NCAAF best bets: Two teams to fade in college football bowls
If you're brave enough to bet on college football bowl season this year, there's a lot you need to know before firing wagers on teams you might know nothing about. Transfers, opt-outs and coaching changes are rampant in the sport right now, so many teams will look much different in their bowl games than they did for most of the season.
To help out your bowl season betting journey, here are two teams you might want to fade this week.
Texas A&M Aggies
-3 vs. Oklahoma State in the Texas Bowl
Wednesday, Dec. 27, 9 p.m. ET
Best Bet: Cowboys +1.5
Buckle up, folks. This one's a doozy.
Let's start with the coaching staff. Head coach Jimbo Fisher was fired in the middle of the season, and Elko will take his place next season. Offensive coordinator Bobby Petrino also left to take the same position at Arkansas. Interim head coach Elijah Robinson will be in charge for the TaxAct Texas Bowl.
Quarterback Max Johnson hit the transfer portal, as well as 10 other players and three starters. Star wide receiver Ainias Smith and linebacker Edgerrin Cooper have opted out of the bowl game, and a handful of other NFL draft hopefuls could follow.
On the other side, Oklahoma State didn't lose any impact players to the portal. Head coach Mike Gundy is also 11-6 straight up and against the spread in bowl games throughout his career.
Oklahoma Sooners
+3 vs. Arizona in the Alamo Bowl
Thursday, Dec. 28, 9:15 p.m. ET
Best Bet: Wildcats -2.5
Oklahoma's transfer situation isn't as drastic as the two teams mentioned above, but the Sooners did lose starting quarterback Dillon Gabriel to Oregon. Freshman Jackson Arnold will likely start in his place. Oklahoma also lost three running backs, two offensive linemen, and a starting defensive back to the portal.
Arizona should have most of its starting lineup available for the Valero Alamo Bowl, and the Wildcats finished the season as one of the hottest teams in the country. They won six straight games down the stretch and won their last two by a combined 60 points.
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