Pinstripe Bowl 2012 Preview: all that is wrong with bowl season, so check local listings

As a Red Sox fan, I have to admit that I’m a little amused that Iowa State and Rutgers will be allowed to stage an exhibition at Yankee Stadium. Who says people don’t get what they deserve? New Era Pinstripe Bowl, Yankee Stadium, 1530 on Friday December 2011 Iowa State started the 2011 season 3-0 before losing 4 straight conference games. They responded by decimating Texas Tech, squeaking by Kansas (2-10, 0-9 in conference), then beating Oklahoma State in a game I feel had more to do with hangover from the recent school tragedy than anything else, then promptly lost out to finish 6-6. These days that’s totally good for a late December bowl. Since Jared Barnett took over the QB position, ISU has played more competitively in conference. Nevertheless, this is an offense that tries to run the ball a lot (with limited success) and throws short passes. Defensively, the run game has been the weakness (207 ypg). That improved a little over the course of the season, but ISU...