Justin and SBR.tv’s Peter Loshak continue their previews and analysis with a look at the college bowl matchups scheduled between December 26-30, including the Humanitarian Bowl.
The line in the Humanitarian Bowl on Wednesday (Dec 30) between Bowling Green and Idaho has both Loshak and Justin a bit confused.
Both would have leaned towards betting Idaho, but the line movement of Idaho -1 to +2 has them concerned, and has Justin thinking someone has some valuable information he doesn’t have access to. Loshak points out that the offensive makeup of each team will result in an edge for the Vandals if the weather inhibits passing.
The Emerald Bowl on Saturday (Dec 26) presents a classic bowl betting scenario, where a powerhouse program, in this case USC, is off of a disappointing season and facing a disappointing bowl assignment, as a sizable favorite against a lesser upstart team, in this case Boston College, eager for an opportunity for a good showing against a big-name program.
Justin loves a side in this one, and the line has already had movement in BC’s direction, going from USC -9 to -7½.
Temple/UCLA in the EagleBank Bowl on Tuesday (Dec 29) involves an intriguing handicapping situation involving the big disparity in public perception of the two respective conferences the teams come from – the MAC and the Pac-10.
Loshak is looking for insight from Justin into this matter, given how Justin correctly assessed in the early bowl games this year that teams from the Pac-10 were being overrated and teams from the Mountain West were being underrated in the betting lines. With this game, however, Justin curiously doesn’t offer up a line, and he and Loshak discuss a bit why not.
Justin does have lines and opinions on the rest of the bowl games through December 30 – Ohio/Marshall, UNC/Pitt, Kentucky/Clemson, Texas A&M/Georgia, Miami/Wisconsin, and Nebraska/Arizona. Still leaning to the over in general, he has a number of plays he sees as having small-to-modest value, including one which agrees with Loshak’s favorite play in the Kentucky/Clemson game.