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Tuesday's Bowl Notes
December 18, 2017

Boca Raton Betting Preview (ESPN, 7:00 p.m. ET)
Akron vs. Florida Atlantic (-22.5, 63.5)

The Florida Atlantic Owls have been in the national spotlight all season long thanks to Lane Kiffin joining the school. It's almost remarkable that so many high-profile jobs have been filled without Kiffin getting signed in a year that he guided FAU to the Conference USA title. The Owls will wrap up their season at home in the Boca Raton Bowl against the Akron Zips on the second day of the bowl season on Tuesday, December 19.

Big Spread in Boca Raton

Florida Atlantic is being asked to lay a stunning 22.5-points against Akron in the Boca Raton Bowl at BookMaker.eu. Not only is that the biggest spread in a bowl game this season, but it's the biggest spread in any bowl game in the last decade. The highest spread on record in a bowl game since 2010 was at the Cotton Bowl in the 2012-13 bowl season. Oklahoma State was laying 17.5-points and beat Purdue 58-14.

Don't think that it's an absolute slam dunk that FAU wins this game outright either. Last year's biggest favorite, Colorado State against Idaho in the Potato Bowl, lost by 11 points as a 16-point favorite.

Teams that are favored by at least 14 points in the bowl season are 0-3 ATS over the course of the last two seasons. The last time a favorite of 14-points or more covered a spread was in the Foster Farms Bowl of 2014 when Stanford crushed Maryland 45-21.

Wiley Old Owls

Kiffin is a professional troll, and he knows exactly what the point spread is in every single game that he's coaching in.

The Owls delivered two of the most devastating beats of the entire season to bettors.

On November 3, Florida Atlantic hosted Marshall in a huge C-USA East tussle. The Owls were up 30-23 with just seconds remaining, and rather than punt the ball to Marshall, Kiffin instructed his punt unit to give up a safety.

Florida Atlantic was -6.5.

Three weeks later, the Owls were laying 24.5-points against Charlotte. Florida Atlantic was in front of the spread, leading 31-6 late in the third quarter. Charlotte punched in a touchdown, and the Owls proceeded to march the length of the field to get down to the 1-yard line in the late stages of the fourth quarter. The nation's No. 6 rushing offense couldn't get a single yard in four tries against the nation's No. 106-ranked rush defense.

Take out those two ATS defeats, and Florida Atlantic has covered every game it has played since September.

Having Zip for Fear

Terry Bowden's Zips have absolutely overcome challenges like you wouldn't believe all season long. Akron was picked to finish fourth in the MAC East amongst the coaches in the conference at the start of the season, and it looked for anything like that would be optimistic after the team started 1-3 with the one win coming against Arkansas-Pine Bluff.

But perhaps we should have gotten a hint of things to come when the Zips only lost at Troy by five points as 17-point underdogs.

After a couple victories against bad MAC schools, Akron went on the road and played in a monsoon against Western Michigan. The Zips were 12.5-point dogs and won the game outright.

From there, Akron covered in an upset win over Buffalo and as 11-point dogs in a 24-14 loss to Miami-Ohio.

But the coup de grace came against Ohio in the de facto MAC East title game on November 14. The Zips were 14.5-point underdogs and won the game 37-34.

This Akron team finished with two double-digit upsets this year and went 5-0 ATS against double-digit spreads after starting with blowout losses to Penn State and Iowa State. Clearly, there isn't going to be an intimidation factor going on the road for the Boca Raton Bowl.

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TUESDAY, DECEMBER 19
GAME TIME(ET) PICK UNITS

AKR at FAU 07:00 PM

AKR +22.0

O 65.5

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FAU shuts down Akron, 50-3
December 19, 2017

BOCA RATON, Fla. (AP) Lane Kiffin's first bowl game at Florida Atlantic was the perfect microcosm of his first season with the Owls.

Slow start. Super finish.

And the future could be even better.

Devin Singletary ran for 124 yards and three touchdowns, Jason Driskel accounted for four scores and FAU rolled past Akron 50-3 in the Boca Raton Bowl on Tuesday night - finishing the season on a 10-game winning streak, and with Kiffin having agreed to terms on an extension that, in theory, would keep him at FAU for another 10 years.

That seems unlikely, of course. Then again, so did a program with nine wins in the last three years combined rolling through 2017 this way.

''Just an unbelievable day,'' Kiffin said. ''Can't imagine it being better, 50-3. This is a special story. These are unique stories. They don't happen. You don't come to FAU after winning nine games in three years combined and win 11 games - and not even play close games. ... These guys just dominate everybody they play.''

The Owls were 1-3 in late September. They never lost again, the 10 wins coming by an average of 24.8 points and capped by a win in FAU's first bowl appearance since 2008.

