College football bowl picks, odds, best bets for Dec. 23, 2023 by proven expert: This 3-leg parlay pays 6-1

The second full slate of the 2023-24 college football bowl season comes on Saturday, Dec. 23 with seven games set to unfold. The action begins at noon ET with Duke vs. Troy in the Birmingham Bowl and wraps at 10:30 p.m. ET off the mainland when Coastal Carolina and San Jose State play in the Hawaii Bowl. The latest college football bowl odds via SportsLine consensus list Troy as the 7.5-point favorite, while San Jose State is -10. 

Other college football bowl lines of note for Saturday include James Madison (-1) vs. Air Force in the Armed Forces Bowl at 3:30 p.m. ET and Utah (-6) vs. Northwestern in the Las Vegas Bowl at 7:30 p.m. ET. Before locking in any college football picks on those bowl games or others, be sure to see the top Dec. 23 college football expert picks, predictions and best bets from Barrett Sallee.

Sallee is a true insider -- a CBS Sports analyst, SiriusXM host, Heisman voter and consistently one of the top CBS Sports experts picking games against the spread. He debuted with SportsLine in 2017 and has delivered his three best college football picks to members each week. 

Now, he has turned his attention to the college football bowl odds and is sharing his top three best bets over at SportsLine. If you parlay them together, you could be looking at a return of around 6-1. Get his top college football picks at SportsLine.

Top college football expert predictions for Dec. 23 bowls

One of Sallee's top college football bowl picks for Saturday: He is going Under 44 in the 2023 Birmingham Bowl between Duke and Troy at noon ET.

Both teams are dealing with a coaching transition and multiple losses via the transfer portal. Duke, in particular, is losing a lot on offense with quarterback Riley Leonard and running back Jordan Waters among the most notable exits. 

"The Blue Devils offense hasn't clicked without Riley Leonard under center, and the Trojans have gone through a coaching change that could make this one ugly," Sallee told SportsLine. "More importantly, though, is the fact that both of these defenses have been solid for the majority of the season. Toss in what could be some chilly weather in Birmingham and you have the perfect recipe for a sloppy game." See what other picks Sallee likes at SportsLine. 

How to make Dec. 23 college football bowl picks 

Sallee has also found two other college football picks he loves, including fading a team he's completely lost trust in. You can only see his picks at SportsLine.