Super Bowl XLVII Preview and Prediction

The career of Ray Lewis has been the talk of the media, but Patrick Willis may surpass his greatness soon enough. (Cary Edmondson)

Super Bowl preview after Super Bowl preview focuses on how the head coaches of the San Francisco 49ers and Baltimore Ravens are brothers. Thanks to Jim and John we have what has been dubbed the Harbowl.What has been somewhat overlooked is how talented a number of players in this game are. After all, when all is said and done, it is the football players on the field that decide the game not the head coaches.

49ers: Many questioned why 49ers head coach Jim Harbaugh made a quarterback switch from Alex Smith to Colin Kaepernick in Week 11. Kaepernick has answered every question thrown his way. In his first career playoff game, he threw for 263 yards and two touchdowns and ran for 181 yards and two touchdowns. The latter was a new record for the most rushing yards by a quarterback in a playoff game ever. Kaepernick's addition was rejuvenated and diversified the 49ers offense. Last week, he helped the 49ers overcome a 17-0 road deficit to defeat the Falcons in the NFC Title Game. The 49ers defense that has been superb all season came up with a courageous goal line stand in the closing moments of that game to send their team to the Super Bowl.

Ravens: The Ravens got off to a strong 9-2 start to the season, but their offense sputtered midseason leading to consecutive losses. John Harbaugh made his questionable move by firing his offensive coordinator and bringing in Jim Caldwell. Caldwell has opened up the passing game, which has allowed Joe Flacco to shine. The Ravens defense got the boost it needed from the return of Ray Lewis and Terrell Suggs. They dominated the Colts offense in the wild card game. The Ravens then needed a miracle to knock off the Broncos in overtime. Last week, they went on the road and got revenge on the Patriots in the AFC Title Game.

Prediction: As I already eluded to, I believe that the talent, focus, and execution of the football players is what will determine the outcome of this Super Bowl. I am convinced that the 49ers are superior in all three of those categories. The Ravens defense has taken advantage of the predictibility of the offenses they have faced so far in the playoffs. The complexity of the 49ers offense will not allow them to do so. What Kaepernick will do is nearly impossible for a defense to predict. If he throws, he has a stud receiver in Michael Crabtree, a matchup nightmare in tight end Vernon Davis and the still dangerous Randy Moss, who is capable of going deep at any time. The Ravens also have to try and stop the 49ers rushing attack that will feature Kaepernick's cleverness, Frank Gore's bruising attack and LaMichael James' explosive capabilities. That is too much to slow done for an older, worn down defense like the Ravens. The 49ers defense will come up with the big plays needed to take care of the rest. Justin Smith, Aldon Smith and the rest of the front seven will keep Flacco under pressure all night. Patrick Willis is the best defensive player on the field and will prove it with a big play late in the game.

My final prediction is that the 49ers will win Super Bowl XLVII 31-27 over the Ravens.

Michigan's Trip to IU Headlines College Basketball Saturday

The superb play of Tim Hardaway Jr. is one of the major reasons why Michigan is currently the No. 1 team in the country. (Gregory Shamus)

5. #6 Syracuse (18-2, 6-1 Big East) @ Pittsburgh (17-5, 5-4 Big East) - 12:00 PM EST, ESPN

Syracuse enters this matchup following the team's second loss of the season. Poor perimeter defense and overconfidence were their demise. Meanwhile, Pittsburgh has begun to find its groove. They had won four straight contests before coming up short at Louisville. The Panthers will look to use their significant home court advantage to pull the surprising upset.

4. Oklahoma State (14-5, 4-3 Big 12) @ #2 Kansas (19-1, 7-0 Big 12) - 4:00 PM EST, ESPN3

Oklahoma State has had its share of ups and downs so far this season. They are entering this game with some momentum as winners of three of their last four. Since a November 13 loss to Michigan State, Kansas has gone on to win 18 straight games. Their defense has been dominant throughout the season. Freshman Ben McLemore has emerged as one of the best players in college basketball.

