The 2019 Bowl Pool is now open and accepting entries.  Click the link below.  Deadline is noon (EST) Saturday, December 21, 2019.

https://forms.gle/PZVGQdBYejVEyaeUA

Congrats again to Xiaorong Lai, who had clinched the bowl pool victory heading into last night’s championship game. Kris Bisci held on to second place with the closest tiebreaker, despite Clemson’s upset victory. Nancy Heffner claimed third place by correctly picking Clemson and having the next closest tiebreaker, completing a tremendous turnaround after losing 7 of the first 8 games. Justin Sottile will get his money back for finishing last.

Thanks to everyone for playing!

Completed Game:

National Championship
Clemson 44, Alabama 16

Xiaorong Lai has clinched the win in the bowl pool, but the final game on Monday will decide who finishes in 2nd place, 3rd place, and last place.

If Alabama wins….

• Xiaorong Lai wins the pool with 27 points
• Kris Bisci will finish in 2nd place with 25 points
• Diane Heffner will finish in 3rd place with 24 points
• Bob Hermanni will finish in last place and get his money back.

If Clemson wins…

• Xiaorong Lai wins the pool with 24 points
• Four entries will be tied for second with 22 points. The closest tiebreaker (combined points scored in the Alabama/Clemson game) will finish 2nd, and the next closest tiebreaker will finish 3rd.
  • MT Heffner – tiebreaker = 44
  • Kris Bisci – tiebreaker = 59
  • Nancy Heffner – tiebreaker = 62
  • Katie Bisci – tiebreaker = 73
• Justin Sottile will finish in last place and get his money back.

Congratulations to Xiaorong Lai for winning this year’s bowl pool! Xiaorong held the lead going into yesterday’s games, and he clinched the victory by correctly picking Iowa and LSU on New Year’s Day. Fun fact – this is the 17th different winner in 17 years of the bowl pool.

Five entries are still alive for 2nd or 3rd place, depending on the outcome of the National Championship Game on Monday. They include Kris Bisci, Diane Heffner, Katie Bisci, MT Heffner, and Nancy Heffner. Several entries are in the running to get their money back for finishing last. Detailed scenarios will be posted later.

See the updated results here: https://tinyurl.com/2018bowlpool

Completed Games:

Outback Bowl
Iowa 27, Mississippi State 22

Citrus Bowl
Kentucky 27, Penn State 24

Fiesta Bowl
LSU 40, UCF 32

Rose Bowl
Ohio State 28, Washington 23

Sugar Bowl
Texas 28, Georgia 21

Upcoming Game:

National Championship – 1/7/19 – 8:00 pm (3 point game)
Alabama vs. Clemson

Heading into the New Year’s Day bowls, Xiaorong Lai holds the outright lead with 19 out of 23 possible points. Xiaorong has rattled off an impressive 12 straight correct picks. Kris Bisci is hot on his heels in second place with 18 points. Interestingly, Xiaorong and Kris have all of the same remaining picks, except for the Outback Bowl, so that one may go a long way in determining the champion.

But other entries are still alive, with eight points up for grabs on New Year’s Day, including three games worth 2 points each. Each of the leaders picked all the remaining favorites in the New Year’s Six games, so it will take some bold upset picks if anyone wants to catch them.

See the updated results here: https://tinyurl.com/2018bowlpool

Completed Games:

Military Bowl – 12/31/18
Cincinnati 35, Virginia Tech 31

Sun Bowl – 12/31/18
Stanford 14, Pitt 13

Redbox Bowl – 12/31/18
Oregon 7, Michigan State 6

Liberty Bowl – 12/31/18
Oklahoma State 38, Missouri 33

Holiday Bowl – 12/31/18
Northwestern 31, Utah 20

Gator Bowl – 12/31/18
Texas A&M 52, NC State 13

Upcoming Games:

Outback Bowl – 1/1/19 – 12:00pm
Mississippi State vs. Iowa

Citrus Bowl – 1/1/19 – 1:00pm
Penn State vs. Kentucky

Fiesta Bowl – 1/1/19 – 1:00pm (2 point game)
LSU vs. UCF

Rose Bowl – 1/1/19 – 5:00pm (2 point game)
Ohio State vs. Washington

Sugar Bowl – 1/1/19 – 8:45pm (2 point game)
Georgia vs. Texas

After Saturday’s action, Diane Heffner and Xiaorong Lai are tied for the lead with 13 out of 17 possible points. Diane held on to a share of the lead despite Michigan’s upset loss, while Xiaorong was one of only two entries to get all 4 games correct on Saturday. The heavy favorites won both semifinal games, which means that most people’s picks for the National Champion are still alive.

We are really only halfway through the pool, as 17 possible points remain, so anything can happen. The action resumes on Monday with six games on New Year’s Eve.

