College Football Bowl Betting: Odds Open for 38 Matchups
Only two teams opened as double-digit underdogs, as oddsmakers posted lines on all 38 bowl games this week.
Maryland opened as 13-point dogs against Stanford in the Foster Farms Bowl, and Northern Illinois was getting 11 points against Marshall in the Boca Raton Bowl.
All of the other spreads were tighter, as college football embraced a playoff system for the first time, resulting in a pair of major New Year's Day clashes, with Alabama vs. Ohio State in the Sugar Bowl and Oregon vs. defending champion Florida State in the Rose Bowl.
.jpg?w=256 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
The Tide and Ducks opened as solid favorites to advance to the national championship game.
The over/under values ranged from a low of 39 in the Pinstripe Bowl (Penn State vs. Boston College) to a high of 71 in the Rose Bowl. And there are intriguing trends associated with most of the bowls and with many of the teams, such as the 2-10 against-the-spread run by Notre Dame in bowl action.
Opening lines aggregated by Odds Shark:
| Bowl | Teams | Open | O/U |
| New Orleans | Nevada vs. Louisiana-Lafayette | +1 | 61 |
| New Mexico | Texas El Paso vs. Utah State | -11 | 50.5 |
| Las Vegas | Utah vs. Colorado State | +4 | 58 |
| Idaho Potato | Western Michigan vs. Air Force | +3 | 55.5 |
| Camellia | South Alabama vs. Bowling Green | -1.5 | 55 |
| Miami Beach | BYU vs. Memphis | -1 | 56.5 |
| Boca Raton | Northern Illinois vs. Marshall | -11 | 61.5 |
| Poinsettia | Navy vs. San Diego State | PK | 56.5 |
| Bahamas | Central Michigan vs. W. Kentucky | -1.5 | 65 |
| Hawaii | Fresno State vs. Rice | +2 | 59 |
| Heart of Dallas | Illinois vs. Louisiana Tech | -4 | 61 |
| Quick Lane | Rutgers vs. North Carolina | -3 | 65.5 |
| St. Petersburg | North Carolina State vs. UCF | -3 | 49 |
| Military | Virginia Tech vs. Cincinnati | -3.5 | 49 |
| Sun | Duke vs. Arizona State | -9 | 59.5 |
| Independence | Miami vs. South Carolina | PK | 59.5 |
| Pinstripe | Penn State vs. Boston College | -2.5 | 39 |
| Holiday | Nebraska vs. Southern Cal | -4 | 62 |
| Liberty | West Virginia vs. Texas A&M | +4 | OFF |
| Russell Athletic | Clemson vs. Oklahoma | OFF | OFF |
| Texas | Texas vs. Arkansas | -5 | 45.5 |
| Music City | Notre Dame vs. LSU | -7.5 | 52 |
| Belk | Louisville vs. Georgia | -7 | 58.5 |
| Foster Farms | Maryland vs. Stanford | -13 | 49 |
| Chick-Fil-A | Mississippi vs. TCU | -3 | 56 |
| Fiesta | Boise State vs. Arizona | -4 | 69 |
| Orange | Georgia Tech vs. Mississippi State | -7 | 59.5 |
| Outback | Wisconsin vs. Auburn | -6.5 | 61 |
| Cotton | Michigan State vs. Baylor | -1.5 | 70 |
| Citrus | Minnesota vs. Missouri | -6.5 | OFF |
| Rose | Florida State vs. Oregon | -8.5 | 71 |
| Sugar | Ohio State vs. Alabama | -9 | 58 |
| Armed Forces | Pittsburgh vs. Houston | +2 | 53 |
| TaxSlayer | Iowa vs. Tennessee | -3 | 52.5 |
| Alamo | UCLA vs. Kansas State | -2.5 | 59 |
| Cactus | Oklahoma State vs. Washington | -5 | 55.5 |
| Birmingham | East Carolina vs. Florida | -7 | 57.5 |
| GoDaddy | Toledo vs. Arkansas State | +1 | 66 |
.jpg?w=480 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
