USF Bulls in the Pros: Conference Championship Weekend

This weekend, football fans will get to watch the NFC and AFC Championship games to see which two teams will be going to the Super Bowl and each team has at least one former Bull on the hand.

This means that it is guaranteed that a former member of the Green and Gold will return to the stadium where they played their college ball to play in the biggest game of the year. Lets take a look at what players have that chance.

Jason Pierre-Paul- Tampa Bay Buccaneers OLB

JPP recorded two tackles and one pass deflection this past week, helping the Bucs knock the NFC South champion New Orleans Saints out of the playoffs.

With the win, the Bucs will head up to Lambeau Field to take on the Green Bay Packers on what most people are expecting to be a freezing cold day. JPP and the rest of the defense will face a challenge, considering they will be facing one of the NFL’s best offenses, led by the possible MVP winner Aaron Rodgers.

While JPP was not able to record any sacks in the game against the Saints, he and the rest of the defensive line were able to put constant pressure on quarterback Drew Brees, which eventually lead to game-flipping turnovers. If the Bucs are to go to the Super Bowl, they will need to do the same thing and throw Rodgers out of rhythm like in their previous matchup way back in Week 6.

The NFC Championship game will kickoff at 3:05 p.m. ET on Fox.

Marquez Valdes-Scantling- Green Bay Packers WR

MVS had a pretty quiet game in the Packers’ 35-16 victory over the Los Angeles Rams, recording four catches for 33 yards and no touchdowns.

MVS and his Packer teammates will now take on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, a team whose defense killed their opponents in their previous game by recording four turnovers.

With the Bucs sporting the top rush defense in the league, the pressure is on for Rodgers to continue doing what he’s been doing through the air and that means finding Davante Adams and the rest of the Pack receiving core early and often. MVS should have a chance to make a big impact in the game and if he can make a few good catches, the Packers will have a good shot at punching their ticket to Raymond James Stadium.

Austin Reiter- Kansas City Chiefs, C

Reiter and the rest of the Chiefs offensive line had a solid performance last week, yielding only one sack against the Cleveland Browns and advancing to their third straight AFC Championship game.

Reiter will now have to face a Bills defense that completely shut down the Baltimore Ravens last week, limiting them to just three points and 4.7 yards per play as Lamar Jackson was taken out of the game due to a concussion.

The AFC Championship game will kick off at 6:40 p.m. ET on CBS.

Mike Love- Buffalo Bills, DE

Love is a member of the Bills practice squad and therefore, he did not dress in their 17-3 win over the Baltimore Ravens.

Love will not dress in the Bills game against the Kansas City Chiefs.