Caleb Wilfinger
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We have made through the 2023 college football regular season, and what a season it’s been! We have certainly gotten eventful matchups every weekend, with plenty of upsets to keep fans entertained while ultimately delivering what could be the most competitive playoff in the CFP era to date.
Now it’s time to turn our attention to bowl season. It’s finally here! The slate is headlined by the New Year’s Six games and a myriad of bowls over the course of December and January. The opening lines were released at most sportsbooks on Sunday, so let’s take a look at these openers and give our first impressions.
NCAAF bowl season opening lines and odds
Odds available at FanDuel Sportsbook at time of publishing.
- Georgia Southern +1.5 (-110) vs Ohio – Saturday, December 16
- Jacksonville State +1.5 (-110) vs Louisiana – Saturday, December 16
- Miami OH +4.5 (-110) vs Appalachian State – Saturday, December 16
- New Mexico State -2.5 (-110) vs Fresno State – Saturday, December 16
- UCLA -3 (-110) vs Boise State – Saturday, December 16
- California +3.5 (-110) vs Texas Tech – Saturday, December 16
- Western Kentucky -3 (-110) vs Old Dominion – Monday, December 18
- UTSA -8.5 (-110) vs Marshall – Tuesday, December 19
- Georgia Tech +6.5 (-110) vs UCF – Friday, December 22
- Troy -5.5 (-110) vs Duke – Saturday, December 23
- Arkansas State -1.5 (-110) vs Northern Illinois – Saturday, December 23
- James Madison -4.5 (-110) vs Air Force – Saturday, December 23
- Georgia State -3.5 (-110) vs Utah State – Saturday, December 23
- South Alabama -14 (-110) vs Eastern Michigan – Saturday, December 23
- Utah -9.5 (-110) vs Northwestern – Saturday, December 23
- Coastal Carolina +7.5 (-110) vs San Jose State – Saturday, December 23
- Texas State -6.5 (-110) vs Rice – Tuesday, December 26
- Kansas -12.5 (-110) vs UNLV – Tuesday, December 26
- Virginia Tech -5.5 (-110) vs Tulane – Wednesday, December 27
- UNC +3.5 (-110) vs West Virginia – Wednesday, December 27
- Louisville -6.5 (-110) vs USC – Wednesday, December 27
- Texas A&M -4.5 (-110) vs Oklahoma State – Wednesday, December 27
- SMU -8.5 (-110) vs Boston College – Thursday, December 28
- Rutgers +4.5 (-110) vs Miami – Thursday, December 28
- NC State +4.5 (-110) vs Kansas State – Thursday, December 28
- Arizona -1.5 (-105) vs Oklahoma – Thursday, December 28
- Clemson -7 (-110) vs Kentucky – Friday, December 29
- Oregon State +10.5 (-110) vs Notre Dame – Friday, December 29
- Memphis +6.5 (-110) vs Iowa State – Friday, December 29
- Missouri +6.5 (-110) vs Ohio State – Friday, December 29
- Ole Miss +3.5 (-110) vs Penn State – Saturday, December 30
- Auburn -2.5 (-110) vs Maryland – Saturday, December 30
- Georgia -13.5 (-110) vs Florida State – Saturday, December 30
- Toledo -1.5 (-105) vs Wyoming – Saturday, December 30
- Wisconsin +10.5 (-110) vs LSU – Monday, January 1
- Tennessee -7 (-110) vs Iowa – Monday, January 1
- Liberty +14.5 (-110) vs Oregon – Monday, January 1
- Alabama +2 (-110) vs Michigan – Monday, January 1
- Texas -4.5 (-110) vs Washington – Monday, January 1
NCAAF College Football Playoff best early bet: Washington Huskies +4.5 (-110) vs Texas Longhorns
We have what should be a terrific matchup on our hands in this College Football Playoff semifinal between the Texas Longhorns and Washington Huskies. Both of these teams are playing some of their best football at the right time, which lends further intrigue to what should be a great game full of compelling matchups. Both offenses have clear and obvious strengths that should play to their advantage against the opposing defense. For Texas, the Longhorns should see success in the trenches with their excellent running game, which could pave the way for Quinn Ewers and company to have success off play action. But on the other side, Washington’s main avenue to success comes in the form of Michael Penix Jr. and this elite receiving corps picking on a banged-up Texas secondary that already had issues against the pass this season.
As talented as Texas is, the benefit of the doubt has to go to Kalen DeBoer — who has a 103-11 record as a head coach — and this Huskies staff, including offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb. The Longhorns have the best defensive front in the country for my money, so I don’t see Washington even trying to run in this one. Instead, Penix will get to air the ball out downfield with a fully healthy receiving corps filled with NFL wideouts on a fast track. While these are two very different teams, there is a bit of precedent for DeBoer getting the best of Steve Sarkisian, as the Huskies knocked off the Longhorns in last season’s Alamo Bowl. I do think both teams get to 30 points, so my initial lean was to take the over, but I also can’t get there with Texas as a favorite of over a field goal here. Let’s back Washington catching 4.5 points in a game that I see coming down to the wire.
We have college football picks and NCAAF predictions for every bowl game!
NCAAF bowl season best early bet: Liberty Flames vs Oregon Ducks over 63.5 (-110)
In his first press conference following the announcement of the New Year’s Six bowl games on Sunday, Oregon head coach Dan Lanning quickly confirmed that quarterback Bo Nix would be playing in the Fiesta Bowl. That’s all I needed to hear to immediately get to the window and take the over at the current number. Liberty had a fantastic regular season, finishing with an unblemished record while routing most of the competition in Conference USA en route to a conference championship. However, the Flames had a strength of schedule well outside the top 100 — having not faced a Power 5 team all season long.
Now in just a few weeks, head coach Jamey Chadwell’s group will face off against an Oregon team that is easily one of the top 5-7 teams in the nation at its best. Liberty’s defense was just shredded by New Mexico State’s backup QB and is very vulnerable, which leads me to believe that Oregon can hang at least 40 points here. On the other side, the Flames are a top-10 offense in most metrics for a reason and Kaidon Salter should see success against a Ducks defense that has struggled with limiting explosive plays this season, particularly against the pass. Let’s roll with the over in the Fiesta Bowl.
