For the fifth consecutive season, two lucky teams will spend part of their holidays soaking up the sun and enjoying the beach when the Toledo Rockets and the Florida International Panthers take part in the Bahamas Bowl. This game is being held a short plane ride away from Miami, so there should be some FIU fans in the stands, while Toledo fans who travel here will appreciate the reprieve from Ohio in the winter.
BookMaker is the only place to bet all 41 college football bowl games this season. BookMaker has the best lines for bettors, and your stocking might be a little bit fuller if you play here. The Bahamas Bowl will take place on Friday, December 21, 2018 at 12:30 p.m. ET at Thomas Robinson Stadium in Nassau, The Bahamas.
NCAA Football Betting at BookMaker.eu
Toledo -4.5
Florida International +4.5
Total 58.5
Odds Analysis
This is Florida International’s chance to get its second bowl win. The Panthers won their first ever bowl game against Toledo back when Mario Cristobal was coaching in 2010, knocking off the Rockets in the Little Caesars Pizza Bowl. Butch Davis has taken the program to a bowl game for a second straight season, finishing with an 8-4 record this year. FIU looked very sharp in respectable losses to Indiana and Miami (FL), and its only bad loss was to arch rival Florida Atlantic.
Toledo has been one of the best teams in the MAC for a long time, and the Rockets are no strangers to bowl season. They have now made it to a bowl game in eight of the last nine years, but they are out to win their first bowl game since a 32-17 victory over Temple in the Boca Raton Bowl in 2015. This season was a tough one as the Rockets finished 7-5 with their only good win coming against Nevada. They didn’t win the MAC West after a loss at Northern Illinois, but they finished the year by pasting Kent State and Central Michigan.
Matchup to Watch
The Rockets have one of the top offenses in the country, and they will be looking to light up the scoreboard in this one. Eli Peters has not been as sharp as injured quarterback Mitchell Guadagni, averaging nearly two yards less per attempt, but he has provided a competent passing game while the running backs churn out big yards on the ground.
Toledo mixes up its running backs pretty well to keep everyone fresh, and the three leading rushers all have 500 or more yards on the ground this season.
Getting stops might be hard for Florida International as they have been gashed on the ground at times this season.
Coaching Angle
These are two well-coached teams. If Jason Candle would have won nine or more games once again, he likely would have been plucked up by a bigger school. The big question with Candle is how much credit should be given to former coach Matt Campbell for his success, yet there is no denying he knows how to make an offense successful.
We’ve seen what Butch Davis can do. Davis is only at FIU because of academic improprieties at both Miami and North Carolina, but he can always get the best out of his teams. He took over a bad situation at FIU and has made this program respectable once again in a very short amount of time.
Live Betting Preview
I have a feeling this is going to be a statement game for Candle and Toledo. The Rockets are a much better team according to advanced metrics like S&P+. My only concern is the weather. It’s expected to be warm and wet on Friday, and the Rockets aren’t used to dealing with that. If they can handle that, they could win by three scores.
NCAA Football Odds: Toledo 35, Florida International 20
BookMaker offers play-by-play betting odds for live sporting events every day! The user-friendly wagering interface on your smartphone provides an easy way to place bets on the go. Mobile betting lines are updated by the minute, so click here to start gambling on thrilling live action at BookMaker Sportsbook!
