Bowl Games Schedule 2017-18 Viewing Info, Latest Odds For Every Matchup
Bowl season can provide us with so many ups and downs, especially if you're wagering on the contests.
With multiple midweek games during the holiday break between Christmas Day and New Year's Day, there's plenty of opportunities to cash in on some intriguing matchups.
Some of the opening lines for the bowls and the College Football Playoff semifinals are too close to call right now, but there are also some that stick out like a sore thumb.
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Here's a look at the odds for every bowl game and a breakdown of the some of the more intriguing lines:
December 16
R&L Carriers New Orleans Bowl (1 p.m. ET)
Troy (-5.5) vs. North Texas
TV: ESPN
AutoNation Cure Bowl (2:30 p.m. ET)
Western Kentucky (-4.5) vs. Georgia State
TV: CBS Sports Network
Las Vegas Bowl (3:30 p.m. ET)
No. 25 Boise State vs. Oregon (-5)
TV: ABC
Gildan New Mexico Bowl (4:30 p.m. ET)
Marshall vs. Colorado State (-5.5)
TV: ESPN
Raycom Media Camellia Bowl (8 p.m. ET)
Middle Tennessee vs. Arkansas State (-3.5)
TV: ESPN
December 19
Cheribundi Tart Cherry Boca Raton Bowl (7 p.m. ET)
Akron vs. Florida Atlantic (-17)
TV: ESPN
December 20
DXL Frisco Bowl (8 p.m. ET)
Louisiana Tech vs. SMU (-5)
TV: ESPN
December 21
Bad Boy Mowers Gasparilla Bowl (8 p.m. ET)
Temple (-8) vs. Florida International
TV: ESPN
December 22
Bahamas Bowl (12:30 p.m. ET)
UAB vs. Ohio (-7)
TV: ESPN
Famous Idaho Potato Bowl (4 p.m. ET)
Central Michigan (even) vs. Wyoming
TV: ESPN
December 23
Birmingham Bowl (12 p.m. ET)
Texas Tech vs. South Florida (-2.5)
TV: ESPN
Lockheed Martin Armed Forces Bowl (3:30 p.m. ET)
San Diego State vs. Army*
TV: ESPN
Dollar General Bowl (7 p.m. ET)
Appalachian State vs. Toledo (-7)
TV: ESPN
December 24
Hawai'i Bowl (8:30 p.m. ET)
Fresno State vs. Houston (-1.5)
TV: ESPN
December 26
Zaxby's Heart of Dallas Bowl (1:30 p.m. ET)
West Virginia vs. Utah (-4.5)
TV: ESPN
Quick Lane Bowl (5:15 p.m. ET)
Duke (-2.5) vs. Northern Illinois
TV: ESPN
Cactus Bowl (9 p.m. ET)
Kansas State (-3) vs. UCLA
TV: ESPN
December 27
Walk On's Independence Bowl (1:30 p.m. ET)
Southern Miss vs. Florida State (-14)
TV: ESPN
New Era Pinstripe Bowl (5:15 p.m. ET)
Boston College vs. Iowa (-3)
TV: ESPN
Foster Farms Bowl (8:30 p.m. ET)
Arizona (-4.5) vs. Purdue
TV: Fox
Academy Sports & Outdoors Texas Bowl (9 p.m. ET)
Texas vs. Missouri (-1)
TV: ESPN
December 28
Military Bowl presented by Northrop Grumman (1:30 p.m. ET)
Virginia vs. Navy*
TV: ESPN
Camping World Bowl (5:15 p.m. ET)
No. 22 Virginia Tech vs. No. 19 Oklahoma State (-6.5)
TV: ESPN
Valero Alamo Bowl (9 p.m. ET)
No. 13 Stanford vs. No. 15 TCU (-2)
TV: ESPN
San Diego County Credit Union Holiday Bowl (9 p.m. ET)
No. 18 Washington State (-4.5) vs. No. 16 Michigan State
TV: Fox
December 29
Belk Bowl (1 p.m. ET)
Wake Forest (-2.5) vs. Texas A&M
TV: ESPN
Hyundai Sun Bowl (3:30 p.m. ET)
No. 24 NC State (-5) vs. Arizona State
TV: CBS
Franklin American Mortgage Music City Bowl (4:30 p.m. ET)
No. 21 Northwestern (-6.5) vs. Kentucky
TV: ESPN
Nova Home Loans Arizona Bowl (5:30 p.m. ET)
Utah State (-3) vs. New Mexico State
TV: CBS Sports Network
Goodyear Cotton Bowl (8:30 p.m. ET)
No. 5 Ohio State (-6) vs. No. 8 USC
TV: ESPN
December 30
TaxSlayer Bowl (Noon ET)
No. 23 Mississippi State vs. Louisville (-5.5)
TV: ESPN
AutoZone Liberty Bowl (12:30 p.m. ET)
No. 20 Memphis (-3) vs. Iowa State
TV: ABC
PlayStation Fiesta Bowl (4 p.m. ET)
No. 9 Penn State (-4.5) vs. No. 11 Washington
TV: ESPN
Capital One Orange Bowl (8 p.m. ET)
No. 6 Wisconsin (-5.5) vs. No. 10 Miami (FL)
TV: ESPN
January 1, 2018
Outback Bowl (Noon ET)
Michigan (-7.5) vs. South Carolina
TV: ESPN2
Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl (12:30 p.m. ET)
No. 7 Auburn (-8) vs. No. 12 UCF
TV: ESPN
Citrus Bowl presented by Overton's (1 p.m. ET)
No. 14 Notre Dame vs. No. 17 LSU (-1)
TV: ABC
Rose Bowl (National Semifinal, 5 p.m. ET)
No. 2 Oklahoma (-1.5) vs. No. 3 Georgia
TV: ESPN
Sugar Bowl (National Semifinal, 8:45 p.m. ET)
No. 1 Clemson (even) vs. No. 4 Alabama
TV: ESPN
January 8, 2018
National Championship Game (8 p.m. ET)
TV: ESPN
*denotes odds have not been released
Florida Atlantic and Florida State Overwhelming Favorites
The two lines that stick out right away are from the Boca Raton and Independence Bowls, but only one of those double-digit point spreads makes sense.
