Matt Fargo thinks you should take Virginia Tech over Cincinnati in the 2009 Orange Bowl and he is providing this full detailed report as to why:
You have to take off your hat to Cincinnati who won its first ever Big East title and won 11 games for the first time in school history. But let’s not forget that it is the Big East we are talking about and even for the weak conference, it was a down year as favorites South Florida, West Virginia and Rutgers all had very subpar years even though all three won their bowl games. The Bearcats non-conference schedule was relatively soft with the exception of Oklahoma and that resulted in a 26-point loss. Four of their Big East wins came by eight points or fewer and now they face a team from the strongest rated conference in the country. Virginia Tech stepped up when it needed to and took care of Boston College in the ACC Championship in a big revenge spot. The Hokies played the 13th ranked schedule in the country compared to the 62nd ranked schedule for Cincinnati and still came away with nine wins. Virginia Tech finished 4-2 against the top 30 while the Bearcats went just 1-1. Virginia Tech is 7th in the country in total defense and that is the unit that will take control of this game. Virginia Tech is 12-2 ATS in its last 14 games after winning as an underdog last time out while Cincinnati is just 2-5 ATS in its last seven bowl games and this is the first ever BSC bowl for the Bearcats while the Hokies have been involved in three in the past five years. The wrong team is favored here.