There are worse fates in college football than playing the last week of December. Even if these aren’t the Big Six Bowls, we’ve got some big-name programs to consider for our latest batch of Saturday football bets.
Are the LSU Tigers (+3) undervalued in the Texas Bowl versus the No. 21 Houston Cougars? What about the No. 22 Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets (+5) taking on the No. 12 BYU Cougars in the Pop-Tarts Bowl?
With so many casual fans jumping in with their college football picks, these underdogs are going to be hard to pass up.
Best Bets for Pittsburgh vs. East Carolina
For even more value, we’re targeting one of the lesser bowls for Saturday’s college football betting picks: the Military Bowl, where the Pittsburgh Panthers (8-4 SU and ATS) will meet the East Carolina Pirates (8-4 SU, 7-5 ATS).
It’s the first bowl of the day, kicking off from Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium in Annapolis at 11 AM Eastern; that’s a bit early for some folks, but ESPN is providing the coverage, so there should still be a considerable audience for this matchup – and considerable value on the underdogs.
Saturday Odds (ECU +10)
They’re the only double-digit dogs on Saturday’s NCAAF odds board, but these Pirates aren’t just any Group of 5 team. They play in the American Conference, the best mid-major of them all according to the Simple Rating System at Sports Reference.
Pittsburgh represents the ACC, easily the weakest of the Power 4 conferences.
Saturday’s matchup is a classic “let down” bowl for the Panthers after they cracked the AP rankings at No. 23 in early November, then lost two of three SU and ATS to wrap up the regular season.
Saturday Picks (ECU ML +280)
According to the predicted score, there’s more value with East Carolina on the moneyline (3.3% Expected Value) than the point spread (0.8% EV).
We’re not going to worry too much about these projections for our college football picks, given how many players both sides will be missing due to opt-outs, injuries, and transfers; the moneyline simply works better for your same-game parlays with Over 55.5 and our next featured bet.
Pittsburgh’s QB Mason Heintschel (Over 0.5 Interceptions –120)
There are a limited number of NCAAF player props available for the Military Bowl as we go to press, again partly due to the confusion surrounding who will be active.
We already know East Carolina QB Katin Houser is heading for the transfer portal, which is why the Pirates have moved from +6 since the open.
There might be some value betting the Over (Passing Yards, Pass Attempts, etc.) for whomever replaces Houser – likely redshirt senior Mike Wright Jr. – but for now, betting on East Carolina to pick off Mason Heintschel at least once will suit our purposes for Saturday’s matchup.
From a value perspective, this Heintschel prop is more about how weak Pitt’s offensive line is than anything else. The Pirates’ defense ranks No. 57 in the FBS, according to the F+ Ratings at BCF Toys, but Pittsburgh’s offense has had some issues converting third downs, and Heintschel (seven INTs in nine games) has been picked in three of his past four starts.
Place Your Saturday College Picks Now
The logic behind putting our Saturday college football bets in a same-game parlay is simple: We want it to look as “recreational” as possible.
East Carolina fans – they do exist – will be more likely to bet the Pirates on the moneyline, along with the Over and some tasty college football props with favorable outcomes for ECU. Heintschel throwing at least one pick qualifies for that last category.
Parlaying these bets will make it less likely that your chosen online sportsbook will cap your action this Saturday. If you prefer to place these bets individually for large amounts, make sure you use a sharp-friendly book.
Also, keep a close eye on the player availability for both clubs as we get closer to kick-off, then be prepared to jump on the live NCAAF lines here at OddsTrader if you get some juicy information before the betting public finds out. Happy Holidays!
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*The line and/or odds referenced in this article might have changed since the content was published. For the latest information on line movements, visit OddsTrader’s free betting odds tool.