska, I'm just laughing because... well, that would be pretty laughable.
• Enjoy tomorrow. Last multi-B1G game day. Not so much football left. Nurse those hangovers and root for the good guys. Happy New Years everybody!