Kraft Fight Hunger Bowl 2011: Nevada Against Boston College for BCS Bowl Game
Written by John Mark Lindt on Sunday, January 9th, 2011Nevada Wolf Pack will be facing the Boston College Eagles for this years Kraft Fight Hunger Bowl. This is the third name for this annual NCAA post-season college football game which is played annually at the 40,800-seat AT&T Park which is also home to the San Francisco Giants. The Kraft Fight Hunger Bowl was previously known as Emerald Bowl from 2004 to 2009 and the San Francisco Bowl and the Diamond Walnut San Francisco Bowl in recognition of the corporate title sponsor, Diamond of California, from 2002 to 2003.
The Boston College Eagles is the ACC – Atlantic champion while Nevada Wolf Pack is the WAC champion this year. Both school football teams manage to have one of their best football season especially for Boston College who will be appearing in their third Hunger Bowl. This is the first time that Nevada will be playing for this bowl game.
Also, Boston College has one of the nation’s toughest defense ever and that is why they are once again in a bowl for the 12th consecutive year. If they have the toughest defense, Nevada Wolf Pack is known to be one of the nation’s “most prolific — and unique — offenses,” according to ESPN and football game experts.
The Wolf Pack missed the opportunity to have a near BCS bowl bid when they were handed a defeat by Hawaii on October 16. Hawaii handed them a 27-21 loss and thus they ended the season at a 12-1 record. If they manage to win then that will be a 13-0 record and will surely be within reach of the BCS national championship consideration.
If there was any consolation to the Wolf Pack and Boston College, the Kraft Fight Hunger Bowl 2011 is being held just prior to the Tositos BCS National Championship game between number 2 Oregon and number 1 Auburn. This is the last of the pre-BCS national championship games and we are anticipating a great game.
Nevada had achieved their first ever AP ranking since 1948 and also the 2010 season is so far its best regular-season record as an FBS school. This season, they also captured a share of the Western Athletic Conference title and was able to defeat then number 3 Boise State in a head on football game on Nov. 26.
If Boston College wants to improve to 2-1 at the Kraft Fight Hunger Bowl they have to be extra careful with Nevada players which includes senior stars Colin Kaepernick and Vai Taua. Kaepernick threw for 20 touchdowns and ran for 20 more. This tenacity is all thanks to the so called pistol offense of coach Chris Ault.
“He is the leader of our team; there is no question about it,” Ault said of Kaepernick after a 35-17 win over Louisiana Tech on Dec. 4.
“He makes plays. That’s what his legs do for us. He has done that throughout his career here. He is a pretty special guy.”
Boston College however also has some big guns to match the offense of Nevada. Their defense is the nation’s best which only allows 80.2 yards per game and have given up just 1.8 points and 75.4 rushing yards. In their latest winning streak they even forces 12 turnovers or an average of about 2 turnovers per game.
“It’s satisfying because we’re getting better every week,” coach Frank Spaziani said after a 16-7 win over Syracuse on Nov. 27. “This is what we’re striving to do.”
Nevada still outgun Boston College in every statistic and college ranking in offense. They are far better than BC when it comes to total yards per game. Nevada is at 3rd with 535.5 yards per game against BC’s 308.6 yards per game which puts then ranked 105th.
Who will win the Kraft Fight Hunger Bowl 2011? The answer will be who will get the combination of both good defense and good offense. This will be an exciting Nevada vs Boston College NCAA football game.
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