Our 2012 bowl predictions continue on Thursday, December 27th with the Military Bowl, and we are set to make our Military Bowl predictions, tips, and keys to the game for the duel between the San Jose State Spartans and the Bowling Green Falcons.

2012 Military Bowl: San Jose State Spartans vs. Bowling Green Falcons
2012 Military Bowl Location: RFK Stadium, Washington DC
2012 Military Bowl Date/Time: Thursday, December 27th, 3:00 p.m. (ET)
2012 Military Bowl On TV: ESPN, Watch ESPN

Click Here For The Rest Of The 2012-13 Bowl Game Schedule And Other Bowl Game Previews

Key #1: Bene Benwikere and the Spartans ‘D’ has to make some big plays
The Spartans have had some troubles over the course of the year stopping some of the higher octane offenses that the nation has had to offer. Granted, we do recognize the fact that this ‘D’ did allow just 21.4 points per game this year, but conceding 43 to the Louisiana Tech Bulldogs and 34 to the San Diego State Aztecs does raise an eyebrow or two. DB Bene Benwikere did pick off seven passes this year, leading a secondary that tied for 23rd in the nation with 15 INTs on the campaign, and the team forced a stunning 31 turnovers in just 12 games. A lot of those turnovers came against some of the miserable teams in the WAC though, and Benwikere and the SJSU defense has to be able to make some of these big plays against an offense that has been known to turn the ball over. QB Matt Schilz alone tossed 12 interceptions in 2012.

Military Bowl Odds at WagerWeb Sportsbook
San Jose State Spartans -7.5
Bowling Green Falcons +7.5
Over/Under 44
Click Here to Bet Your Military Bowl Picks!

Key #2: The Bowling Green defensive backs have to contain the passing attack
The Falcons allowed just 173.0 yards per game this year, so they know what it takes to be able to slow down some solid passing games. None of the quarterbacks that have been seen this year though, have had nearly as good of a year as QB David Fales has had. Not only does Fales have 31 TD passes, and not only does he have 3,797 passing yards already, but he has been incredibly efficient as well. Fales has completed 72.1 percent of his passes, and he has averaged 9.3 yards per pass attempt. More important might be the fact that both WR Noel Grigsby and WR Ryan Otten both averaged at least 16 yards per catch this year. That’s a heck of a lot of big time plays, and it almost seems expected that these two are going to figure out how to get the job done. Still, those big plays have to be limited, or the MAC reps are in some big time trouble.

Key #3: The Falcons can’t get killed in special teams
The third phase game is most certainly advantage to the Spartans. K Austin Lopez knocked in 15-of-16 field goals on the campaign, and he is just four points shy of 100 for the season. P Harrison Waid averaged 42.4 yards per punt, while as a team, San Jose State averaged 26.3 yards per kickoff return. Bowling Green has had kicking problems all year long, knocking down just 7-of-15 field goals along the way. K Stephen Stein is the short range kicker, as he only has kicks made from 26-yards and further in this year, while K Tyler Tate has just five field goals, none of which have been longer than 42 yards. The punting game has averaged a solid 41.8 yards per game, but the kickoff return game has averaged just 18.6 yards per kick return. This really doesn’t bode well for the Falcons, and they have to keep this game remotely close in the special teams battle if they want to cover the Military Bowl odds.

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The Military Bowl pits two very interesting combatants against each other, as the ECU Pirates and Maryland Terrapins duke it out in Washington DC. But which team will be able to thrive here in our nation’s capitol? These three keys to the game are going to be the ones to watch for when making your Military Bowl picks.

Key #1: Maryland has to want to win one for Ralph Friedgen
It isn’t normal to see a team announce that its head coach is getting bought out at this juncture of the season, but that’s what happened to Friedgen and the Terrapins. The Turtles had a fantastic year this year and really bought into the philosophy of Friedgen, who just wanted to bring this team back to a bowl this year after a dismal 2009 campaign. He not only got the job done, but he was just a play or two against the Florida State Seminoles away from winning the ACC Atlantic Division and going to his first ACC Championship Game. The reward was getting to play a game virtually in their own backyard, as the trip to FedEx Field is a very short one from College Park. It’s really a shame to see Friedgen go, but the allure of bringing Mike Leach to town was just too good to avoid. The team loved playing for Friedgen this year, and it would be great to keep the mentality to win one for him.

Key #2: Dominique Davis has to continue finding ways to strike for this offense
For as great as the Pirates were on offense this year, there really weren’t that many superstars. Sure, WR Dwayne Harris and WR Lance Lewis combined to account 2,000+ yards and 171 catches this year, and sure, both double digits in TD receptions, but they really would have been nowhere this year without the play of Davis. Save Auburn’s QB Cam Newton, the Heisman Trophy winner, no other man accounted for more TDs in the entire country than did Davis. Though Davis doesn’t quite have the goods that Newton does as a runner, he did rumble for nine scores and would have had significantly more yards this year if not for the fact that he was sacked a slew of times. Where the magic really happened was in the air. From the very first game of the year against the Tulsa Golden Hurricane with that Hail Mary pass through the very end of the season, Davis was remarkable as a passer. The Boston College transfer completed 64.8 percent of his passes for 3,687 yards and 36 TDs this year in Conference USA, and he was only picked off 14 times. Maryland certainly didn’t have one of the better passer defenses in the ACC this year either, as this team allowed 220.9 yards per game, ranking just No. 63 in the country.

Key #3: The ECU defense needs to come up with something to succeed
Just like the Maryland defense was really nothing spectacular this year, neither was the offense. This team averaged just 345.0 yards per game this year, and the only star of the squad was WR Torrey Smith, who had 1,045 yards on the campaign and is coming off of a four TD game against the NC State Wolfpack in the regular season finale. Do watch out for QB Danny O’Brien, who might be in store for a very, very big day. East Carolina had a dreadful defense all season long, allowing the most yards per game in the country this year at 480.4. The Pirates ranked No. 108 in pass defense and No. 117 in rush defense. This was a unit that allowed 62 points to the Rice Owls, 76 to the Navy Midshipmen, and 49 to the Central Florida Knights, Tulsa Golden Hurricane, and Virginia Tech Hokies. That doesn’t even include the 42+ points allowed four other times this year either. All told, giving up 43.4 points per game. Even forcing turnovers wasn’t easy. The leader in INTs this year only had three picks, one of the worst such marks in the country.