Bowl Slate Preview (Dec. 27)

It was a great day for our college football best bets and top DFS plays with the underdogs coming through in a big way. We have another full day of bowl games on tap, so another opportunity to replace the money we all spent on the holidays.

As always, news will be extremely important as we monitor opt-outs and starter info. Let’s get into it.

Birmingham Bowl

Georgia Tech vs. Vanderbilt

The Yellow Jackets will be without several wideouts, most notably Eric Singleton. He has transferred to Auburn. Others that have hit the portal include Malik Rutherford, Christian Leary and Leo Blackburn.

QB Haynes King will have to put the team on his back, and we know he is fully capable of doing so. He has thrown for over 1900 yards and 11 TDs to just 1 INT, but his real value comes from his mobility. He has racked up 564 yards on the ground and another 11 scores. With so many of his weapons out, it seems likely he will rely on his rushing ability a lot.

Jamal Haynes has also shown himself to be a slate breaker at times this year and is a reasonably priced value when it comes to DFS. The only complaint with Jamal is the fact that he doesn’t get enough touches on a consistent basis. Chad Alexander will also get work.

For Vandy, it’s been an up-and-down season, but their upset victory over Bama earlier this year will be remembered for a long time. Diego Pavia is fearless as the ‘Dores signal caller and will be up for this game for sure.

Sedrick Alexander has rushed for 554 yards and 6 TDs this season, but the best is yet to come for him. Tight end Eli Stowers is playing as well, which gives Vandy a dangerous pass-catching option to lean on in this matchup. 

This is a game that isn’t getting nearly as much hype as the others on the slate, but it could wind up being one of the more entertaining matchups Friday.

DFS Targets

Haynes King
Jamal Haynes
Eli Stowers
Sedrick Alexander

Best Bets

Vandy +3 (-112, DraftKings)
Sedrick Alexander Over 54.5 Rushing Yards (-112, FanDuel)

Liberty Bowl

Texas Tech vs. Arkansas

Red Raiders QB Behren Morton is out due to injury, so Will Hammond will get the start under center. He hasn’t played much but did have a solid showing against TCU back in Week 9 when he threw for 121 yards and scored 2 TDs (1 passing/1 rushing).

Star running back Tahj Brooks is on the depth chart but has been called “50/50” by the coaching staff. He has been a brand-favorite all season long and I truly believe he plays the entirety of this game in a similar fashion to what we saw from Desmond Reid of Pitt Thursday. Brooks has rushed for over 1,500 yards and 17 TDs this season. With Morton out, we can expect a heavy dose of Brooks if he is in fact playing. J’Koby Williams would become viable if Brooks ends up sitting out.

Top wideout Josh Kelly has opted out to focus on NFL Draft prep, but the Red Raiders still have a productive group of pass-catchers available. TE Jalin Conyers (29-308-5), Caleb Douglas (55-765-6) and Coy Eakin (45-605-6) all have merit in a non-Brooks lineup.

The Razorbacks have been busy in the portal already, having brought in some serious talent while also losing key players. They will have Taylen Green under center, which is a good thing, and he has an excellent matchup against a fantasy-friendly Texas Tech defense. The dual threat is one of my favorite DFS plays Friday, but he will be popular so it’s not sneaky by any means. He has thrown for 2,812 yards and piled up 521 yards on the ground. Even without his top option Andrew Armstrong around, he is a top option.

They won’t have RBs Ja’Quinden Jackson or Rashod Dubinion, which leaves Braylen Russell as one of the remaining backs. I like his overall upside and think he is a great GPP pivot off a chalkier Bryan Jackson from USC. 

Isaac TeSlaa (25-438-3) and Andreas Paaske (3-19-2) are the fantasy relevant pass-catchers with Armstrong and Luke Hasz gone.

DFS Targets

Taylen Green
Braylen Russell
Isaac TeSlaa
Tahj Brooks
Will Hammond

Best Bets

Arkansas ML (+124, DraftKings)
Taylen Green Over 48.5 Rushing Yards (-114, FanDuel)

Holiday Bowl

Syracuse vs. Washington State

The Orange have a few minor injuries, but they’ll have most of their starters available, which is why they are such a big favorite. The opposite can be said for Washington State as most of their coaching staff has taken new jobs and QB John Mateer has decided to transfer to Oklahoma.

Kyle McCord should have a field day and will look to end the season on a high note. He has thrown for 4,326 yards and 29 TDs to 12 INTs. Since a heinous 5-interception game, McCord has played relatively mistake-free football.

LeQuint Allen will continue to get a heavy workload, and he is one of the best options on the entire slate. He has rushed for 901 yards and 14 TDs while producing 61-484-3 as a pass-catcher. Trebor Pena (79-871-7), Jackson Meeks (73-911-7) and Oronde Gadsen (68-848-5) give McCord a deep war chest of weapons to throw the ball to.

With John Mateer gone, the team will be starting Zevi Eckhaus at quarterback. He hasn’t played much but has talent and it’ll be interesting to see how he holds up against a team like Syracuse. He is far too expensive on DK but has merit on FD where he is less than $8k.

Most of their relevant receivers have transferred but there is a bit of news out there that Josh Meredith will play and if that’s the case, he is an excellent tournament play. Carlos Hernandez is another solid value play to consider as he will be higher up the pecking order.

DFS Targets

Kyle McCord
LeQuint Allen
Syracuse Receivers
Carlos Hernandez
Josh Meredit (check status)

Best Bets

Over 59.5 Total Points (-105, FanDuel)
LeQuint Allen Over 28.5 Receiving Yards (-114, FanDuel)

Las Vegas Bowl

Texas A&M vs. USC

This is a favorable game for DFS purposes, and we will want to get plenty of exposure. Marcel Reed is a mobile QB that has seen vast development as the season has gone on. He has thrown for 1,572 yards and 12 TDs to 4 INTs. He has also eclipsed 500 rushing yards with a YPC of 4.7.

Amari Daniels (661 yards) will operate as the RB1, and he has been fairly consistent with Lev Moss out. The receiver room is tricky because of the spread-out production but Noah Thomas (34-545-6), Terry Bussey (13-179-0), Jabre Barber (31-333-1) and Jahdae Walker (26-299-2) are in GPP consideration.

USC has looked better with Jayden Maiava running the offense. He will have his work cut out for him against the Aggies defense, but he is a strong, efficient playmaker. The starting running back will be Bryan Jackson, and he is min-price on DFS sites so we can expect heavy rostership there. Woody Marks has decided to focus on draft prep while Quinten Joyner has transferred.

Duce Robinson, Zach Brand and Kyron Hudson have transferred leaving the team with fewer options. However, this is a deep group that still has Makai Lemon (46-665-3), Ja’Kobi Lane (36-398-9) and Lake McRee (24-245-0.

Ultimately, the Aggies should be able to take advantage of a porous USC rush defense and do enough on the defensive end to pull out the Vegas Bowl victory.

DFS Targets

Marcel Reed
Amari Daniels
Jayden Maiava
Bryan Jackson
Makai Lemon
Terry Bussey

Best Bets

Texas A&M -3 (-110, DraftKings)
Marcel Reed Over 54.5 Rushing Yards (-114, FanDuel)