Bowl History: This bowl was established in 2001 with Wyndham Hotels & Resorts sponsoring the game from 2002 through 2004, during that time the bowl was officially known as the Wyndham New Orleans Bowl. In 2005, due to damage by Hurricane Katrina, the Superdome was unavailable and the game site was moved to Cajun Field on the University of Louisiana Lafayette’s Campus. In 2006, R&L Carriers took over sponsorship and have presented the Bowl to/through the present!. The inaugural game was played on December 18, 2001, Colorado State beat North Texas, 45-20. The defending champ from the 2012 rendition is UL Lafayette, who beat East Carolina, 43-34, in front of the largest crowd to attend any of Wyndham or R&L New Orleans Bowls, ….. 48, 828! The Mercedes-Benz Superdome capacity is 73,208. Conference Tie-ins, Sun Belt & C-USA (Mountain West back-up) and payout per team is $500.000.00!
Teams: Southern Miss 6-6 (C-USA) vs Louisiana Lafayette 6-6 (SBC)
Bowl Location: Mercedes-Benz Superdome, in New Orleans, Louisiana is the home site of the game . R&L Carriers, the sponsor of the bowl, is a global transportation service company.
Day, Date & Time: Saturday, December 17, 2016, 8:00 p.m.
Network: ESPN
Best Win(s): Southern Miss beat Kentucky, 44-35; ULL beat SBC Champion, Arkansas State, 24-19
Worst Losses: Southern Miss lost to UNC Charlotte, 38-27; Louisiana lost to Tulane (3-9) 41-39
Common Opponents: None
Vegas Hotsheets Favorite: Southern Miss -6.5
Offensive Team Data: Southern Miss ; Total Yards, 472 YPG; Passing Yards, 294 YPG; Rushing Yards, 178 YPG; Scoring Average, 33 PPG, Turnovers, 2.33 TPG; Percent of 3rd Down Conversions, 40.2%; Percentage of all scores in Red Zone, 86% & Percentage of TD’s in Red Zone, 66%
Offensive Team Data: Louisiana Lafayette; Total Yards, 385 YPG; Passing Yards, 204 YPG; Rushing Yards, 181 YPG; Scoring Average 24 PPG, Turnovers, 1.33 TPG; Percent of 3rd Down Conversions, 38.2%; Percentage of all scores in Red Zone, 89% & Percentage of TD’s in Red Zone, 58%
Defensive Team Data: Southern Miss; Total Yards, 330 YPG; Passing Yards, 182 YPG; Rushing Yards, 149 YPG; Scoring Average, 30 PPG, Turnovers, 1.25 TPG; Percent of 3rd Down Conversions, 25%; Percentage of all scores in Red Zone, 81% & Percentage of TD’s in Red Zone, 68%
Defensive Team Data: Louisiana Lafayette; Total Yards, 380 YPG; Passing Yards, 252 YPG; Rushing Yards, 129 YPG; Scoring Average, 25 PPG, Turnovers, 1.33 TPG; Percent of 3rd Down Conversions, 35.9%; Percentage of all scores in Red Zone, 87% & Percentage of TD’s in Red Zone, 49%
Sully’s CFP Game Simulator is a statistical analysis / predictor of how these teams will preform, based solely on their numbers, when they face off on the gridiron! Keep in mind, these stats were established against different teams and conferences and these differences must be taken into account to get a complete picture when attempting to predetermine a winner. If you are interested in how the Simulator works … read this part … if not … skip it! The process used is … we take Arizona’s total yards on offense, add it to what Nevada gives up on defense, … get a total and then divide that number by 2 … to get the mean. We then invert the process by taking Nevada’s total offense, add it to what Arizona gives up on defense, get a total and divide that number by 2 to get the second mean… the greater number (with the exception of Turnovers) is then determined to have the advantage ( please note …. statistical advantage). We repeat this process in each of the eight statistical categories assessed! That said… here are the results of the Head to Head Analysis:
Total Yards Advantage: Southern Miss 426 to 357.5, ….
Passing Yards Advantage: Southern Miss 273 to 193, ….
Rushing Yards Advantage: Louisiana Lafayette 165 to 153.5, ….
Scoring Advantage: Southern Miss 29 to 27, ….
Turnovers Advantage: Louisiana Lafayette 1.29 to 1.83, …
3rd Down Conversions Advantage: Southern Miss 38.05 to 31.6, …
Red Zone All Scores Advantage: Southern Miss 90.5 to 73, …
Red Zone TD’s Only Advantage Southern Miss 56.5 to 50.5, …
Game Simulator Says: Mississippi State has a 6-2 categorical advantage
Individuals to Watch: Southern Miss: QB Nick Mullens 22 TD’s, 10 INT’s ULL: Punter Steve Coutts 44.4 YPP, 14th best in the country
Sully Says: Southern Miss is the better club; The Eagles win and cover the 6.5
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