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Bowl Games Dec. 29-31

Mar 27, 2023 8:58 AM ET | By: matan

Florida Gators vs. Virginia Cavaliers odds

Dec. 30, 2019

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Florida Gators Preview

The Florida Gators aren’t quite in college football’s tier of super-elite programs, but they are hoping an Orange Bowl victory and a second consecutive top 10 finish in the AP poll inches them closer to that status. The Gators, playing in their first Orange Bowl since the end of the 2001 season, have won three in a row (Vanderbilt, Missouri, Florida State) by a combined 119-23.

Kyle Trask successfully took over the quarterback position this season (67.6 percent completions, 2,636 passing yards), but Florida hangs its hat on a defense that has posted an SEC-high 46 sacks, including 8 1/2 from edge rusher Jonathan Greenard. Standout cornerback C.J. Henderson is out to focus on the draft.

Virginia Cavaliers Preview

In 2016, coach Bronco Mendenhall took over a Virginia Cavaliers program that was coming off four losing seasons. He went 2-10 in his first season before improving the win total each year — to six, eight and now nine. The Orange Bowl is another promising step for a program that went 4-0 in November before getting blasted by Clemson 62-17 in the ACC championship game.

Speedy quarterback Bryce Perkins gives the Cavs a solid chance against a tough Florida defense; he and Oklahoma’s Jalen Hurts are the only players in the country to pass for more than 3,000 yards and rush for over 700 this season. UVa’s average of 32.4 points per game is on pace to be the second-best mark in school history.

Trends

Florida is 5-2-1 ATS at home this season
Florida is 6-1 ATS in their last 7 games when they passed for more than 300 yards in their last game
Virginia is 2-4 ATS on the road this season
Virginia is 4-1 ATS in their last 5 games when their opponent has more than 6 wins
The Over is 5-1 in the last 6 Virginia games when Virginia has played more than 8 games on the season

California Golden Bears vs. Illinois Fighting Illinois odds

Dec. 30, 2019

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California Golden Bears Preview

The Redbox Bowl — just about 45 miles from Cal’s campus — marks the first time since 2008-2009 that the California Golden Bears have reached bowl games in consecutive seasons, this year rallying from a 4-4 record to finish 3-1 down the stretch. Linebacker Evan Weaver, the nation’s leading tackler (14.4 per game), leads an aggressive Cal defense, while running back Christopher Brown Jr. fueled the offense with 794 rushing yards and eight touchdowns.

Cal will be without standout safety Ashtyn Davis (injury) and rush end Tevin Paul (undisclosed). The Golden Bears will have quarterback Chase Garbers, who led Cal to its final two regular-season wins after missing four games in midseason.

Illinois Fighting Illini Preview

The Illinois Fighting Illini are in their first bowl game since 2014, and the first of coach Lovie Smith’s tenure. They secured bowl eligibility with a 21-point, fourth-quarter comeback at Michigan State on Nov. 9, but finished 0-2 to close the regular season, scoring a total of 20 points in those two games. The Illinois defense thrives on turnover-generation, with a plus-11 turnover margin for the season.

The Illini returned four interceptions for touchdowns, two by linebacker Dele Harding. On offense, Illinois could be without quarterback Brandon Peters and wide receiver Josh Imatorbhebhe, the team’s top deep threat. Both missed the regular-season finale against Northwestern because of injuries

Trends

California is 1-5 ATS at home this season
California is 4-1 ATS in their last 5 games when their opponent has a losing streak of more than 2 games
Illinois is 5-2 ATS at home this season
Illinois is 6-1 ATS in their last 7 games when they are spread underdogs by more than 5. Illinois are +6.5 underdogs
The Under is 6-0-1 in the last 7 Illinois games when Illinois is averaging less than 160 rush yards per game

Mississippi State Bulldogs vs. Louisville Cardinals odds

Dec. 30, 2019

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Mississippi State Bulldogs Preview

The Mississippi State Bulldogs had to make a late change at quarterback, going back to eight-game starter Tommy Stevens instead of true freshman Garrett Shrader, who suffered a reported eye injury in a post-practice scuffle with a defensive teammate last week.

Stevens, a grad transfer from Penn State, didn’t quite live up to his billing, completing 80 of 135 passes for 934 yards, with nine touchdowns and five interceptions, in the regular season. Good news is that junior running back Kylin Hill (an SEC-best 1,347 yards) will play before leaving for the NFL draft, but junior cornerback Cameron Dantzler and senior safety Brian Cole II are sitting out.

