No. 13 Stanford (9-4) vs. No. 15 TCU (10-3)

Dec. 28, 9 p.m. ET, San Antonio, Texas (ESPN)

TCU -3, O/U: 49

The 25th edition of the Valero Alamo Bowl will feature two top 15 teams that are both coming off loses in their conference championship games. After starting 1-2, the Stanford Cardinal have won eight out of their last nine games before heading into a Pac-12 title showdown with USC. The Cardinal had every opportunity to win that game, but after falling short, the Cardinal are playing their bowl game in San Antonio.

The Horned Frogs had an excellent season, finishing second in the Big 12 conference. The Horned Frogs were a playoff contender for a good part of the year, starting the season 7-0, but a upset road loss against Iowa State sent the Frogs off the hinges.  The last time the Frogs played in the Alamo Bowl, the #11 ranked Horned Frogs rallied from the biggest first half deficit in Valero Alamo Bowl history to complete the biggest comeback in bowl history, beating Oregon 47-41 in triple overtime.

Three Matchups to Watch:

• David Shaw vs Gary Patterson:

This is a matchup that features two of college football’s greatest football coaches. Shaw will use his power run scheme against Patterson’s irregular 4-2-5 defense. Gary Patterson and David Shaw are considered two of the most respected coaches in the game for the way they run their programs with class and dignity, all the while maintaining teams that compete at the highest level. TCU is led by head coach Gary Patterson, who is in his 17th season at the helm for the Horned Frogs. Patterson is TCU’s all-time winningest coach and boasts a 159-57 record. TCU finished their season 10-3 (7-2 Big 12) following a Big 12 Championship appearance. This is TCU’s seventh 10+ win season in the past ten years. David Shaw has become one of the most prominent coaches in college football over the past seven years. Under Shaw’s leadership, Stanford has dominated the Pac-12, winning three conference titles in the last seven years.

• Bryce Love vs TCU’s Run Defense:

The Stanford Cardinal offense did not have any setbacks with the loss of Christian McCaffrey due to the production of Bryce Love this season. Love was a Heisman finalist and the second leading rusher in the country after rushing for 1,973 yards with a ridiculous 8.3 yards per carry average. Love did all of that while dealing with a nagging ankle injury all season that definitely slowed his production down at the end of the year. With a couple weeks to rest his ankle, the TCU defense will have the challenge of containing Love at full strength.  Moreover, the TCU defense will present Love with one of his most toughest challenges. TCU, notoriously stingy in giving up yards on the ground, is ranked fourth in the country at just 99 rushing yards per game allowed. Stanford’s offensive line with be challenged by second-team All-American Matt Boesen. Boesen has a BIG 12 leading 11.5 sacks on the year and 21 tackles for loss.

• KJ Costello vs Kenny Hill:

This game features a battle between two quarterbacks where one is trying to have a breakthrough performance and the other is trying to end a roller coaster career on a good note. The winner of this game may be decided upon the performance of the quarterback play. Neither secondary has been playing great football as the two teams rank 77th (Stanford) and 52nd (TCU) in passing efficiency defense. Let’s start by talking about Stanford’s young redshirt freshman quarterback, K.J. Costello. The young Costello took over the QB job after an injury to redshirt senior Keller Chryst. Since then, Costello has given the Cardinal a somewhat aerial threat in the passing game. With a big time performance in the Alamo Bowl, Costello has an opportunity to make himself the next big time quarterback in college football. Costello has shown inconsistency throughout the year, but he has had two great performances against top 10 teams, passing for 211 yards against Washington and four touchdown passes against Notre Dame. Costello will need to have a big game in order to open up rushing lanes for Bryce Love. Costello has big targets to throw to since the Stanford receiving core, who averages more than 6’⅘  in height, is going against a TCU secondary that stands at 6’½.

On the other side of the spectrum, Kenny Hill is looking to have solemn ending to an interesting career. From starting his career at Texas A&M trying to replacing Johnny Manziel, to flaming out at College Station and transferring to TCU, Hill has had some trepidation. Hill has shown flashes of brilliance with the Horned Frogs, but has struggled with inconsistency.   Hill has quietly had a solid senior season, passing for 2,818 yards with 21 touchdowns and just 6 interceptions. He will facing a very vulnerable Stanford secondary and has an opportunity to end his career on a high note.

Prediction:

This should be one of the most entertaining games of the bowl season. There will be smash-mouth football played for all four quarters. This game will be decided on whether or not the TCU rush defense will be able to tackle Bryce Love. If the Horned Frogs rush defense holds true, TCU should win their second Alamo Bowl in three years. Although many touts are on the Cardinal bandwagon, I’m playing the opposite and think the Horned Frogs win a close one: 24-21 Horned Frogs.