We have a new leader, as Chris edges ahead as we come down the home stretch. We will be upping the ante in the coming weeks – we will have bowls as part of our normal picks next week, but we’ll also have a ‘Bowl Special’ – Twelve of the top bowls from Jan. 1 until the BCS title game. For the NFL playoffs, each game will count double! On to the picks…
| 12/23-12/29 games | Chris Morelli | Jay Siegel | Dustin Parks | Rusty McCracken | Dave Glass |
| Navy-SD St. | SD St. | SD St. | Navy | SD St. | Navy |
| Hawaii-Tulsa | Hawaii | Hawaii | Hawaii | Hawaii | Hawaii |
| Air Force-Ga. Tech | Air Force | GT | GT | GT | GT |
| WVU-NC St. | NC State | WVU | West Virginia | WVU | WVU |
| Missouri-Iowa | Iowa | Iowa | Iowa | Missouri | Missouri |
| Okla. St.-Arizona | OSU | OSU | Arizona | OSU | OSU |
| Panthers-Steelers | Steelers | Steelers | Steelers | Steelers | Steelers |
| Vikings-Eagles | Eagles | Eagles | Eagles | Eagles | Eagles |
| Colts-Raiders | Colts | Colts | Colts | Colts | Raiders |
| Giants-Packers | Giants | Giants | Giants | Giants | Packers |
| 49ers-Rams | 49ers | Rams | Rams | Rams | 49ers |
| Saints-Falcons | Falcons | Falcons | Falcons | Falcons | Falcons |
| Last Week | 8-4 | 7-5 | 9-3 | 8-4 | 8-4 |
| Year-to-date | 96-48 | 95-49 | 93-51 | 91-53 | 88-56 |
The Last Word
Chris: “Big bounce back game for the Steelers this week. Despite having a playoff berth clinched, they desperately need the No. 2 seed and the bye week to get healthy. Giants will bounce back from one of the worst losses in their history.”
Jay: “In bowl action I think Iowa will rise from adversity and beat the bums from the Big 12. The U of A will also go down, like most PAC 10 teams. Steelers are a different team without Polamalu, but not different enough for the lowly Panthers to upset them. Giants need a big bounce-back after last week’s debacle, but they’re obviously good for it. Changed from Saints to Falcons at the last second – could really go either way.”
Dustin: “Steelers must bounce back, and cannot look past the Panthers. The Jets stunned them at home, can’t have Carolina do the same. The game of the week is definitely the Saints vs. Falcons. Playoff implications are on the line, and when you have Drew Brees against Matt Ryan, it is going to be an offensive explosion.”
Rusty: “Great games to watch this week – may see our first game played in scuba gear tonight in San Diego as the stadium needs pumped out after the recent flooding on the West Coast – Hawaii has to feel cheated by getting a bowl bid to play in Hawaii (right). In the pros, I hope the Steelers can’t find a new way to lose this week, but like a couple other games with teams who have clinched, it’s hard to read how focused they’ll be. Maybe home-field advantage still means something to all of them.”
Dave: “Unlike Jay, I’m a believer in the Big 12 and think they will flex their collective muscles over the next two weeks. I like the Raiders to control the clock with their ground game, and Manning is fast running out of healthy targets – Colts are in grave danger of missing the playoffs. I think the NFC West winner is going to be 7-9 when it’s all said and done, and San Francisco still has a great chance to be that team. Steelers line (-15) is ridiculous, but they should manage a win. The best thing for Pittsburgh is the needed 9-day rest that follows.”