Liberty Bowl 2014: Texas A&M vs. West Virginia TV Info, Spread, Time and More
Of the offensive-minded bowl games this season, few hold a candle to the Liberty Bowl, in which the Texas A&M Aggies and West Virginia Mountaineers will collide.
Kevin Sumlin's Aggies were not game enough to compete in the SEC, but a young roster gets a great test against an upstart Mountaineers team that also finished with a 7-5 record. Both programs lean on top-12 passing attacks that help the offenses to average a minimum of 33 points per game.
Monday is a critical stepping stone for both programs. Texas A&M needs to mature to compete in a division that contains Alabama, Mississippi State, Ole Miss, Auburn, LSU and Arkansas, not to mention the SEC as a whole. If West Virginia is to join the ranks of Baylor, TCU and Kansas State, a Monday triumph is a step in the right direction.
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It may not be the College Football Playoff, but few games are as important as the Liberty Bowl.
Shootout in Memphis
Dana Holgorsen's offense ranks better through the air than the Aggies, but the biggest storyline surrounding the contest is the loss of his starting quarterback, Clint Trickett.
The senior, who threw for 3,285 yards and 18 scores this year, decided to retire before the bowl game due to concussions, as Allan Taylor of the West Virginia Metro News reports:
Things now rest on the arm of sophomore Skyler Howard, who has thrown five touchdowns to no interceptions over the course of his past two outings.
The loss of a starting quarterback is never something to gloss over, but the torrid state of the Aggies defense is noteworthy:
Then again, Sumlin's offense should encounter few issues posting numbers on the scoreboard.
The campaign has been disappointing overall, but the Aggies offense has shown flashes such as a 41-point outburst in an upset of Auburn. Freshman quarterback Kyle Allen leads the way and has 1,028 yards and 12 scores to his name on the year.
A trio of runners who give even the best SEC powers issues this season insulates Allen:
The high-scoring environment magnifies each possession and mistake. Even better, inexperience under center is not the negative it seems.
X-Factor Defined
NFL scouts will invade Memphis Monday.
The reason, of course, being West Virginia senior wideout Kevin White. A gaudy 102 receptions for 1,318 yards and nine scores on the year is great, but his impact goes beyond numbers.
Truthfully, the Mountaineers go as White goes.
White wowed the nation with a stretch of seven games to start the season in which he surpassed the 100-yard mark. The only losses in that span were understandable—at the hands of Alabama and Oklahoma.
After that, though, White went for more than 100 yards just once in the team's final five games, of which the Mountaineers lost three.
Now the challenge is getting White involved early and often with a backup under center.
"Skyler and I are starting to get on pace, and he has been doing a great job at practice," White said, per STATS LLC (via ESPN.com). "He has improved, and his knowledge of the offense has improved tremendously. ... We will make it work."
Texas A&M cannot handle top-flight receivers (Alabama's Amari Cooper caught eight passes for 140 yards and a pair of scores against the unit back in October), but the wrinkle that is Skyler under center complicates things to a degree.
When: Monday, December 29, 2 p.m. ET
Where: Liberty Bowl Memorial, Memphis, Tennessee
Television: ESPN
Betting Lines (via Odds Shark):
- Over/Under: 64.5
- Spread: West Virginia (-3.5)
Team Injury Reports
| Darian Claiborne | LB | 08/06/2014 | was dismissed from the team | Out | disciplinary |
| Isaiah Golden | DT | 08/06/2014 | was dismissed from the team | Out | disciplinary |
| A.J. Hilliard | LB | 09/02/2014 | is out indefinitely | Out | ankle |
| Germain Ifedi | T | 11/05/2014 | is out indefinitely | Out | knee |
| Ivan Robinson | DT | 12/23/2014 | is questionable for the Liberty Bowl Monday against West Virginia | Questionable | undisclosed |
| Jared Barber | LB | 08/03/2014 | is out indefinitely | Out | knee |
| Travis Bell | CB | 09/25/2014 | has left the team | Out | personal |
| William Crest | QB | 10/24/2014 | will miss the remainder of the season | Out | shoulder |
| Jacky Marcellus | WR | 08/03/2014 | will miss the entire season | Out | knee |
| Brandon Napoleon | CB | 09/16/2014 | will miss the remainder of the season | Out | knee |
| Quinton Spain | G | 12/23/2014 | is probable for the Liberty Bowl Monday against Texas A&M | Probable | undisclosed |
| Clint Trickett | QB | 12/26/2014 | will miss the Liberty Bowl Monday against Texas A&M | Out | concussion |
Injury reports per The Sports Network, via USA Today.
Prediction
The Texas A&M defense really makes this a simplistic pick.
Sumlin's offense can move the ball well enough, but not to the point it can compensate for what the defense will allow Monday.
Much of the attention goes to the unfortunate loss of its starting quarterback, but the West Virginia offense could not have asked for a more favorable encounter in order to keep the offense rolling.
Expect just that as White takes things into his own hands in a shootout.
Prediction: West Virginia 42, Texas A&M 35
Statistics and info courtesy of ESPN unless otherwise specified.
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