GODADDY.con Bowl

Bowl History: The GODADDY.com Bowl was first played in 1999 and has been played annually since its inaugural year! The tie-ins are the Sun Belt and the MAC! The first game played in this bowl series took place on December 22, 1999, between TCU and East Carolina, a game won by TCU, 28-14! Last year’s game was played January 8, 2012 between Arkansas State and Northern Illinois, a game won by NIU, 38-20! The GODADDY.com payout is $750,000.00!

Teams: Kent State: Conference Affiliation: MAC; Overall Record 11-2, Conference Record 8-2, Divisional Record 5-0 (MAC East Division)  vs Arkansas State:  Conference Affiliation: Sun Belt; Overall Record 9-3, Conference Record: 7-1!

Bowl Location: Mobile, Alabama  … played @ Ladd Peebles Stadium , the seating capacity @ the facility is 40,646. Last year’s game which featured Arkansas State and Northern Illinois, was attended by 38,734 or 95.30% of Ladd Peebles Stadium’s capacity.

Day, Date, & Time: Sunday, 1/6/13, @ 8:00 p.m.

Network: ESPN

Best Wins: Kent State: beat Rutgers on Oct. 27 when the Scarlet Knight were  undefeated, 35-23! Arkansas State: Beat Louisiana, 50-27, Louisiana Monroe, 45-23, & Middle Tennessee, 45-0 … these three teams finished tied for 2nd in the Sun Belt @ 6-2 behind ASU’s 7-1 conference … Sun Belt domination by ASU!

Worst Losses:: Kent State: lost to Kentucky (2-10), 47-21; Arkansas State: lost to Western Kentucky, 26-13, … a loss that kept them from going undefeated in the Sun Belt!

Common Opponents: None

Las Vegas Hotsheet: Opened as a Pick ’em game …. has moved to Arkansas State -4

Offensive Team Data: Kent State: Total Yards, 392 YPG; Passing Yards, 183 YPG;  Rushing Yards, 209 YPG; Scoring Average 35 PPG, Turnovers, 1.31 TPG; Percent of 3rd Down Conversions, 37.1%; Percentage of all scores in Red Zone, 82% & Percentage of TD’s in Red Zone, 57%

Offensive Team Data: Arkansas State: Total Yards, 482 YPG; Passing Yards, 263 YPG;  Rushing Yards, 219 YPG; Scoring Average 36 PPG, Turnovers, 1.17 TPG; Percent of 3rd Down Conversions, 47.8%; Percentage of all scores in Red Zone, 87% & Percentage of TD’s in Red Zone, 67%

Defensive Team Data: Kent State: Total Yards, 418 YPG; Passing Yards, 256 YPG;  Rushing Yards, 161 YPG; Scoring Average 25 PPG, Turnovers, 2.92 TPG; Percent of 3rd Down Conversions, 38.1%; Percentage of all scores in Red Zone, 79% & Percentage of TD’s in Red Zone, 53%

Defensive Team Data: Arkansas State: Total Yards, 385 YPG; Passing Yards, 232 YPG;  Rushing Yards, 153 YPG; Scoring Average 25 PPG, Turnovers, 1.83 TPG; Percent of 3rd Down Conversions, 41.3%; Percentage of all scores in Red Zone, 78% & Percentage of TD’s in Red Zone, 54%

Sully’s Game Simulator:  is a statistical analysis / predictor of how these teams will perform, 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 ASU’s total yards on offense, add it to what KSU 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 KSU’s total offense, add it to what the Red Wolves give 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  ASU 450 to 389

Passing Yards: Advantage ASU 260 to 208

Rushing Yards: Advantage ASU 190 to 181

Scoring: Advantage ASU 31 to 30

Turnovers: Advantage Kent State 1.57 to 2.05

3rd Down Conversions: Advantage ASU 42.9% to 39.2%

Red Zone All Scores: Advantage ASU 83% to 80%

Red Zone TD’s Only: Advantage ASU 60% to 56%

Individuals to Watch: KSU:QB, Spencer Keith has passed for 1864 yards, 12 TD’s, 9 INT’s, and has completed 55% of his attempts, RB, Dri Archer, has rushed for 1352 yards, averaged 9.0 yards per carry, & scored 15 TD’s, WR, Dri Archer has caught 35 passes for 539 yards while averaging 15.4 yards per catch and scoring 4 TD’s. ASU: will counter with QB, Ryan Aplin has passed for 3129 yards, 23 TD’s, 4 INT’s and has completed 68% of his attempts, RB, Davis Oku, has rushed for 1024 yards, averaged 4.6 yards per carry, & scored 15 TD’s, WR, JD McKissic has caught 92 passes for 909 yards while averaging 9.9 yards per catch and scoring 4 TD’s.

Sully Says: ASU dominates KSU on Sully’s CFP Game Simulator 7 to 1 in its statistical analysis, the Golden Flashes only advantage was in turnover margin. QB play favors ASU and wide receiver, JD McKissic – 92 receptions far outdistance Dri Archer’s 35. The Red Wolves come into this bowl riding a 7 game win streak while KSU won 10 straight before losing the MAC Championship to NIU, 44-37, in OT!  ASU  has more speed than KSU and the Flashes struggle on defense giving up more total yards per game, 418, then they gained on offense, 392. So how did they win 10 in a row? KSU led the nation in forcing turnovers, 38, and were second in the country in Turnover Margin @ 1.62. Both coaches have left, Gus Malzahn for Auburn & Darrell Hazell for Purdue.  That said, Purdue is allowing Hazell to coach the game …. Malzahn will not! Kent State is trying to win its first bowl game … ever…  Sully’s CFP Says … the last time Kent State was in a bowl game was 1972, the Tangerine Bowl, when current Alabama Coach, Nick Saban, was playing for the Flashes! Take Kent State and the 4.5