Lane Kiffin's Florida Atlantic Owls have won nine straight games and they've been lighting up opposing defenses at will. In each of those nine victories, the Owls have scored 30 or more points, including a 69-point outburst against North Texas on October 21.
Akron, who fell in the MAC Championship Game to Toledo in Week 14, doesn't have a player with over 400 rushing yards, and the Zips have been inconsistent with their longest winning streak being three games.
When it comes to Florida State being a 14-point favorite in the Independence Bowl against Southern Miss, the immediate thought is to bet on the Golden Eagles since the Seminoles had to beat Louisiana-Monroe on Saturday to reach .500 and qualify for a bowl game. On top of all that, they lost head coach Jimbo Fisher to Texas A&M.
Playing early in the afternoon in Shreveport, Louisiana, on a Wednesday afternoon isn't exactly what the Florida State players signed up for when they entered the program.
On the other side of that matchup is a Southern Miss team that is trying to hit the nine-win mark for the second time in three years. There would be no better finish to the season for Jay Hopson's team than to knock off one of the perennial powers of the sport.
Auburn Opens as Largest Favorite in New Year's Six
At first glance, it doesn't come as a complete shock that Auburn is an eight-point favorite as an SEC team taking on the best Group of Five program.
However, UCF is not your typical Group of Five team, as the Knights blazed through their schedule in the AAC with a high-powered offense led by quarterback McKenzie Milton.
In addition to trying to prove themselves against a power-conference team, the Knights will get a chance to send Scott Frost off in style before he leaves for Nebraska. Frost and his staff were confirmed to coach in the Peach Bowl after the AAC Championship Game, per CBS Tampa's Ryan Bass:
"Wow. Big news: Scott Frost and his staff have committed to coaching UCF in the Peach Bowl, Danny White confirmed. Frost will coach the Bowl game.
— Ryan Bass (@Ry_Bass) December 2, 2017"
Of course, going up against an SEC defense is a different animal, even if the Knights have weeks to prepare for it.
The Tigers will also have a point to prove after a disappointing 28-7 defeat to Georgia. Ending the season with a second consecutive shocking defeat would be the worst way to end a successful season, and it would leave an unhealthy taste in the mouths of the players, staff and passionate fans.
Auburn quarterback Jarrett Stidham could easily outperform Milton in the Peach Bowl. The sophomore is in charge of an impressive offense that includes star running back Kerryon Johnson, and only Clemson and Georgia have been able to stop it in its tracks.
If Stidham and Johnson operate the way they did during the Tigers' five-game winning streak that lasted from October 21 to November 25, they could easily cover against a Knights defense that hasn't proved that it can stop anything.
Big Ten Favored in 6 of 8 Bowl Games
It's no secret that the Big Ten has been top-heavy all season, with Ohio State, Wisconsin, Penn State, Michigan and Michigan State dominating the headlines at some point.
Four of those five schools are favorites in their respective bowl games, but they aren't the only Big Ten teams picked to win their bowl games as Northwestern and Iowa are also favored.
The only Big Ten schools listed as underdogs are Michigan State in the Holiday Bowl and Purdue in the Foster Farms Bowl. Both of those teams are taking on Pac-12 teams.
Not only does the Big Ten have six favorites, but five of them have spreads of four or more points, with Michigan being the largest favorite at 7.5 points against South Carolina in the Outback Bowl.
The lines in favor of the Big Ten teams are a good sign heading into bowl season after the Big Ten went 3-7 last season with defeats in two New Year's Six games and a loss in the College Football Playoff.
Follow Joe on Twitter, @JTansey90.
All odds via Oddsshark.com. All statistics obtained from ESPN.com.
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