''A long time coming,'' said FAU linebacker Azeez Al-Shaair, who announced he is returning for his senior season - amid some NFL speculation.

Singletary finished with 32 touchdowns this season for the Owls (11-3), who matched the school record for wins in a season - set during the team's run to the Division I-AA semifinals in 2003.

Driskel threw for 270 yards and two touchdowns, plus ran for two more scores for FAU.

The Owls had a massive turnaround in Kiffin's first year and may have an even brighter future. Earlier Tuesday, a person with knowledge of the negotiations told The Associated Press that FAU and Kiffin have agreed to extend his contract six more years through 2027.

The days of being called out with an overhead projector as he was by Al Davis in Oakland, or fired on a tarmac like he was at USC, or facing weekly questions about his job security like he was at Alabama, are over.

He's at FAU for as long as he wants to be. The new deal isn't signed, but the sides will get there.

''It was a neat day,'' Kiffin said. ''It's the university saying, `We're excited about what's going on, we believe in what you're doing, we don't mind that you make jokes on Twitter like other people do.' It was just neat to see.''

Kato Nelson threw for 80 yards for Akron (7-7).

''We just got whipped,'' Akron coach Terry Bowden said. ''They didn't punt until the very end. ... They just were better than us tonight, it was clear to see.''

And Kiffin held nothing back.

FAU got three touchdowns on fourth-down tries, unsuccessfully tried an onside kick in the first quarter, went for a 2-point conversion in the third quarter to make it 36-3 and even tried a halfback pass in the fourth quarter with a 47-point lead. The Owls didn't punt on their first nine possessions, getting seven touchdowns and two missed field goals out of those.

Even on the last play of the game, FAU threw a pass - a 10-yard gain, one that gave the Owls a 582-146 edge in total yards. The Owls left no doubt: Only two bowl games since 2000 had a bigger margin of victory than FAU's 47-point romp in this one.

''Lane was just playing football,'' Bowden said. ''I have no problem with it.''

BIG PICTURE

Akron: The Zips finished the season 7-0 in games where they led at halftime and 0-7 when they trailed at the break. ... Akron is now 1-2 in bowl games since moving up to the FBS level, winning the 2015 Famous Idaho Potato Bowl and falling in the 2005 Motor City Bowl. ... Bowden made sure to laud his seniors in the locker room postgame. ''We have made incredible strides,'' he said.

FAU: The only players with more rushing touchdowns than Singletary in the last 50 years of major college football were Barry Sanders (37 in 1988) and Montee Ball (33 in 2011). He has 43 TDs in his first two seasons, and had only two in his first three games this year - before getting 30 more in the final 11 games.

THE DADS

Kiffin and Bowden are, of course, the sons of football coaching legends. Monte Kiffin and Bobby Bowden were both at the game and took part in the pregame coin toss.

UP NEXT

Akron: Nebraska's first game under Scott Frost will be at home against the Zips on Sept. 1.

FAU: The Owls take their 10-game winning streak into 2018, which starts Sept. 1 at Oklahoma.

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CFB notebook: Kiffin, FAU agree to 10-year extension
December 19, 2017

Lane Kiffin and Florida Atlantic agreed to a new 10-year contract, the school announced on Tuesday.

Kiffin, who has resurrected the school's football program in just one season, has guided the Owls (10-3) to nine straight victories and a win in the Conference USA championship. Florida Atlantic will face Akron on Tuesday night in the Cheribundi Tart Cherry Boca Raton Bowl.

"This is further proof of FAU's unbridled ambition," Florida Atlantic president Dr. John Kelly told ESPN on Tuesday.

Kiffin's initial deal was for five years and paid him $950,000 annually. The 42-year-old's new deal will stretch through December 2027.

--Washington State coach Mike Leach, who has led the Cougars to 26 victories in the past three seasons, received a raise and a contract extension, the school announced.

The school added a year to Leach's contract, which now runs through the 2022 season. His compensation will increase to $3.5 million in 2018, $3.75 million in 2019 and $4 million in 2020. After the 2020 season, Leach would receive a retention bonus of $750,000. His previous compensation was $3 million per year.

Leach, whose 9-3 team will play Michigan State in the Holiday Bowl in San Diego on Dec. 28, was rumored to be in the running for other jobs this offseason, most notably Tennessee before Vols athletic director John Currie was fired.

--Alabama freshman linebacker Dylan Moses sustained a foot injury in practice and is out indefinitely, putting his availability in jeopardy for the team's College Football Playoff semifinal game against Clemson.

Crimson Tide coach Nick Saban announced on Tuesday that Moses was injured in the previous day's practice. AL.com reported that Moses would undergo surgery.

