Some of the most fun that college football fans have in bowl games over the course of December comes when teams are playing in bowls either for the first time in their history or for the first time in a long time. In the case of the Old Dominion Monarchs and Eastern Michigan Eagles, we've got both. The Monarchs have never played in a bowl game in their brief eight-year history, while the Eagles haven't played in a bowl game since winning the 1987 California Bowl. You can bet there are going to be two loose and highly entertaining teams on the field in Nassau in the 2016 Bahamas Bowl.
Don't miss the Bahamas Bowl from Thomas Robinson Stadium in Nassau at 1 p.m. ET on Friday, December 23, 2016. Catch every moment of the game live on ESPN.
Bahamas Bowl Odds at BookMaker.eu
Old Dominion -4
Eastern Michigan +4
Over/Under 64.5
Odds Analysis
The Bahamas Bowl odds have remained relatively consistent over the course of the entire bowl process. Old Dominion opened up at -3.5 and rose to -4, a relatively negligible line movement that goes along the lines of the rise in the total from 64 to 64.5. This is expected to be one of the fastest paced bowl games of the year, though not necessarily one of the highest scoring.
Bowl Game History
The history of the Bahamas Bowl isn't particularly long, as there have only been two games in the past. Last season, Central Michigan staged a huge comeback from down 49-14 heading into the fourth quarter to score TDs on five straight drives. The Chippewas came up short on what would have been the game-winning two-point conversion, but the 49-48 final was still thrilling for everyone but bettors who were holding on WKU -3.5 tickets.
Last season, the Bahamas Bowl picked up where it left off with high-scoring action, as Western Michigan and Middle Tennessee combined for 34 points in the opening frame. The Broncos went on to win 45-31 for their first ever bowl victory, and it was the second straight Bahamas Bowl that easily flew past the total.
Team and Coaching Bowl Game History
There's obviously not a lot to report here in terms of the bowl history of these teams since none of the players on this field will have ever played in a bowl game before going down to the Bahamas. Heck, half the players making the trip weren't even alive the only other time Eastern Michigan was in a bowl game way back in 1987.
Interestingly enough, this is the first time that either one of these coaches has ever been involved in a bowl game as well as either a head coach or a player.
EMU coach Chris Creighton spent his entire career coaching in the lower divisions in the NCAA, and in his playing career, he was at tiny Kenyon College.
Bobby Wilder has been the coach of ODU since the start of its football program eight years ago, and that came on the heels of his coaching tenure with his alma mater, Maine. The one time he had any coaching to do at the FBS level was at Boston College as a running backs coach, and the Eagles didn't make a bowl game in either 1988 or 1989 when he was in Chestnut Hill.
Recent Games of Note
For starters, it's worth mentioning that these two teams have played against each other recently, first in 2014, then again in 2015. Old Dominion won both games, 17-3 at home in 2014 and 38-34 in a great one in Ypsilanti last year. In the latter of those games, ODU tailback, Ray Lawry rushed for 223 yards and four TDs, and he has a total of five runs of at least 30 yards in two games versus Eastern Michigan.
These two teams did have a common foe this year, that coming against Charlotte. The 49ers aren't a great gauge for either team though, as they went just 4-8 and were blown out by both teams.
The Monarchs might have the slight edge here as a 9-3 team, but it should be noted that they went 0-3 SU and ATS in their games against teams with better than .500 records and 9-0 SU and 8-0-1 ATS when playing against teams that finished at .500 or worse. Of course, the optimist will point at these games – a 31-7 loss at Appalachian State, a 49-22 loss at N.C. State and a 59-24 loss at Western Kentucky – and correctly assert that all three games were on the road and were against teams that are much better than Eastern Michigan, but these are the best comparable games we have for an ODU team that has only been around for eight years, three of which have come in the FBS.
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