Pre-Game Warm-ups: On Campus Quarterfinals: While the announced attendances for the quarterfinal games would indicate that the crowds were good, the images on TV suggested some softness. That's likely a function of asking fans to travel to three bowl games. Assuming a National title game run, this is how it breaks out in air miles traveled for fans of the four semifinalists. The Ole Miss path winds from New Orleans, to Glendale, AZ and to Miami. That’s 4,828 roundtrip miles. But the Sugar...

Pre-Game Warm-ups: Notes: Opt Out Impact: A number of the bowl games we’ve seen have featured sloppy play in the first half followed by improved play in the second half. Why is that? Part of that is how opt-outs impact the performance of a team. These teams find out where they’re going and who they’re playing less than three weeks before they have to play the game. Then they have to navigate the slow drip of which players are opting out, which ones are entering the transfer portal and try...

This year's Pinstripe Bowl Playlist: Baby, It's Cold Outside, White Christmas, Let It Snow and Jingle Bells (Dashing through the snow)...... 1st Down: Imagine Meeting You Here: The Pinstripe Bowl Penn State (6-6) vs Clemson (7-5) 12:00 ABC: There were a lot of people who thought Penn State and Clemson would meet in the postseason ---just not in New York City and not in the Pinstripe Bowl. Penn State was the preseason #2 team in the AP Poll and Clemson was #4. Penn State received 23...