College football player prop: Son with a gun

Work productivity notoriously declines in the week between Christmas and New Year’s. But when there are three bowl games on the Friday afternoon, employers might as well just give everyone the day off. The third of those offerings is the 65th Liberty Bowl, which features 9-3 Memphis playing a de facto home game against 7-5 Iowa State. In what’s expected to be a high-scoring affair, a precocious passer gets our backing for top prop:

The bet: Over 204½ passing yards for Iowa State quarterback Rocco Becht (DraftKings)

The son of Anthony, a former tight end who was a first-round selection of the Jets, Becht started every game this season as a redshirt freshman. He has thrown for 2,674 yards and 20 touchdowns, helping the Cyclones post a 6-2 record in the Big 12.

While the two Iowa State running backs who got the most carries — Eli Sanders and Cartevious Norton — have opted out, Becht can distribute the ball to all of his best receivers. Junior wideouts Jayden Higgins and Jaylin Noel have each exceeded 700 yards, and freshman tight end Benjamin Brahmer has contributed more than 300.

Memphis owns the 18th-worst pass defense in the country, allowing 253 yards per game. Making matters worse for the Tigers, safety Cameron Smith, the team's interception leader, has decided to enter the transfer portal after three seasons.

With the additional incentive of needing 326 yards to reach 3,000 for the season, Becht will be focused and firing.