Hunger Bowl Betting – Balanced Offense Gives Nevada Much-Needed Bowl Win
Sports betting players watched Nevada end the BCS dreams of one of the nation’s top non-AQ teams, but the Wolf Pack have had a great season in their own right, and now they’re attempting to cap it with a win in the Kraft Fight Hunger Bowl against the Boston College Eagles. The Wolf Pack have one of the best offenses in the country, and that will be the key as they end a bowl skid.
- What: NCAA football betting
- When: Sunday, January 9th, 9:00 PM ET
- Where: AT&T Park, San Francisco, CA
- Pick: Nevada -7.5
What’s On The Line
The No.15 Wolf Pack (12-1) won their last six games of the season, including an overtime upset of the Boise State Broncos to end the BCS title hopes of their WAC rivals, finishing in a three-way tie for the conference title. The Eagles (7-5) came in fourth in the ACC Atlantic, but they did wrap up the season with five straight wins. This is Boston College’s third trip to what used to be the Emerald Bowl, and they’ve split the first two after a 24-13 loss to the USC Trojans last season, while the Wolf Pack are looking to show that the Boise State win wasn’t a fluke, and they’d also like to end a four-game skid in bowl games.
Offensive Matchups: Hunger Bowl Betting
Nevada boasts the No.2 offense in the country, and the duo of quarterback Colin Kaepernick and running back Vai Taua powers the third-best (and the best among teams that don’t run a full-fledged triple option) rushing attack. But Kaerpernick can also pass now, and Richard Matthews is his favorite target. They’re going to need this balance to keep the Eagles’ excellent run defense honest. The Wolf Pack were held below 30 points just twice this season, and Boston College will have their hands full.
On the other hand, Boston College scored more than 30 points just twice, and even though they won their last five, they never scored more than 23 points during that run to finish 106th in total offense and 109th in points scored. Their best weapon, running back Montel Harris, had knee surgery before the final game of the season and may not be ready for this game. Chase Rettig has gotten better throughout his freshman season, but he’s still a freshman. The line is a bit suspect, but Rettig also holds onto the ball too long sometimes.
Betting Edge: Nevada
Defensive Matchups: Hunger Bowl Betting
The Wolf Pack still are no defensive juggernauts by any stretch, coming in 66th in the country, and coordinator Andy Buh has done a good job with the team. The pass defense is 108th in the nation, but to their defense, the Wolf Pack often had big leads on teams who were forced to abandon the run, so they had to go through the air. It’s a good thing that Boston College’s aerial attack isn’t that good.
The Eagles have the best run defense in the country, and they’ll get a real test against the Wolf Pack, who put up 269 yards on a top-notch Boise State defense. Linebacker Luke Kuechly led the nation in tackles, while counterpart Mark Herzlich is a strong part of the defense as well. The pass defense came in 81st in the country for a couple of reasons: the secondary can be taken advantage of, but teams don’t bother to run on Boston College, so that skews the rankings. The Eagles had 19 picks, tied for fifth in the NCAA, so they’re risky.
Betting Edge: Boston College
Notable Injuries: Hunger Bowl Betting
Nevada comes into this game with a clean bill of health.
Meanwhile, Harris (knee) is very questionable, and even though the Eagles still have Andre Williams, who ran for 185 yards in the game Harris missed, that was against Syracuse, and Williams is still a frosh.
Betting Edge: Nevada
Outlook and Pick: Hunger Bowl Betting
NCAA football betting odds have the Wolf Pack as a 7.5-point favorite in their first meeting with the Eagles, who are in their 12th straight bowl game, while Nevada is in their sixth in a row. Nevada would really love to end their four-game postseason skid, while Boston College is aiming to end a two-game bowl losing streak after winning eight in a row. This is essentially a matchup of Nevada’s high-powered offense against Boston College’s stingy defense, and even though defense usually wins championships and games, the Wolf Pack have too much firepower and balance for the Eagles, who will eventually buckle. Take Nevada in your online betting book.
Blake’s Pick: Nevada
