It's that time, son!
Northwestern plays Texas A&M in the game of the... well, whatever. But it's important, since it's the last hurrah for some talented seniors and a chance for NU to get its first bowl victory since... well, whenever. Don't worry about it.
Hit the jump for the SoP staff's predictions, and remember to leave your ideas in the comments and in the poll.
MountainTiger
I should be more optimistic about this game than I am. Texas A&M is another 6-6 team that can't finish a game, but I still can't bring myself to predict a Northwestern win. In the end, NU falls.
Texas A&M, 41, Northwestern, 31
Herman
NU is under the radar in this game, even among NU fans it seems, and that's when the Wildcats tend to do their best. Plus, A&M has a ton of distractions, and then some. NU isn't a great team, but when it plays with focus and puts it all together for 60 minutes, great things can happen, like the Nebraska game. There'll be a ton of scoring in this one, and I think our offense has the horses to keep up. Call it blind optimism or what you will, but I feel pretty good going into this one.
NU 31, Texas A&M 27
Loretta8
I started trolling my prediction in a fit of depression when NU was 2-5, and NU then went on a four game winning streak. Then I actually put in effort for my Michigan State prediction, and NU lost. Sorry about that, you guys (and yes, I do have supernatural powers.)
Anyways, Texas A&M is better than Northwestern in all three phases of football, but that was true against Missouri in the Alamo Bowl and Auburn in the Outback Bowl, and NU still almost won. So, I say we get a repeat of those games in this one, yet somehow lose in even more heartbreaking fashion, probably on a 60 yard field goal by the Aggies' All-American kicker whose name I'm too lazy to look up.
Aggies 31, Northwestern 30
Rodger
Northwestern is not the better team here. Ryan Tannehill should have no problem tearing apart a Northwestern secondary made up of Daniel Jones and Jeravin Matthews, the Aggies are getting star running back Cyrus Gray back for the game. But... well, I have hope. Northwestern has some luminaries playing their last games in purple, including one of the best quarterbacks in recent memory in Dan Persa, a star wide out in Jeremy Ebert, an all-conference defender in Vince Browne, and, well, we have a 63-year old monkey on our backs. (Literally, they strapped a monkey to Treyvon Green's back.) Meanwhile, the Aggies are short a coach and their interim head coach already has a head coaching gig at another school. It's hard for a bowl to be a letdown game, but for the Aggies, this is just an awkward end to a bad season, a weird intro to the book on the SEC/Kevin Sumlin eras in College Station. For NU, it's a chance for a lot more.
That said, they're the better team.
Texas A&M 48, Northwestern 35