Sun Bowl 2016: Stanford vs. UNC TV Schedule, Time and Odds
The No. 18 Stanford Cardinal and North Carolina Tar Heels offer a war of opposing styles in the 2016 Sun Bowl.
Stanford (9-3) fell out of favor in the Pac-12 early in the year but has bounced back behind a ball-control offense after a change under center. North Carolina (8-4) boasts one of the nation's best NFL quarterback prospects in Mitch Trubisky and, as such, enjoys plenty of aerial success.
Of course, one of the game's biggest storylines features the absences of Stanford's Christian McCaffrey and North Carolina's Elijah Hood. The former will sit out to prepare for the pros, while the latter is out with an injury.
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Notable running backs sitting out or not, this game figures to feature plenty of offense and pro potential on display.
Sun Bowl 2016
Date: Friday, Dec. 30
Time (ET): 2 p.m.
Location: Sun Bowl, El Paso, Texas
Watch: CBS
Live Stream: CBSSports.com
Tickets: ScoreBig.com
Over/Under: 54
Spread: Stanford (-3)
Team Injury Reports
| Christian McCaffrey | RB | Out Fri |
| Greg Taboada | TE | Prob Fri |
| Zach Hoffpauir | S | Ques Fri |
| Casey Tucker | T | Prob Fri |
| Alijah Holder | CB | Out for season |
| Elijah Hood | HB | Out Fri |
| Caleb Peterson | OL | Out for season |
| Jonathan Smith | LB | Out for season |
| Mack Hollins | WR | Out for season |
| Tomon Fox | DE | Out indefinitely |
| Allen Artis | LB | Out indefinitely |
| John Ferranto | T | Out for season |
Injury reports courtesy of USA Today.
Completing the Bounce-Back
Stanford entered the season looking like a Pac-12 favorite until it lost three out of four games, going down at the hands of serious competition such as then-No. 10 Washington and Colorado.
The Cardinal have battled back, though, winning five games in a row after switching to Keller Chryst at quarterback, who has nine touchdowns against two interceptions.
With McCaffrey out, the Cardinal will need a huge game from Bryce Love, who rushed for 664 yards and three touchdowns on a 7.4 per-carry average this year. Love acted as the starter in a win against Notre Dame earlier this year, rushing for 129 yards and a touchdown on 23 carries.
Stanford coach David Shaw isn't too worried about handing the offense over to Love.
"He's a physical, explosive runner. He's not a small back by any stretch of the imagination. He runs through tackles and he's tough. For a guy who's under six foot, he can push the pile and drive his legs," Shaw said, according to Stats LLC, via ESPN.com.
On paper, Shaw has no reason to worry considering the Tar Heels rank near the bottom of the barrel by allowing an average of 235.5 rushing yards per game. In theory, this means the Cardinal can get out and play their preferred style and cruise to a victory.
Again, in theory. The defense will have to uphold its end of the bargain against one of the nation's best passers.
Righting the Ship
This isn't how North Carolina wanted to end the season.
The Tar Heels beat notables such as then-No. 12 Florida State and then-No. 16 Miami earlier in the season. But the team lost control down the stretch, losing two of its final three games, the only win a cupcake of a matchup against The Citadel.
Blame doesn't fall on Trubisky, who threw nine touchdowns with just two interceptions over the final three games of the year. The final tally is 3,468 yards and 28 touchdowns against four interceptions with a 68.9 completion percentage.
The breakout season has the NFL buzzing, though the quarterback himself remains more focused on Stanford, according to the Associated Press (via SFGate.com).
"I’m not letting it take up too much of my time and not letting it stress me out that much," Trubisky said. "I’m just trying to get as much information as possible and try to figure out what’s best for me, but at the same time, staying focused for the bowl game that we’ve got ahead."
Trubisky will need to have one of his better games of the season against the Stanford defense with Hood out. T.J. Logan will take over in the backfield after rushing 101 times for 578 yards and seven touchdowns this year.
North Carolina's quick-hitting style has backfired as of late, but it could force the Cardinal into an uncomfortable situation should it attain an early lead.
Prediction
Las Vegas refusing to go too heavily in one direction or the other says much about this encounter.
Though some may hate it, the deciding factor might be McCaffrey's absence. Love has looked good as a spell back, but there is a reason the Notre Dame game was the only time this year the 5'10", 187-pound back received more than 12 carries in a game.
North Carolina has the advantage of knowing what Stanford prefers to do. It also has an advantage with an NFL-ready quarterback who can spread the Cardinal out and find success through the air.
Look for this to be a close game throughout, with Trubisky leading a late scoring drive as he offers his farewells to the collegiate level.
Prediction: North Carolina 30, Stanford 27
Statistics courtesy of ESPN.com unless otherwise specified. All betting information courtesy of OddsShark.
Follow Chris Roling (@Chris_Roling) on Twitter.
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