See the updated results here: https://tinyurl.com/2018bowlpool

Completed Games:

Belk Bowl
Virginia 28, South Carolina 0

Peach Bowl
Florida 41, Michigan 15

Cotton Bowl / Playoff Semifinal
Clemson 30, Notre Dame 3

Orange Bowl / Playoff Semifinal
Alabama 45, Oklahoma 34

Upcoming Games:

Military Bowl – 12/31/18 – 12:00pm
Cincinnati vs. Virginia Tech

Sun Bowl – 12/31/18 – 2:00pm
Stanford vs. Pitt

Redbox Bowl – 12/31/18 – 3:00pm
Michigan State vs. Oregon

Liberty Bowl – 12/31/18 – 3:45pm
Oklahoma State vs. Missouri

Holiday Bowl – 12/31/18 – 7:00pm
Utah vs. Northwestern

Gator Bowl – 12/31/18 – 7:30pm
Texas A&M vs. NC State

After 10 games, Diane Heffner and Miriam Snare are tied for the lead with 8 out of 10 correct.
Today is one of the most important days of the bowl season. Seven points are up for grabs, including three “New Year’s Six” games worth two points each. Two of those games are also the playoff semifinals, which will determine the teams that will play for the championship next week. There will be a lot more clarity in the bowl pool standings after tonight.

See the updated results here: https://tinyurl.com/2018bowlpool

For the statistics nerds, the results so far are making a near-perfect “normal” distribution, with an average score of 5.06. This indicates that the game outcomes have been very random. This is typical of the early bowl season, where it is difficult to determine which team will be more motivated to play well. We’ll see if the trend continues…

Completed Games:

Music City Bowl
Auburn 63, Purdue 14

Camping World Bowl
Syracuse 34, West Virginia 18

Alamo Bowl
Washington State 28, Iowa State 26

Upcoming Games:

Belk Bowl – 12/29/18 – 12:00pm
Virginia vs. South Carolina

Peach Bowl – 12/29/18 – 12:00pm (2 point game)
Florida vs. Michigan

Cotton Bowl / Playoff Semifinal – 12/29/18 – 4:00 pm (2 point game)
Clemson vs. Notre Dame

Orange Bowl / Playoff Semifinal – 12/29/18 – 8:00pm (2 point game)
Alabama vs. Oklahoma

Miriam Snare sits alone at the top of the leaderboard after Thursday’s action with 6 out of 7 correct. Lots of entries are right on her heels with 5 points, with a chance to move up with three more games on Friday. It continues to be an unpredictable bowl season, with underdogs winning 4 of the 7 games so far. As a result, the average score remains less than half (3.28 out of 7).

See the updated results here: https://tinyurl.com/2018bowlpool

Completed Games:

Independence Bowl
Duke 56, Temple 27

Pinstripe Bowl
Wisconsin 35, Miami 3

Upcoming Games:

Music City Bowl – 12/28/18 – 1:30pm
Auburn vs. Purdue

Camping World Bowl – 12/28/18 – 5:15pm
Syracuse vs. West Virginia

Alamo Bowl – 12/28/18 – 9:00 pm
Washington State vs. Iowa State

After only five completed games (and one cancelled game), no more perfect entries remain. In fact, only four entries even have 4 out of 5 correct. Julie Hank, Miriam Snare, Sabine Snare, and Shelby Heffner are currently tied for first place. The average score is only 2.3 out of 5 (less than half). Still a long way to go. Two games are on the slate today.

See the updated results here: https://tinyurl.com/2018bowlpool

Completed Games:

SERVPRO First Responder Bowl
Boston College vs. Boise State – CANCELLED

Quick Lane Bowl
Minnesota 34, Georgia Tech 10

Cheez-It Bowl
TCU 10, California 7 (OT)

Upcoming Games:

Independence Bowl – 12/27/18 – 1:30pm
Temple vs. Duke

Pinstripe Bowl – 12/27/18 – 5:15pm
Wisconsin vs. Miami

There was one last-minute entry that got in before the games started. That brings the total number of entries to 53, increases the total pot to $530, and increases the winner’s share to $370.

Three games have been completed, and only 6 perfect entries remain. The bowls take a few days off for Christmas, before returning on Wednesday, December 26th.

See the updated results here: https://tinyurl.com/2018bowlpool

Completed Games:

Birmingham Bowl – 12/22/18
Wake Forest 37, Memphis 34

Armed Forces Bowl – 12/22/18
Army 70, Houston 14

Dollar General Bowl – 12/22/18
Troy 42, Buffalo 32

Upcoming Games:

SERVPRO First Responder Bowl – 12/26/18 – 1:30pm
Boston College vs. Boise State

Quick Lane Bowl – 12/26/18 – 5:15pm
Georgia Tech vs. Minnesota

Cheez-It Bowl – 12/26/18 – 9:00pm
California vs. TCU