Bowl Game Bowlnanza

Bowl season is here. Some of the most volatile lines for betting and most unpredictable games of all of college football other than week 1 when we truly know nothing about any of the teams, take preseason top 10 ranked FSU for example. Transfer portal, opt outs and teams “not caring” cause all sorts of unpredictable outcomes for bowl games which is exactly why we love it and will still make locks and attempt to make money on them. The whole “we did not care” approach after losing a bowl game was the SEC staple, but has developed into a thing all teams do now. With the amount of bowl games there are, we have picked out must watch non playoff/pre new years bowl games, and will preview the matchups as well as give away some locks.

Scooter’s Coffee Frisco Bowl: #25 Memphis vs West Virginia (Tuesday 12/17/24 at 9pm EST on ESPN)

Memphis had a fantastic season and as a top G5 program always looking for respect, they will come to play in this bowl game so Big 12 foe, West Virginia need to come ready or this high scoring Memphis offense led by senior QB, Seth Henigan, will run them out of the stadium. West Virginia is coming into this matchup after a coaching change, reverting back to the glory days and bringing back Rich Rodriguez. With Neal Brown being sent on his way prior to this bowl game and the quick hire of Rich Rod, the Mountaineers have not lost many players to the portal which means this team will have most starters still available for this Frisco Bowl. With the high flying Memphis offense and the need for the G5 schools to earn respect along with a Mountaineers team ready to play for Rich Rod and make a good start to the new era, this game should be a great matchup with a lot of points.

Best Bet: Over 58.5 total points (-112)

Union Home Mortgage Gasparilla Bowl: Tulane vs Florida (Friday 12/20/24 3:30pm EST on ESPN2)

If you had told me at the beginning of the season that the Gators would be in a bowl game, Billy Napier has the fanbase riding high and excited for next season, and they upset top ranked LSU and Ole Miss I would’ve thought you were insane. That is exactly where we stand right now though and a lot of this has to do with the young star QB DJ Lagway. He has injected some fire and some hope into this Florida program and they will want to continue this momentum with a win over a very talented Tulane football team. Sumrall is taking his Tulane Greenwave team into this game with his 1st and 2nd string QBs both in the portal and not available to play. Ty Thompson the former 5 star QB will make his first start for Tulane against UF on Friday. Sumrall is the type of coach that will have the team ready no matter who the QB is and will have some tricks up his sleeve to try and get this win. Battle of the young talented QBs as Lagway faces off with Ty Thompson, can the Gators continue this momentum and ride the Greenwave out of the Gasparilla bowl with a W?

Best Bets: Tulane +14 (-112) / Over 49.5 total points (-110)

Valero Alamo Bowl: #17 BYU vs #23 Colorado (Saturday 12/28/24 7:30pm EST on ABC)

Essentially the Alamo Bowl wanted the “what if” Big 12 Championship matchup and this should be one of the most exciting games of the entire bowl season. We have a conference matchup, filled with must watch individuals like Heisman winner Travis Hunter, Coach Prime, Shadeur, and the electric Jake Retzlaff AKA the “BYJew”. Both teams are going to come into this game with most of, if not all of their starters with a mindset of wanting to prove to the country one more time just how good they are this season. If this Big 12 matchup lives up to all the rest of the Big 12 games we have seen this season we are in for an electric game. Prime and the buffs always put on a show, win or lose, and the BYU Cougars have shocked everyone with how talented they are this season.

Best Bet: Over 54.5 total points (-110)

Other Interesting Matchups:

-Pop Tarts Bowl: #18 Iowa State vs #13 Miami (12/28/24 at 3:30pm EST on ABC): Can the Cyclones bounce back against Heisman Finalist, Cam Ward, after being embarrassed in the conference championship game? Best Bet: Miami -3.5 (-108)

-Cheez-It Citrus Bowl: #15 South Carolina vs #20 Illinois (12/31/24 at 3:00pm EST on ABC): South Carolina looks to be playing some of the best football in the country the last few weeks of the season. Can they keep this up and look to carry momentum into the offseason with a win here? Best Bet: South Carolina -9.5 (-112)

Bowl season is for college football fans to have the ability to grab a beverage, sit on the couch throughout the holidays and either enjoy some great, sloppy, electrifying football in games that truly don’t matter. Its an opportunity for teams to close out the year strong to keep momentum, or for teams to have all the young players play and give the fans a preview of the potential for next season. Enjoy it while it lasts because once bowl season is over we begin to entire the dark hole of the offseason with no football at all.