Miami (OH) Redhawks vs Colorado State Rams Prediction, Odds and Picks for Today, 12/28/24

Saturday afternoon will feature the Snoop Dogg Arizona Bowl between the Miami, Ohio RedHawks out of the MAC and the Colorado State Rams out of the Mountain West. Miami finished their season with an 8-5 record but came up short in the MAC Championship against Ohio. Miami scored a field goal on their opening drive and then proceeded to give up 38 unanswered points and lost that game 38-3 when they were favored by 2.5 heading into the contest. Despite the loss, it was still a great year for the RedHawks with Brett Gabbert throwing 2737 yards and running back Keyon Mozee rushing for over 1000 yards. Colorado State finished their season with a record of 8-4. The Rams finished in third place in their conference with a conference record of 6-1. UNLV got the chance to play against UNLV in the Mountain West championship due to a tiebreaker. Quarterback Brayden Fowler-Nicolosi threw for 2475 yards and 13 touchdowns this season. Their defense is led by linebacker Buom Jock, who led the team with 100 tackles.

Both teams will be missing some key players for this bowl due to the transfer portal. Miami will be without Javon Tracy, Reggie Virgil, and Cade McDonald, their top three receivers for this game. These three have combined to receive 147 out of 212 total receptions this season for the RedHawks. Miami will also be losing two starting cornerbacks for this game, including their top cornerback, Raion Strander. Colorado State only has 5 players that are potentially missing due to the portal or opt-out. The most impactful players that will be missing will be Jock and their two starting defensive ends, Mukendi Wa-Kalonji and Nuer Gatkuoth. The Rams will also be without two of their top receivers as well. All season, the Rams’ main concern was their struggle against the pass. Colorado State allowed on average 238.9 yards per game through the air and 7.1 yards per attempt. With the top three receivers out for the RedHawks, they may have trouble taking advantage of the Rams defense. If Colorado State can contain Gabbert without his targets and still focus on stopping Mozee on the ground, the Rams should be able to do just enough to pull this game out.

Colorado State ML (+115) available at the time of publishing. Playable at that number.

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