The 5-7 teams have represented themselves well in the bowl games this year, but even the most diehard college football fans will realize that there are at least one or two too many bowls to go around right now. You know it's bad when the Colorado State Rams and Nevada Wolf Pack, two teams from the Mountain West, have to play against each other in the Arizona Bowl, a game which no one really wanted to go to and no major network wanted to put on television.
That said, this is just another game on the betting docket and can be just as profitable as any of the other 39 bowls.
College Football Odds at BookMaker.eu
Nevada Wolf Pack +3
Colorado State Rams -3
Over/Under 56
ODDS ANALYSIS
Not surprisingly, the Arizona Bowl hasn't seen a lot of betting action on it yet. The Rams opened at -3 alongside a total of 56, and even though that line has now been open for over two weeks, there hasn't been even a hint of line movement.
KEY MISMATCH
Last year when these two teams met, Nevada had no answers whatsoever for Garrett Grayson under center for the Rams. He threw for over 300 yards that day and helped lead CSU to a 31-24 victory.
This time around, it's Nick Stevens who is under center for the Rams, and we aren't sure he'll have the same degree of success.
That said, Rashard Higgins went off last season against Nevada for 194 yards and two TDs receiving, and we'll have to see if the Wolf Pack have found any answers for him in the last 14 months. Higgins was down significantly this year with 65 catches for 932 yards and eight scores a year after posting 1,750 yards and 17 TDs, but he could find more room to work with than usual in the Arizona Bowl.
KEY STAT
10.8 – The number of points per game the Rams have averaged in the first quarter this year. Colorado State has been an extremely quick scoring team out of the blocks with over a third of its points being scored in the first quarter. First quarter and first half bettors should keep this in mind for sure, especially knowing that Nevada is averaging just 4.9 points per game in the opening stanza.
BETTING ANGLE
The Wolf Pack really improved for bettors as the season wore on. They finished up the campaign at 4-0-1 ATS, including nearly pulling off an upset as 14-point dogs on the road against Utah State.
ANALYSIS AND ODDS PREDICTION
Nevada's bowl history just isn't all that good. The only time the team has won a bowl game since 2005 was when Colin Kaepernick was a senior at the Kraft Fight Hunger Bowl, and even that day, the Pistol offense was held to just 20 points.
The Colorado State defense knows what it's like to go up against the Pistol, and having four weeks to prepare for it is only going to make it easier to stop.
As long as Stevens doesn't toss a dud, we don't see a way that the Rams don't get out of the Arizona Bowl with a win.
Colorado State 27, Nevada 16
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Real-time spreads, totals, props and moneyline odds are all available by clicking here, so start betting with BookMaker today! The game between the Nevada Wolf Pack and the Colorado State Rams will go down Tuesday, December 29, 2015 at 7:30 p.m. ET at Arizona Stadium. The matchup will be televised on ASN.
