Holiday bowl rush continues today … There are just 5 more sleeps until CFP playoff semi-finals get underway on New Year’s Eve. However, to help wile away the hours until then, there are still dozens of ‘other’ bowls including three today. And while nobody should really care who wins or loses those games there are several prospects for the upcoming draft very much worth a look in two of the today’s three games. Today’s tripleheader starts with Pittsburgh playing Toledo in the Sports Bowl at 2 PM on ESPN (in fact all three games today are on ESPN.) And while Toledo has never exactly been a draft factory, the Rockets do have a couple of sleeper type players that should get at least some early third day interest including DT Darius Alexander (#9, 6-3, 310), and S Maxen Hooks (#25, 6-0, 205), one of the more productive safeties in the county who had over 100 tackles this fall.
However, THE most interesting prospect on the day shows up in today’s nightcap when Arkansas State faces Bowling Green renew their long-time traditional rivalry in the Ventures Bowl which kicks off at 9 PM ET. In that game, BGSU TE Harold Fannin (#0, 6-4, 230) has a chance to set new all-time receiving records for the position in both total catches and yards; for the record, to date he already has 100 catches on the season for over 1,300 yards and 9 TDs. And lest anyone think he has just piled up those numbers against MAC Patsies, Fannin had 19 receptions for 280 yards and 2 TDs in the Falcons’ two-games against Penn State and Texas A&M earlier this season. Meanwhile, the other game today – Rutgers versus Kansas State in the eloquently named Rate Bowl at 5:30 PM – also would have had a prime prospect to watch, but star Scarlet Knights’ RB Kyle Monangi, one of the most productive backs in the country over the past couple of seasons, has opted not to play. Have a great day!
