Bowl Games 2006: Poinsettia Bowl
Northern Illinois (7-5) vs. TCU (10-2)
Two of the best running teams in the nation square off in the first bowl game of the 2006 season.
The Huskies feature tailback Garrett Wolfe, who led the nation with 1,900 yards and 18 touchdowns. Wolfe is explosive, can make defenders miss and masks his lack of ideal size by running low to the ground. He should get plenty of work in the Poinsettia Bowl.
Defensively, DE Larry English has a quick first step and is a relentless and effective pass rusher. The front seven is also quick and swarms to the ball, but there is a glaring lack of size, and the Huskies have had problems defending the run in all of their losses this season.
The Horned Frogs are fourth in the nation against the rush - giving up only 67.6 yards a game. No opponent has had more than 131 yards against them. It should be an interesting and key matchup because Wolfe alone averaged 158 yards per game in 2006.
TCU is led by an experienced QB in Jeff Ballard (he’s 17-2 as a starter) and employ a solid two-back system featuring Aaron Brown (749 yards, 9 TDs) and Lonta Hobbs (556 yards, 6 TDs). The offensive line is big and does a decent job of run and pass blocking.
Prediction: TCU was capable of being a top-15 team and it will provide a number of matchup problems for Northern Illinois. The big question is whether the Huskies step up and stop TCU’s offense. In the end, the size and physicality of the Horned Frogs will be too much for Northern Illinois to handle. TCU wins 31-20.
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