Wednesday December 29th Bowl Betting Preview
Tags: Sportsbetting, Collegefootball

A stinky game in the Bronx, an interesting one in Orlando and a real mail in spot in Texas.

Wednesday December 29th Bowl Betting Preview

A stinky game in the Bronx, an interesting one in Orlando and a real mail in spot in Texas.

Head to FanDuel Sportsbook to take advantage of your $1,000 risk-free bet

Pinstripe Bowl

Maryland (6–6) vs Virginia Tech (6–6)

Wednesday, 2:15pm, ESPN

Maryland -3.5/Total 55

Good luck trying to parse anything from this game. It’s a “last one out, turn off the lights” kind of game for Virginia Tech who are replacing their head coach, had its starting and backup quarterback enter the transfer portal, lost its top two receivers and a couple of starters on defense. It was a wildly unimpressive season for the Hokies to begin with as it began and ended with good wins against UNC and Virginia and a whole lot of mediocre in between. Expect to see a heavy dose of Raheem Blackshear who is their star running back and probably the best receiving option at this point. If Maryland is up for it, this is a game they should win, but do you trust a team that was 2–6 in its final eight games and wasn’t competitive in any of those losses? Taulia Tagovailoa put up big stats most of the years and could put up some numbers against a depleted Virginia Tech defense. This just seems like a real mail in spot for Virginia Tech, but when you get two 6–6 teams without any real motivation together anything can happen.

Cheez-It Bowl

19 Clemson (9–3) vs Iowa State (7–5)

Wednesday, 5:45pm, ESPN

Clemson -1.5/Total 44

This is an interesting game between two teams who were disappointing based on expectations. Iowa State was a darkhorse playoff pick before the year, but limped to a 7–5 record despite returning the most talent in the Big 12. All-world running back Breece Hall opted out of this game so a lot will be on Brock Purdy in his final game to carry the load for the Cyclones. Purdy was more inconsistent than Iowa State was hoping this year so it’ll be a good challenge against a really stout Clemson defense. It’ll also be an interesting test for running back Jihrel Brock in place of Hall. Brock averaged 5.7 yards per carry in limited opportunities and Iowa State is high on his potential. It says a lot about where the Clemson program is that a 9–3 season is disappointing, but it’s hard to deny it despite the fact the Tigers won their final five games and blew out Wake Forest and South Carolina in the last two games. It’s the start of a new era for Dabo Swinney as he has to replace both coordinators, but he promoted from within the program so there should be some continuity, which based on this season means great defense and shaky offense. Clemson is a top five defense in the country based on any tangible measure, but the offense was mostly bad and will be without top receiver Justyn Ross. DJ Uiagalelei was shockingly disappointing this year, ranking 108th in the country in passing efficiency. This total is extremely low for a reason. I don’t know if I can get on board with the under at that number even if it feels like the right side.

Alamo Bowl

14 Oregon (10–3) vs 16 Oklahoma (10–2)

Wednesday, 9:15pm, ESPN

Oklahoma -4.5/Total 60.5

The first ranked vs ranked bowl game this year comes with a cloud hanging over it. Both teams got wrecked by the coaching carousel. Just how motivated is Oregon going to be? The Ducks were playoff contenders for most of the year, but got smacked by Utah ending their playoff hopes and then got smacked by the Utes again in the Pac-12 Championship. Then the long, drawn out coaching saga ended with Mario Cristobal bailing for his alma mater Miami. On the flip side, Lincoln Riley’s shocking move to USC led to an exodus from the Oklahoma program as the Sooners will be without four defensive starters and leader in catches, Jadon Haselwood.. I think the decision to let Bob Stoops coach the bowl game seems like a really smart one from the outside. Stoops carries enough weight in that program still that he should be able to galvanize the Sooners enough to want to play hard in this game. The Oklahoma defense struggled against the pass this year, but Anthony Brown struggled throwing the ball for much of the season and the Oklahoma defense has largely been good against the run. Oklahoma has a motivation edge and the better quarterback so you should be able to tell pretty early on how motivated Oregon is for this game. A reporter covering Oregon said the Ducks are extremely short handed in terms of personnel so this feels like Oklahoma or pass.