The 2012 Belk Bowl will feature a matchup between the Cincinnati Bearcats and the Duke Blue Devils. The game will take place on Thursday December 27th and will be televised live at 6:30 pm on ESPN.Currently the odds for the game have Cincinnati favored by 7.5 points, while the total sits at 58.
Butch Jones is among the hottest names in coaching circles after lifting the Bearcats to a share of their fourth Big East title in the past five seasons despite significant personnel losses from a year ago. Cincinnati is a 9-3 team who has been fighting for relevance as the lead institution in the Big East. They will have to continue their fight but had a great year this year. Quarterback Munchie Legaux lost his job earlier this year to Brendon Kay, but could see some time in this game to get more experience heading into 2013. A player to watch for Cincinnati is George Winn, who is the workhorse and someone who an entire offense can revolve around. The 5'11" 210 pound senior has rushed for 1204 yards on 227 carries for 12 touchdowns. He also has 12 catches for 116 yards. His ability to break one at anytime is what the Blue Devils will have to watch out for.
David Cutcliffe, meanwhile, has won the nation's adoration after lifting the Blue Devils to their first bowl berth since 1994, snapping the nation's longest bowl-less streak. They have put together a very good team this season and were just one win away from going to the ACC championship game. Playing in the postseason without crossing state lines gives Duke a chance for plenty of its fans to be one hand. It also gives the 16 Duke players from the Charlotte area a chance to play in front of friends and family members. A key player to keep an eye on is QB Sean Renfree, who has been one of the best quarterbacks in the ACC this season. His all around play has shown that he can lead a poor program like Duke to a bowl game. Renfree will earn his way onto an NFL roster if he can have a good showing against a solid Cincinnati defense. Renfree's statistical line coming into this game is 260-for-392 (66.3 percent) for 2755 yards, 18 touchdowns and eight interceptions.
Cincinnati Stat Rankings--- The Bearcats are 44th in total offense, 63rd in passing, 31st in rushing and 48th in scoring (31 ppg), while on defense the Bearcats are 41st overall, 74th vs the pass, 28th vs the run and 12th in points allowed (17.2 ppg).
Duke Stat Rankings--- On offense Duke is 65th overall, 32nd in passing, 107th in rushing and 45th in scoring (31.3 ppg). On defense the Blue Devils are 106th overall, 99th vs the pass, 104tyh vs the run and 105th in points allowed (35 ppg).
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