College Football Bowl Odds 2023: Betting Tips for Top Games on Tuesday's Schedule
Tuesday's college football bowl slate serves as an appetizer for college football fans to start one of the busiest weeks in the sport.
Only two power-conference teams are in action on the three-game slate, and while the Minnesota Golden Gophers and Kansas Jayhawks are favored, both of them could lose.
Minnesota opens Tuesday's slate against the Bowling Green Falcons in the QuickLane Bowl.
Kansas concludes the night against the UNLV Rebels in the Guaranteed Rate Bowl.
The First Responder Bowl, though, could be the most interesting since it pits the Texas State Bobcats and the Rice Owls against each other in an in-state matchup that also serves as Texas State's first-ever FBS bowl game.
For the latest lines on these games, go to DraftKings.
QuickLane Bowl (Tuesday, 2 p.m. ET, ESPN)
Bowling Green enters Detroit with the better overall record than Minnesota.
The Falcons closed the season 4-1 to reach 7-5 and qualify for a bowl, while the Golden Gophers struggled to go 5-7 and got into a bowl based on their program's APR after there were not enough six-win teams in the FBS.
Minnesota will be without quarterback Athan Kaliakmanis, who entered the transfer portal, as well two starters on defense. The Gophers could potentially limit the playing time of safety Tyler Nubin as well to protect his NFL draft stock.
Bowling Green quarterback Connor Bazelak already confirmed his return for 2024 and he could use the QuickLane Bowl as a springboard to a better campaign next season.
The Falcons can also hurt the Gophers on the ground through running back Terion Stewart, who had 762 rushing yards and eight scores this season.
Bowling Green has more key players available, was the better team in 2023 and has more motivation to beat a power-conference team than the Gophers do to beat a Group of Five squad.
Everything seems to line up in Bowling Green's favor, which could make it the best money-line underdog on Tuesday's slate.
First Responder Bowl (Tuesday, 5:30 p.m. ET, ESPN)
Texas State might be the most excited team to play on Tuesday's slate.
The Bobcats are bowl eligible for the first time in program history. That achievement happened after an offseason overhaul in which head coach G.J. Kinne worked the transfer portal almost as much as Colorado's Deion Sanders.
Auburn transfer T.J. Finley runs the offense and he had three wide receivers record at least 50 catches and 600 receiving yards.
Rice quarterback J.T. Daniels retired from football after the regular season due to a string of injuries. The Owls will likely roll with A.J. Padgett at quarterback. Padgett had 636 yards and seven touchdown passes in relief this season.
The Texas State offense is simply more explosive than Rice's unit, and it also has a 1,000-yard running back in Ismael Mahdi.
The Bobcats should not have any trouble finding an offensive rhythm in Dallas, while Rice may struggle to get going before halftime.
Add in Texas State's motivation to win its first-ever bowl game and you have a fun favorite to back in a Group of Five battle.
Guaranteed Rate Bowl (9 p.m. ET, ESPN)
UNLV was one of the better stories in the Group of Five ranks.
The Rebels went 9-4 and qualified for the Mountain West Championship Game, where they fell to the Boise State Broncos.
UNLV lost its final two games, but that should not deter you from betting it as a double-digit underdog on Tuesday.
UNLV was one of three programs to cover the spread 10 or more times in 2023. It was 10-3 against the spread and covered twice as a double-digit underdog, one of which came in a loss to the Michigan Wolverines.
The Rebels should be up for the test against Kansas inside Chase Field, the home of the Arizona Diamondbacks.
Kansas is transitioning between offensive coordinators after Andy Kotelnicki left for Penn State, but it still has quarterback Jason Bean running the offense.
Both sides should put up a fair amount of points, and UNLV should not show any fear against a power-conference foe, which should lead to a cover, and potentially an outright win depending on how motivated the Jayhawks are.
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