Myrtle Beach Bowl: Odds, Picks & Predictions

This article is part of our College Football Picks series.

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It begins! The bowl season kicks off on December 16 at 11 a.m. ET down in Conway, South Carolina, with the Myrtle Beach Bowl. Quibble about bowl season if you like. Declare that the games don't mean anything. Lament the transfers and guys opting out. College football games are happening, and I'm in on it. The Eagles and the Bobcats open the door, and also start the bowl betting season for good measure. 

Spread: Georgia Southern -3 (DraftKings Sportsbook), Ohio +3.5 (FanDuel Sportsbook)

Total: 48.5 (BetMGM Sportsbook)

Moneyline: Georgia Southern -154 (FanDuel Sportsbook), Ohio +145 (BetMGM Sportsbook)

The books have made this one a tossup. A three-point spread on a neutral field is almost a shrug, a "take your pick" offering from the oddsmakers out there. Now, not every bowl game has odds in this vein, but it's not surprising when some of them do. Of course, when a 9-3 team is an underdog to a 6-6 team, some might wonder what the story is.

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The Eagles ended the year absolutely skidding. Clay Helton's squad lost four games in a row, including dropping the season finale 55-27 to Appalachian State. Lead running back Jalen White did miss that game, but having him wouldn't have stopped the defense from ceding points left and right. Also, White does remain questionable for the Myrtle Beach Bowl with an undisclosed issue.

Ohio was 9-3 and looked strong in conference play, but here's where the vagaries of bowl season arise, and where Ohio's underdog status likely comes from. The Bobcats' offense was powered by quarterback Kurtis Rourke and running back Sieh Bangura. Well, guess who are both in the transfer portal now? Based on SP+, these teams were effectively equals, so factoring in the loss of talent for Ohio's offense, things look dicey. However, Ohio's offense ranks 115th in SP+. The defense, which ranks 12th, powered the team. Knowing that, and believing Ohio's offense will struggle, my betting thoughts head elsewhere.

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Ohio has announced Parker Navarro will be the starting quarterback down in South Carolina for this one. He's a redshirt senior with 24 career passes to his name. I'm expecting the Bobcats to really struggle offensively. With Rourke injured in the season opener, they only managed 13 points against San Diego State. Georgia Southern, though, might struggle against the Ohio defense. In fact, in a bowl scenario I kind of expect that to be the case. This will not be one for the aesthetes. The first team to 20 seems likely to win. I don't know who that will be – I'd lean Georgia Southern but not confidently – but I'd be truly surprised if the total cracks 50, and 48.5 is but a stone's throw from that.