Moses recorded 30 tackles and 5.5 tackles for loss (including 1.5 sacks) and one interception this season for Alabama (11-1).

--Virginia Tech wide receiver Cam Phillips underwent sports hernia surgery and will miss the Camping World Bowl against Oklahoma State.

Phillips is the school's all-time leader in receptions (236) and receiving yards (3,027). The senior also had 17 touchdowns in his career for the Hokies (9-3), who will face the Cowboys (9-3) on Dec. 28.

"While we're disappointed that Cam won't be able to compete in the bowl game, hopefully he enjoys a speedy recovery as he prepares for the next step of his football journey," Virginia Tech coach Justin Fuente said.

--Maryland receiver D.J. Moore announced that he is bypassing his senior season to enter the NFL draft. Moore was named the Big Ten's top receiver after catching 80 passes for 1,033 yards and eight touchdowns.

"After the season, I had numerous thoughts running through my head," Moore said in his statement. "What weighed on my mind was that nothing is ever guaranteed in life and that you should always take advantage of every opportunity that you come across. ... With that thought in mind, I've decided to forego my senior season and enter the 2018 NFL Draft."

Moore is expected to be selected within the top two rounds of the draft.

--Veteran football coach Jerry Kill announced his retirement, citing health reasons for his resignation as Rutgers' offensive coordinator.

The 56-year-old Kill has been plagued with epileptic seizures that led to his end as Minnesota's head coach following the 2015 season.

"I don't have any regrets, and I've had a blessed career," Kill said in a statement. "I love this game and all the coaches that I've worked with. They have all made Jerry Kill a better man. I know that I did it the right way and I did it my way. I gave everything I had to the game; I just ran out of juice."

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Wednesday's Bowl Tips
December 19, 2017

Frisco Bowl Betting Notes

The first-annual Frisco Bowl has its fair share of drama for sure. On paper, the matchup between the Louisiana Tech Bulldogs and the SMU Mustangs doesn't seem like it should be a dynamite duel, but the storylines that are coming out of this game before it even kicks off is making it one of the tougher games to handicap early in the bowl season.

A Frenetic Pace in Frisco

BookMaker.eu opened the total for the Frisco Bowl at 70, the only game of the 2017 bowl season to have such a high total. Bettors have leaned slightly towards the over, but the spread hasn't fluctuated more than a half-point either way since lines opened two weeks ago.

With SMU playing, anything could happen. The Bulldogs rank No. 8 in the nation in scoring offense and No. 113 in scoring defense. Their average game this season has reached 75.7 points per game, and they've already had one game played this year in the 90s (56-36 loss to TCU) and one get into the 110s (66-45 loss to Memphis).

LA-Tech only played in two games this season with totals beyond 65.5, a 52-24 over game against Northwestern State and a 57-21 loss to Mississippi State that easily exceeded the total of 66.5.

The Sonny Dykes Bowl

Louisiana Tech has been a transition job for a number of coaches over the years. Derek Dooley stayed for four seasons before taking the Tennessee job, and Sonny Dykes stayed for three before heading to Cal.

Now, Dykes is back in Louisiana Tech's life, but it isn't as a Bulldog. Dykes is taking over as SMU's head coach for Chad Morris, who took the head coaching job at Arkansas a few weeks ago.

Dykes flamed out at Cal over four seasons, posting just one winning record and virtually no major wins against Pac-12 teams. This year, he was an offensive assistant at TCU and was completely off the radar. The fact that he's going to step up from a role in which he was basically a nobody into a head coaching role with just two weeks of preparation to get ready for the Frisco Bowl is insane.

What makes the whole thing worse is the Morris gutted this coaching staff. Jeff Traylor was set to be the interim coach for the Frisco Bowl, but he bolted with Morris to Fayetteville.

After Dykes' hire, he assigned graduate assistant G.J. Kinne to calling plays for the Mustangs for the Frisco Bowl. Kinne was a successful quarterback in a spread offense during his day, but he's never had this responsibility. Toss in a sophomore quarterback in Ben Hicks, and the makings are there for some ugly offensive moments for SMU.

Bowling Bulldogs

When Holtz landed in Ruston and took the Louisiana Tech job, he took over a program that had just two bowl wins in its history. The team won the Independence Bowl in 2008 and way back in 1977. Dykes only brought the team to one bowl game in his time with the Techsters. Holtz has now reached his fourth.

The Bulldogs have won each of their three appearances with Holtz in bowl games over the course of the last three seasons, and it's officially the best run in the history of the program.

Frisco Bowl Game Odds for Wednesday, December 20
Louisiana Tech vs. SMU (-5, 70)

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Wednesday, December 20

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LOUISIANA TECH (6 - 6) vs. SMU (7 - 5) - 12/20/2017, 8:00 PM
There are no Top Trends with records of significance that apply to this game.

