Texas Tech poised to suffer letdown

Shortly after Texas Tech learned it would be spending New Year's Day in Dallas, record-setting wide receiver Michael Crabtree was quoted in a Dallas newspaper as saying, "I'm just not feeling the Cotton Bowl."

And, when you think about it, how could you blame Crabtree?

After all, the Red Raiders (11-1) were the jilted team in the Big 12 Conference, as they would prefer to be in a marquee Bowl Championship Series matchup.

Texas Tech is a 41/2-point favorite over Mississippi in the Cotton Bowl on Jan. 2. Several factors, including the Red Raiders' lack of motivation, make the underdog Rebels one of the bowl season's best plays.

Crabtree almost is certain to enter the NFL Draft, while coach Mike Leach flirted with the vacant Washington job at the conclusion of the regular season.

Couple those distractions with the fact Mississippi, 8-4 straight up and 8-3 against the spread, is a good team which is elated to be in Dallas after last season's 3-9 debacle, and the Rebels look attractive in this spot.

While Mississippi's upset victory over Florida in Gainesville did not slip under anyone's radar, the Rebels are in their preferred role, having covered their past seven games as underdogs.

The Rebels bettered the point spread by an average of 30 points in their last three regular-season games, so coach Houston Nutt's team enters this game with lots of momentum.

Another piece of the puzzle is that Mississippi quarterback Jevan Snead played high school football in Stephenville, Texas, so this is sort of a homecoming for him.

Snead has to have a chip on his shoulder since most of the media coverage will be directed toward Texas Tech quarterback Graham Harrell.

Southeastern Conference bowl underdogs are 9-3 against the spread since 2000, and Mississippi has an excellent shot at winning this game outright.

Other selections for the bowls:

ALAMO BOWL, MONDAY

• Northwestern (+121/2) over Missouri -- The Tigers entered the season with national championship and Heisman Trophy (quarterback Chase Daniel) aspirations, but those expectations fell way short, and Missouri will spend the holidays in San Antonio.

The Tigers covered only two of their final seven games and lost as double-digit favorites over Oklahoma State and Kansas.

After playing rival Kansas in its regular-season finale and then Oklahoma in the Big 12 title game, I cannot see Missouri bringing a full measure of emotion to the table against a mid-level Big Ten team in a mid-level bowl.

Northwestern tailback Tyrell Sutton is expected to return for the game, so the Wildcats should have a full complement of offensive weapons to test a suspect Tigers defense.

HOLIDAY BOWL, TUESDAY

• Oklahoma State (-21/2) over Oregon -- The Cowboys are sort of the forgotten team from the Big 12, but Oklahoma State was among the nation's top-shelf teams this season.

In this intriguing matchup, the class advantage rests with Oklahoma State, which resides in the nation's toughest conference -- at least during the 2008 season. Oregon competed in a Pac-10 that lacked its usual concentration of elite teams after Southern California.

The Cowboys easily could have beaten Texas in Austin, and while Oklahoma State suffered a 61-41 loss to Oklahoma, the final score was quite misleading.

Oklahoma State's offensive firepower is obvious, but it's on defense where the Cowboys' most marked improvement has occurred.

Texas-based Paul Stone is a handicapper for Vegas Sports Authority (vegas sportsauthority.com).