Louisville Cardinals Preview

Coach Scott Satterfield quickly revived the Louisville Cardinals program after it went 2-10 last season and fired Bobby Petrino. Satterfield, hired after a successful run at Appalachian State, has a potentially explosive offense, as seen in a 62-59 victory over Wake Forest on Oct. 12.

The Cardinals can unleash running back Javian Hawkins (seventh nationally with 118.3 yards per game), Chatarius “Tutu” Atwell (1,125 receiving yards, 12 TDs) and dual-threat quarterback Micale Cunningham (1,782 passing yards, 401 rushing). Louisville, which also beat now-No. 24 Virginia in the regular season, finished 5-3 in the ACC and finished a surprising second to Clemson in the Atlantic Division.

Trends

Louisville is 3-3 ATS on the road this season
Louisville is 5-1 ATS in their last 6 games when opponent’s winning percentage is less than .500
Mississippi State is 1-4 ATS on the road this season
Mississippi State is 5-2 ATS in their last 7 games when their opponent scored less than 21 points in their last game
The Over is 5-1 in the last 6 Mississippi State games when their opponent recorded less than 400 yards last game

Western Kentucky Hilltoppers vs. Western Michigan Broncos odds

Dec. 30, 2019

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Western Kentucky Hilltoppers Preview

The Western Kentucky Hilltoppers turned things around quickly this season under first-year coach Tyson Helton, with the bowl game providing a chance for a ninth victory, which would triple the win total from 2018. Part of the turnaround can be attributed to Arkansas transfer quarterback Ty Storey, who is completing better than 70 percent of his passes, with 12 touchdowns passing and seven rushing.

He helped the Hilltoppers smack his old Razorbacks team 45-19 on Nov. 9 to start a three-game winning streak. WKU’s defense has been stout, leading Conference USA by allowing 20.1 points per game. Defensive end DeAngelo Malone has 90 tackles, with 21 for loss and 11 1/2 sacks.

Western Michigan Broncos Preview

The Western Michigan Broncos had the talent to win the Mid-American Conference but lost to Northern Illinois in their final regular-season game to fall out of the lead in the West division. All three of their league losses came by a touchdown or less.

The Broncos still claimed the MAC’s top player awards for offense and defense — running back LeVante Bellamy (1,412 yards, 23 rushing touchdowns) and outside linebacker Treshaun Hayward (132 tackles, 10 1/2 for loss). Another top talent is quarterback Jon Wassink, a third-team all-conference choice who has thrown for 2,904 yards, including four games with 300-plus yards. Western Michigan is 1-8 all-time in bowl games.

Trends

Western Kentucky is 5-0 ATS in their last 5 games when they are playing on the road
Western Kentucky is 9-2 ATS in their last 11 games when their opponent recorded less than 350 yards last game
Western Michigan is 4-1-1 ATS at home this season
Western Michigan is 4-1 ATS in their last 5 games when they scored less than 28 points last game
The Over is 7-1 in the last 8 Western Michigan games when Western Michigan are spread underdogs by less than 25. Western Michigan are +3.5 underdogs

Florida State Seminoles vs. Arizona State Sun Devils odds

Dec. 31, 2019

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Florida State vs. Arizona State Preview

Odell Haggins, who is 2-1 as the Florida State Seminoles’ interim head coach, will lead the team into the Sun Bowl before former Memphis coach Mike Norvell takes the reins. Players say they already have been energized by Norvell’s presence around the program, perhaps erasing some of the sour taste from a 40-17 loss at Florida in the regular-season finale.

Among those sitting out the bowl game for FSU are cornerback Stanford Samuels III and junior running back Cam Akers (1,144 yards), who are preparing for the NFL draft. Backup running back Khalan Laborn is out because of injury, leaving FSU paper-thin in the backfield.

Arizona State Sun Devils Preview

The Arizona State Sun Devils have hope for the future with true freshman quarterback Jayden Daniels, who has passed for 2,748 yards with 17 touchdowns and only two interceptions. He has five 300-yard games, including a 408-yard effort in a Nov. 23 home win over Oregon that possibly kept the Ducks from the College Football Playoff.

Now, Daniels will have to navigate the bowl game without ASU’s two best skill players — running back Eno Benjamin and wide receiver/kick returner Brandon Aiyuk, who are getting ready for the NFL draft. Coach Herm Edwards has three new position coaches since the end of the regular season, including promoting cornerbacks coach Tony White to defensive coordinator.

