FRIDAY FOOTBALL PICKS!!
It's that time again; I went 9-7 last week, and am now 127-125-7 for the year.
Let's do some NFL playoff picks and a few bowl picks...see if I can finish
the year strong!

NFL WILD CARD WEEKEND

I'll just pick winners here, and give a projected score...

Minnesota at Green Bay.  My pick:  PACKERS.  Minnesota did a great job last weekend at home; they after all had a bit more to play for; for the Vikes, it was win or go home.  But this weekend, it's a different animal.  Now,it's at Lambeau; Christian Ponder has not historically played well there.  Aaron Rodgers of course does.  I just think in a playoff game, at Lambeau, Green Bay has too big
of an edge at QB, plus they have a healthy Randall Cobb returning to help their offense.  Adrian Peterson is a great RB; he'll get his yards.  But I like Rodgers to play well, and to direct the Pack to a win--say 31-17.

Seattle at Washington.  My pick:  SEAHAWKS.  To me it comes down to:  Seattle has a better defense; and in the NFL playoffs, defense is a huge factor in determining ultimate winners.  RGIII has had a great year.  But you worry about his banged-up knee; he just doesn't have that burst.  I don't see the Redskins running the ball against Seattle like they did against the Cowboys and others.  Russell Wilson has greatly improved.  I like Seattle 20-13.

Cincinnati at Houston.  My pick:  TEXANS.  You have to be impressed with Cincy; lost in the shuffle of how well RGIII and Andrew Luck have played is the fact that the Bengals have finished this season by winning 7 of 8.  Meanwhile Houston has struggled lately.  But--Houston is at home.  They still have Arian Foster, Matt Schaub, etc; and Andy Dalton last year struggled on the road in the playoffs.  You just have to think that Houston has come too far not to get things together a bit this weekend, in this game.  Houston 31, Cincinnati 21.

Indianapolis at Baltimore.  My pick:  RAVENS.  The key here?  It may well be Ray Lewis coming back from injury to play; and his announcement of his retirement after this season--look for the Ravens to rally around him, and for him to make an impact on that Ravens' defense.  The playoffs are a different animal; this is going to be a tough environment for Luck and the Colts in which to play.  The Ravens can score on that Indy defense; and they will.  I just don't think Luck and the Colts will be able to keep up--this time.  (In future years, once the Colts get more players, Luck and the Colts will be big threat).

COLLEGE FOOTBALL BOWL PICKS

Cotton Bowl:  Texas A&M vs Oklahoma.  My pick:  AGGIES.  You have to love Johnny Football Manziel and what he's done at A&M; I don't Oklahoma's defense can stop him.

Championship game:  Notre Dame vs Alabama.  My pick:  IRISH.  Wow.  I never thought I'd say that.  All year I've been slow to buy in to ND.  Their schedule turned out to be a bit easier than forecast.  They barely eked out wins against not-so-great teams like Purdue and Pitt.  But:  Alabama is not a super-powerhouse either.  They got beat at home by Texas A&M.  They struggled to beat LSU (who got bumped off in their bowl by Clemson).  Georgia easily could have, and maybe should have, beaten the Tide in the SEC championship game.  Alabama's pass rush is suspect.  Their secondary can be beaten.  Notre Dame has a defense that has proven it can stop people; that's going to include 'Bama.  I may be crazy, but in looking at this and listening to other analysts, I think ND can pull this off.  Amazing.  We'll find out...