The 2011 Military Bowl is a fun game for football connoisseurs. Both the Toledo Rockets and Air Force Falcons like to mix up personnel groupings and packages. Creativity will be abundant.
Toledo Rockets vs. Air Force Falcons – Wednesday, December 28
Sports betting line: Toledo -3
Why Toledo Will Win
When you do your homework and assess your best best sportsbook on this game, you can’t judge a book by its cover. It’s true that the Mid-American Conference is the tenth-strongest league in the Football Bowl Subdivision, ahead of only the Sun Belt. However, the team from Toledo that is making its way to the nation’s capital city is much more accomplished than its MAC identifier or its 8-4 record would initially indicate. Former coach Tim Beckman did high-quality work with a team that fell apart on defense in the one game it couldn’t afford to lose, a home date with MAC West Division rival Northern Illinois earlier this season. When Toledo lost that 63-60 shootout, it lost leverage in its division and thereby was denied in its quest for a conference championship… a conference championship Northern Illinois won the other night in Detroit over Ohio University. In the rest of its 2011 schedule, however, Toledo has performed with distinction.

The Rockets have four losses to their credit, and all of them were noble in some way, even the shootout loss to a distinguished Northern Illinois squad. One of Toledo’s losses, in fact, shouldn’t have been a loss. The Rockets watched Syracuse miss an extra point late in regulation, which should have set up the Rockets for a game-winning field goal attempt on their subsequent drive. Yet, the Big East replay booth inexplicably upheld a call on the field which signaled that the kick was good. Toledo did kick a field goal on its ensuing drive, but instead of producing a 30-29 win, the three-pointer merely created overtime at 30-all. Syracuse won the game 33-30 in overtime, creating one of the bigger on-field controversies of the 2011 season.
Toledo’s other losses had their share of nobility: The Rockets lost by five points at Ohio State and were denied in the Buckeyes’ red zone on the final play of regulation. Toledo also pushed Boise State hard before committing a devastating red-zone turnover midway through the third quarter to lose hope of an upset. Toledo is still viewed by many observers as the most complete team in the MAC.
Why Air Force Will Win
The college football betting  experts who are looking at this contest will tell you that Air Force coach Troy Calhoun is a tough customer in bowl games. He beat Georgia Tech last year and Houston the year before. Air Force retained the Commander-In-Chief’s Trophy this season and played Boise State on relatively even terms for four hard-fought quarters on the smurf turf of Idaho. This is still a fun team to watch with quarterback Tim Jefferson directing an offense that gives defensive coordinators dozens of different looks per game, often changing formations before the snap. If you love thoughtful and creative uses of personnel, Calhoun – like the Toledo staff – revels in his ability to mix things up. The fact that Beckman is no longer the Toledo coach (he’s now at Illinois) should aid the Falcons in their efforts as well.

Who Will Win
It’s hard to play when your coach has departed for another school. Toledo was probably the favorite with Tim Beckman on the sidelines, but with Beckman now at the University of Illinois, Air Force is probably going to have more fuel in the tank. Take the Falcons over the Rockets in this bowl battle.

College Football Betting Pick: Air Force

Posted on December 21st, 2011 by admin
Filed under: College football betting