San Diego State vs. Army: 5 bold predictions for Armed Forces Bowl
By Zach Bigalke
10-win San Diego State faces nine-win Army in the Armed Forces Bowl. Here are five bold predictions for the showdown between the Aztecs and Black Knights.
More: Complete 2017-2018 bowl schedule
Heading into its 15th edition, the 2017 Armed Forces Bowl in Fort Worth is beginning to feel like a regular fixture on the bowl calendar. Sure, it was one of the glut of recently-manufactured bowl games. But it didn’t suffer the fate of so many that fell by the wayside.
The postseason game did bounce from Amon G. Carter Stadium, home of the TCU Horned Frogs, to a rival venue for a few years. Gerald J. Ford Stadium, the turf of Iron Skillet rival SMU, hosted the bowl game in 2010 and 2011 when the facilities in Fort Worth were being renovated. The game quickly returned to Amon G. Carter Stadium once the renovations were complete.
Heading into the sixth game back at the refurbished home of the Horned Frogs, the Armed Forces Bowl lucked into a great matchup for 2017.
A battle of hot rushing attacks could get interesting
Army lost just three games over the course of its 2017 regular season. The Black Knights lost by a wide margin as expected at Big Ten champion Ohio State. The other two defeats were a four-point fall in New Orleans to Tulane and a 52-49 heartbreaker on the road to C-USA West winner North Texas.
San Diego State didn’t win the Mountain West for a third straight season. The Aztecs nevertheless won 10 games for the third straight year. They could make it 11 wins for a third straight season if they take down Army on Saturday.
This should be a fun showdown to fill the late-afternoon slot of the second Saturday of the postseason. Here are five bold predictions about how things might transpire to truly make this game a holiday present for college football fans.