Vandy vs. BC, Prediction, 2008 Gaylord Hotels Music City Bowl. I love it when Mark May is wrong. The ESPN college football analyst is so arrogant, especially when he thinks he is right. May wrote both of these schools off in August saying that Vanderbilt was by far the worst team in the SEC and would be lucky to win a couple of games. He also chirped that Boston College would be lucky to be in the hunt in the weakened ACC with the loss of Matt Ryan to the NFL. Happy to report that Mr. May was wrong on both accounts.

This is the Feel Good Bowl of the year for me. I am always happy to see a team like Vanderbilt get to a bowl game. The last time they played in one was 26 years ago. They started out the season 5-0, ranked thirteenth in the country, and Coach Bobby Johnson looked like a genius. Unfortunately, The Commodores slipped and ended up 6-6. The bowl is a home game, look for droves of Vandy fans to be in attendance. Vanderbilt basically spins the wheel at quarterback for this game. Sr. Chris Nickson, Jr. Mackenzi Adams, and redshirt freshman Larry Smith can all see action in this game. Whoever starts will play as long as he is not putting his team in a position to lose the game.

The reason why Vanderbilt’s trio of quarterbacks will all put the team in a position to lose is because of Boston College’s awesome defense. The Eagles were ranked thirteenth defensively and lead the way into bowl play with 26 interceptions. Coach Jeff Jagodzinski must rely on Fr. Dominique Davis. Davis took over for Sr. Chris Crane who broke his collarbone. In two starts Davis was 17-43 with 1 TD and 2 INT.

Boston College holds a lifetime 2-0 record against Vanderbilt. My prediction is that the Boston College defense will carry the Eagles to victory. The crowd will work in Vanderbilt’s favor, but the defense of the Eagles should take the noise out of the game by the end of the first quarter. Vanderbilt could pull the upset if Dominique Davis has a bad day, but my gut feeling is that BC’s defense might outscore Vandy’s offense.
Gaylord Hotels Music City Bowl 12/31 3:30 PM est ESPN