The time between the end of the regular season and the bowl games provides players an opportunity to heal. The unique matchups give scouts a chance to evaluate players against unfamiliar talent. It is often easy to see which players have dedicated themselves to leaving their college programs with one final win, while others have perhaps enjoyed a little too much of the banquet lines and other distractions that come with bowl games, suggesting that they might not (yet) have the maturity to succeed at the pro level.
When one adds all of the ramifications of a College Football Playoff game such as the Orange Bowl, pitting blue-blood programs such as Michigan and Georgia, the stakes, of course, are even higher.
Fans want to watch this game New Year’s Eve to see which program will be playing for a national title on Jan. 10. But from an NFL scouting perspective, there are far more important developments to watch than the scoreboard.
