Liberty Bowl 2014: Preview, Predictions for West Virginia vs. Texas A&M

The Texas A&M Aggies (7-5) from the SEC will take on the West Virginia Mountaineers (7-5) out of the Big 12 on Dec. 29 in the Liberty Bowl in Memphis, Tennessee.

After kicking off the their 2014 season with a big win over the No. 9 South Carolina Gamecocks, the Aggies were ranked as high as No. 6 in the nation before suffering a string of losses and eventually dropping out of the Top 25 altogether.

Meanwhile, the Mountaineers cracked the Top 25 briefly during the latter weeks of the season, but almost all of their losses were close contests with highly ranked teams, including a one-point loss to TCU and a six-point loss to Kansas State.

Texas A&M will enter the matchup with the 12th ranked passing offense in the country, while West Virginia boasts the 6th ranked passing offense. Neither team has a particularly effective defense, so this game will likely be a high-scoring shootout with both teams piling up big yardage.

Both teams were unable to take advantage of their high-powered offenses throughout the year and ultimately finished their seasons with disappointing records, but a bowl game win in Memphis would help either team build some much-needed momentum as they look toward a rebound season in 2015. 

Here are the details to know about the matchup:

Date: Monday, Dec. 29

Time: 2 p.m. ET/1 p.m. CT

Place: Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium

TV: ESPN

Tale of the Tape

The Aggies and Mountaineers are similar teams in many ways. Check out the stats of both teams to see how they stack up against each other in critical categories.  

Texas A&M's Keys to Victory

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The Aggies' passing game is their best chance to outscore the Mountaineers in this matchup.

Freshman Kyle Allen replaced Kenny Hill as the team's starting quarterback, and he has played well so far for the Aggies. He's completing 61.6 percent of his passes and has thrown for 1,028 yards and 12 touchdowns this season.

West Virginia's passing defense ranks 63rd in the country, per NCAA.com statistics, and Allen and top Aggies' wide receiver Josh Allen should be able to exploit that throughout the game. 

The Aggies will also want to get freshman Myles Garrett as involved as possible in putting pressure on Clint Trickett. Garrett's pass rush skills are A&M's best hopes of limiting the Mountaineers' prolific passing attack and controlling the tempo of the game. 

West Virginia's Keys to Victory

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The Mountaineers' keys to victory are the same as Texas A&M's: pass the ball and create as many big plays as possible.

Alabama exposed Texas A&M's defense and secondary, and West Virginia's potent passing attack should be able to replicate that success.

West Virginia's rushing attack is also respectable with both Rushel Shell and Wendell Smallwood rushing for around 700 yards a piece on the season.

Overall, the Mountaineers' offense is a little more balanced than the Aggies', and if they balance their playcalling, senior quarterback Clint Trickett should have no problem continuing his successful season. 

Texas A&M Players to Watch

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Myles Garrett could have a field day against West Virginia's offensive line.

The Mountaineers' offensive line has given up 28 sacks this season and ranks 85th in the country in overall pass protection.

Garrett, one of the best freshmen defensive ends in college football history, already has 11 sacks on the season so far and will almost certainly add at least one or two against West Virginia's porous offensive line.

On the offensive side of the ball, Allen still has a lot of development ahead of him, but he should take some major leaps forward in his overall progress with a month to prepare for the Mountaineers' suspect secondary. 

West Virginia Players to Watch

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Senior quarterback Clint Trickett, if he's cleared to play, is the biggest piece of West Virginia's offense.

His 3,285 passing yards ranks 16th in the nation, and he's thrown for 18 touchdowns as well. 

Trickett's top target, senior wide receiver Kevin White, has 1,318 receiving yards to rank sixth in the country. The combination of the two will be deadly for the Aggies' defense if they can't generate pass rush and disrupt Trickett in the pocket.

As Alabama proved, A&M's secondary isn't strong enough to stop elite wide receivers, so it will be up to Garrett and the Aggies' defensive line to disrupt their rhythm and force Trickett to make bad decisions. 

What They're Saying

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Sean Lester of the Dallas Morning News highlighted the coaching connection between Kevin Sumlin and Dana Holgorsen in his column about the Liberty Bowl:

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Texas A&M head coach Kevin Sumlin and West Virginia’s Dana Holgorsen coached together at Houston. Sumlin was a head coach and Holgorsen was the offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach.

Holgorsen left Houston to become the offensive coordinator at Oklahoma State and was then named the head coach at West Virginia.

The ties don’t stop there for A&M and West Virginia as Holgorsen then coached Aggies offensive coordinator Jake Spavital, who was the quarterbacks coach for one season in 2012. Spavital helped lead the Mountaineers to a 10-3 record and a win over Clemson in the 2012 Orange Bowl.

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SBNation's The Smoking Musket mentioned that Clint Trickett's injury may keep him out of the game, but he may be able to return for the matchup:

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There is the possibility that quarterback Clint Trickett could return for the game, but after last week, it's nice to know that Skyler Howard is up to the task if Clint isn't cleared. The extra practices and a possible bowl victory could do wonders for a WVU team heading into 2015 looking for a quarterback and replacement playmakers at the receiving positions.

The Mountaineers will be returning to a bowl game after a one year absence last season. Before that, WVU had appeared in post-season bowl games for eleven straight seasons, going back to the 2002 season.

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Prediction

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On paper, both of these teams are pretty similar.

ESPN's FPI rankings lists Texas A&M as the No. 22 team in the country, while West Virginia clocks in at No. 28 in the country.

The Sagarin Ratings put the teams at No. 20 and No. 26 in the nation, respectively.

Overall, there's not a lot of difference between the Mountaineers and the Aggies: both teams have prolific passing attacks, both teams have lackluster defenses and both teams are trying to salvage what remains of a disappointing season.

However, Texas A&M's offense is just a little too one-dimensional. The Aggies' rushing attack ranks 94th in the nation, with only 142.8 yards coming on the ground per game.

The Mountaineers, on the other hand, are a little more balanced, with their ground game coming in at 44th in the country to the tune of 187.5 yards per game.

In addition, West Virginia has played its opponents much more closely. A 59-0 blowout loss to Alabama for A&M was a close 33-23 loss for West Virginia. The Mountaineers also had an excellent win when they knocked off No. 4 Baylor by two touchdowns in the middle of the season.

A&M will keep it close until the fourth quarter, but West Virginia's offensive versatility will ultimately give them the win.

West Virginia 42, Texas A&M 38