Florida State Seminoles vs. Arizona State Sun Devils odds

Dec. 31, 2019

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Florida State vs. Arizona State Preview

Arizona State Sun Devils Preview

Virginia Tech Hokies at Kentucky Wildcats odds

Dec. 31, 2019

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Virginia Tech Hokies Preview

This will be the final game for venerable Virginia Tech Hokies defensive coordinator Bud Foster, who followed head coach Frank Beamer from Murray State to Blacksburg for the 1987 season and has been the coordinator since 1995. He and the Hokies are making their 27th consecutive bowl appearance, at one point this season winning six of seven games before losing their regular-season finale at Virginia.

Foster’s defense pitched back-to-back shutouts in November (Georgia Tech, Pitt) and is allowing 23.7 points per game. Dual-threat quarterback Hendon Hooker took over during the season, going 6-1 as the starter, with both of his interceptions (in 140 pass attempts) coming against Virginia.

Kentucky Wildcats Preview

The Kentucky Wildcats started 2-3 but turned around their season — finishing 5-2 after September — with an unexpected boost from Lynn Bowden Jr., who switched from receiver to quarterback because of injuries and ignited the offense with his legs. He has rushed for 1,235 yards and 11 touchdowns — almost all coming in the last seven games — while completing 29 of 62 passes for 330 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions.

The goal for opposing defenses is to force him to pass, but they first must stop the nation’s fourth-ranked running game. And the UK defense is salty, allowing just 18.4 points per game — no more than 21 in seven consecutive games.

Georgia State Panthers at Wyoming Cowboys odds

Dec. 31, 2019

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Georgia State Panthers Preview

The Georgia State Panthers are making their third bowl appearance in their seven-year history in the FBS, and this one was largely unexpected after they finished 2-10 last season. They were off and rolling this season when they opened with a 38-30 win at Tennessee en route to a 7-5 regular season.

Quarterback Dan Ellington, who didn’t stop playing after suffering a torn ACL on Nov. 9, enters the game with 2,291 passing yards and 598 rushing yards. Expect a heavy dose of senior running back Tra Barnett, who leads the Sun Belt with 115.8 rushing yards per game, with 12 rushing scores.

Wyoming Cowboys Preview

The Wyoming Cowboys went 1-3 in their final four regular-season games after losing quarterback Sean Chambers to a season-ending knee injury. Coach Craig Bohl, who has Wyoming in the postseason for the third time in his six seasons, said the team “is going to need both” of Tyler Vander Waal (who started the final four games) and freshman Levi Williams, who received the bulk of the snaps in the second half against Air Force in the regular-season finale.

Vander Waal stayed with the team despite putting his name in the transfer portal. Wyoming, which opened the season with a win over Missouri, is 11th nationally in scoring defense (17.8 points per game).

Utah Utes vs. Texas Longhorns odds

Dec. 31, 2019

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Utah Utes Preview

One of the big questions for the Utah Utes will be their mindset after they lost the Pac-12 championship game to Oregon when a win might have sealed a spot in the College Football Playoff. As it is, Utah is 11-2 and has 12 players from the state of Texas, so motivation to play the Texas Longhorns in the Lone Star State should still be high.

This will be the send-off for seniors such as running back Zack Moss (school-record 4,010 rushing yards), senior quarterback Tyler Huntley (career-best 2,966 passing yards this season) and defensive end Bradlee Anae (12 1/2 sacks in 2019). But junior cornerback Jaylon Johnson is sitting out to prepare for the draft, and safeties Julian Blackmon and R.J. Hubert are injured.

Texas Longhorns Preview

The Texas Longhorns weren’t exactly “baa-ack” as quarterback Sam Ehlinger declared after last season’s Sugar Bowl win, finishing 7-5 in the regular season and struggling enough on defense (446.3 yards per game) that coach Tom Herman fired coordinator Todd Orlando. Orlando’s replacement, former Rutgers coach Chris Ash, will not coach in the bowl. Offensive coordinator Tim Beck was also demoted in the staff shake-up.

Through it all, Ehlinger has been very good, throwing for 3,462 yards, 29 touchdowns and nine interceptions. He and receiver Devin Duvernay (103 catches, 1,294 yards) will take aim at a depleted Utah secondary, and senior wideout Collin Johnson should be back after missing the past three games due to injury.

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