The Oklahoma Sooners head south to Tempe’s Sun Devil Stadium for a Dec. 30 date in the Insight Bowl against the Iowa Hawkeyes, who are 1-4 ATS in their five contests away from home. Who is our college football pick in this game?
Sportsbooks opened Oklahoma as a 15 ½-point favorite, while first
setting the ‘total’ at 58. Early college football betting action on Iowa and the ‘under’
dropped the college football odds to 14 and 57 ½, respectively.
Sooners squashed in finale
Oklahoma fell behind early in its 44-10 defeat on Dec. 3 as a 3
½-point road dog against the Oklahoma State Cowboys. The Sooners could
not reach the end zone until the battle’s final 2:25, when freshman Blake Bell
dashed for a 28-yard score.
Sooners quarterback Landry Jones tossed two interceptions as part
of his squad’s five turnovers, finishing with 250 passing yards. Jones’
backfield mate Roy Finch notched a team-high 65 rushing yards, making nine
carries.
Oklahoma’s defense surrendered 495 total yards, with 278 coming on
the ground. The Sooners held Oklahoma State to 4-for-13 on
third-down conversions.
The lopsided affair’s 54 points dipped below the ‘total’ of 71 ½,
making the ‘under’ 3-1 in the Sooners’ last four games. Oklahoma dropped
to 6-6 ATS, lowering its scoring average to 40.2 PPG.
Hawkeyes smothered in Nebraska
Iowa finished its regular season on Nov. 25 with a 20-7 defeat as
a nine-point road dog against the Nebraska Cornhuskers. The Hawkeyes were
held to 2-of-12 on their third-down conversions, controlling the ball for a
meager 22 minutes.
Hawkeyes running back Marcus Coker logged 18 carries and three
receptions for a combined 126 yards through the ground and air. The Big
Ten Conference’s second-leading rusher (115.3 YPG) is suspended for the Insight
Bowl due to a conduct violation of team rules.
The Hawkeyes’ defense allowed Nebraska to move the chains on
10-of-21 third downs, while giving up 385 total yards. Iowa held the
Cornhuskers’ running game to 3.6 YPR, facing 61 rushing plays.
The contest’s combined 27 points plunged below the ‘total’ of 53
points, ending a 2-0 ‘over’ streak from Iowa’s prior two games. Hawkeyes
quarterback James Vandenberg connected 16-of-35 passes, finishing with 182
yards through the air.
Back the ‘under’ in Tempe
The Insight Bowl is scheduled for a 10 p.m. (ET) kickoff, with
ESPN providing the national television coverage. Iowa makes its second
straight trip to the affair, following last year’s 27-24 victory as a
three-point dog against the Missouri Tigers.
This handicapper is backing the ‘under' with mycollege football pick, looking for the scoring
of both squads to fall far below the oddsmakers’ number. Coker’s
suspension should hinder Iowa from moving the chains, while the ‘under’ is 10-2
in the Sooners’ last 12 games held in December.
The Hawkeyes’ defense has held foes to a stingy 19 PPG in their
last four road contests. Iowa’s Mike Daniels and Broderick Binns have
united for 12 sacks, ranking both of the duo in the Big Ten Conference’s top
nine.
Oklahoma’s Frank Alexander leads the Big 12 Conference in sacks
with 8 ½, while mate Tony Jefferson had a season-high nine tackles against
Oklahoma State. The Sooners have been lit up defensively in their last
two road spots, but should face some lower octane against Iowa’s weapons
compared to those affairs.
The
‘under’ is 7-2 in Iowa’s last nine matchups against Big 12 foes, while
collecting at 5-1-1 in Oklahoma’s last seven contests after scoring below 20
points in its prior game. Look for another one of our
college football bowl picks to cash here, with both
defenses looking to keep the scoring tighter than expected.