3. #14 Miami (16-3, 7-0 ACC) @ #19 NC State (16-5, 5-3 ACC) - 4:00 PM EST, CBS

Miami has been one of the biggest surprise stories of the college basketball season thus far. They have stormed out to a 7-0 start in ACC play, including dominating wins over then-No. 1 Duke and Florida State. NC State has been up and down in conference play. They have a win over Duke on the record as well. The Wolfpack will be glad to return home after a loss at Virginia this past week dropped their road record to 1-4 on the season.

2. #16 Mississippi (17-3, 6-1 SEC) @ #4 Florida (17-2, 7-0 ACC) - 7:00 PM EST, ESPNU

Ole Miss has been another one of this season's surprisingly successful teams. For those who have not seen them play, they run a high octane offense and rebound the ball well. The Rebels do enter the game on a sour note after their nine-game winning streak was snapped by a home loss to Kentucky. They hope to prove that they belong among the best in the SEC. Beating Florida would be a step in the right direction. The Gators have won nine straight and have emerged as the cream of the conference's crop.

1. Michigan (20-1, 7-1 Big Ten) @ #3 Indiana (19-2, 7-1 Big Ten) - 9:00 PM EST, ESPN

The Big Ten is widely considered to be the best conference in college basketball right now. Matchups like this remind us of why that is. Michigan doesn't simply have a strong record. They have been winning convincingly as well. Since December 4, the Wolverines have won every game by double digits except for two. One was a narrow defeat at Ohio State and an eight point win over Minnesota. Indiana has been a strong team as well. They have been rock solid as well with the exception of their two close losses, one in overtime to Butler and the other to Wisconsin by five at home. This is a battle to determine who is the top dog in the Big Ten as of right now at least.

Africa Cup of Nations Group A Preview and Predictions

Striker Siyabonga Sangweni celebrates his goal during South Africa's 2-0 victory over Angola. (kickoff.com)

The group stage of the African Cup of Nations is beginning to come a close. Final match days will decide which two teams from each group advance to the knockout stage. Group A is the first group to have its final match day. That day is Sunday, January 27.

Before I preview the two matches, let's look at the all important group table and the possible advancement scenarios that come as a result.

(Graphic credit: ESPN.com)

South Africa will advance if:

• They win or draw against Morocco
• Cape Verde does not defeat Angola.

Cape Verde will advance if:

• They defeat Angola
• They draw with Angola and South Africa defeats Morocco
• South Africa draw with Morocco and Cape Verde outscores Morocco

Morocco will advance if:

• They defeat South Africa
• They draw with South Africa and Cape Verde draws with Angola
• Morocco outscores Cape Verde

Angola will advance if:

• They defeat Cape Verde and South Africa defeats Morocco

Now that we have that mostly straightened out, we can focus on previewing this group's two final matches.

Angola vs. Cape Verde - 12:00 PM EST, ESPN3

In their opening game Angola played to draw with Morocco. Angola then got dominated by South Africa in a 2-0 loss. Cape Verde has drawn twice so far. The first was a scoreless one with South Africa. They played Morocco to a 1-1 draw in their second game. Angola has yet to score in the year's tournament, but Manucho Goncalves is their main threat to do so. Luis Carlos Platini has Cape Verde's only goal thus far. Angola needs to win this have any chance of advancing. The problem with that is that it plays exactly into Cape Verde's plans.

Prediction: Cape Verde 1 Angola 0

South Africa vs. Morocco - 12:00 PM EST, ESPN3 

As the tournament hosts, South Africa is playing under high expectations. Their fans were not too pleased with a 0-0 draw to Cape Verde in their opening match. South Africa though appeased them in the next game by scoring two goals in the group's only victory so far. Siyabonga Sangweni got them on the board first and Micheal Majoro added the second in the 62nd minute. In Morocco's opening game against Angola, neither team could find a way to score that ended in a 0-0 draw. They trailed Cape Verde 1-0 in their second game. Youssef El Arabi delievered the equalizer in the 78th minute to earn Morocco its second draw of tournament. All that South Africa needs is a draw to be certain that they will advance. I think they will back more defensively and hold off Morocco to pick up their result.

Prediction: South Africa 1 Morocco 1

Overall Prediction: South Africa (Group A winner) and Cape Verde (Group A runner-up) advance