3 things to know for the New Orleans Bowl

Need a brief primer before you attempt to watch all 40 bowl games this season? We’ve got you covered. Here are three things you need to know about the New Mexico Bowl.

NEW MEXICO BOWL
Louisiana-Lafayette (6-6) vs. Southern Miss (6-6)
Dec. 17, 9 p.m. ET
ESPN

– Welcome to the “scramble to get bowl eligible” bowl. Louisiana-Lafayette was 4-6 before winning games vs. Arkansas State and Louisiana-Monroe to get to 6-6. The win over ASU was the Red Wolves’ only Sun Belt loss on the season.

Southern Miss was 5-3 at one point before losing three-straight games to Charlotte, Old Dominion and North Texas. Only Old Dominion finished above .500. But the Golden Eagles got to .500 with an upset over Louisiana Tech in the final week of the season. Mind you, this is the same Southern Miss team that opened the season with a win over Kentucky.

– Southern Miss quarterback Nick Mullens could have a field day vs. a ULL pass defense that’s been vulnerable. Mullens has completed over 63 percent of his passes for 2,926 yards and 22 touchdowns (to 10 interceptions) in 2016. ULL has allowed 7.3 yards a pass attempt and over 240 yards per game passing.

If Mullens and wide receiver Allenzae Staggers (52 catches for 935 yards) establish a quick connection, it could be a long night for the Ragin’ Cajuns.

– While the Cajuns aren’t stout against the pass, they do a great job against the run. USM RB Ito Smith — yes, the guy named for former O.J. Simpson trial judge Lance Ito — ran for over 1,200 yards this season. But he could find running lanes tough to come by vs. a ULL team that’s allowed less than 3.4 yards a carry.

[Yahoo Sports College Bowl Pick’em is open: Make your picks here!]

Meanwhile, ULL needs Elijah McGuire to get his third 100-yard game in his last four. McGuire has averaged nearly 5 yards a carry this season, though his stats are propped up by a 23-carry, 223-yard performance vs. South Alabama in the third week of the season.

Without a great effort from McGuire, ULL may be in trouble. LSU transfer Anthony Jennings hasn’t been nearly as efficient as Mullens. Jennings is averaging less than seven yards a pass attempt and has thrown 11 touchdowns and 12 interceptions.

Mascot fight prediction: A golden eagle is probably really good at swooping out of the sky to surprise its prey. But do you really want to get into a fight with a raging Cajun? We certainly don’t. The fumin’ Cajun would probably fight the eagle dirty. And win.

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Real predictions:
Graham Watson: ULL 35, Southern Miss 21
Nick Bromberg: Southern Miss 45, ULL 40
Sam Cooper: Southern Miss 37, ULL 31
Chris Herbert: ULL 38, Southern Miss 28

More college football from Yahoo Sports:

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Nick Bromberg is the assistant editor of Dr. Saturday on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at nickbromberg@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!

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