Head-to-Head Series History
There were no past matchups in this series during this time period.

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Wednesday, December 20

LOUISIANA TECH @ SOUTHERN METHODIST
The total has gone OVER in 17 of Louisiana Tech's last 25 games
Southern Methodist is 1-6 ATS in its last 7 games

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December 20

Louisiana Tech vs SMU (-5), Frisco Bowl, Frisco, TX

SMU is playing 25 miles from home, in its first bowl since 2012; this game is in the Dallas Cowboys’ practice facility, which seats 12,000 people. Mustangs are 2-3 vs spread as a favorite this year, 1-3-1 in games with single digit spread. Skip Holtz is 8-3 in bowls, 3-0 at Tech, scoring 35-47-48 points. Bulldogs are 3-2 as an underdog this year, 3-3 in games with single digit spread. Mustangs won four of their last five bowls- underdog won all five of those games SU. SMU scored 40+ points in their last three games overall, but lost two of the three- they allowed 31+ points in last five games, an average of 279 rushing yards in last seven games. Last four years, Tech is 12-5 vs spread as an underdog. Last five years, AAC teams are 12-7 vs spread when playing a C-USA team.

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Wednesday, December 20

Louisiana Tech @ SMU

Game 213-214
December 20, 2017 @ 8:00 pm

Dunkel Rating:
Louisiana Tech
79.822
SMU
81.732
Dunkel Team:
Dunkel Line:
Dunkel Total:
SMU
by 2
65
Vegas Team:
Vegas Line:
Vegas Total:
SMU
by 5
70
Dunkel Pick:
Louisiana Tech
(+5); Under

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2017 CFB Bowls Record:..............( BASED ON 5 UNITS )

DATE W-L-T % UNITS RECORD

12/19/2017 0-2-0 0.00% -11.00
12/16/2017 5-5-0 50.00% - 2.50

Totals...............5 - 7.........41.66%.....-13.50


Best Bets:..............ATS...............Units........ ..... .....O/U..................Units

12/19/2017....................0 - 1.................- 5.50................0 - 1.................-5.50
12/16/2017....................3 - 2................+11.00...............2 - 3.................-6.50

Totals.............................3 - 3................+ 5.50...............2 - 4.................-12.00

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Frisco Bowl
December 19, 2017

Louisiana Tech and Southern Methodist are poised to collide Wednesday night in the DXL Frisco Bowl at 8:00 p.m. Eastern on ESPN. This game will be played at Toyota Stadium, the home to FC Dallas of Major League Soccer in Frisco, TX.

As of Tuesday morning, most betting shops had SMU (7-5 straight up, 6-6 against the spread) installed as a 4.5-point favorite with a total of 70. The Bulldogs were +160 on the money line (risk $100 to win $160).

Many postseason games feature teams who have lost their head coach. Usually in this scenario, you’ll see a team go with an interim coach from the departed head coach’s staff of assistants. In those cases, you often have a staff with individuals coaching a team in its bowl while simultaneously looking for their next job.

That’s actually not the case here for SMU, which saw its third-year head coach Chad Morris leave to take the Arkansas job. The Mustangs moved quickly and made an excellent hire in Sonny Dykes, who is actually the former head coach at Louisiana Tech. He left Louisiana. Tech to become the head coach at California, but he was fired by the Golden Bears after the 2016 season and spent ’17 as a consultant for Gary Patterson’s TCU program.

In what is quite rare, Dykes moves immediately into his role of head coach for this bowl game. Jeff Traylor, Morris’s associate head coach who was initially named the interim head coach, had accepted a job on Morris’s staff at Arkansas. Therefore, he went ahead and took off for Fayetteville when Dykes was hired.

According to remarks made by SMU Athletics Director Rick Hart at Dykes’s intro presser, the new coach will “bring in a few staff members to supplement the remaining staff” in what Dykes admitted will be a “crazy” week prepping for the Bulldogs.

Dykes said, “I’ve got to hire a football staff and try to get three or four coaches here with some current staff members and go figure out a way to win a football game.”

SMU is in the postseason for only the fifth time since the school was infamously issued the death penalty in the mid-1980s. In those four consecutive bowl games under former HC June Jones from 2009-2012, the Mustangs went 3-1 both SU and ATS with all three victories coming in blowout fashion from the role as underdogs. In fact, they beat Nevada (45-10 at the ’09 Hawaii Bowl, +12.5) and Fresno St. (43-10, ’12 Hawaii Bowl, +13) as double-digit ‘dogs.

Dykes indicated that he’ll lean on starting QB Ben Hicks to teach him the offense that’s been utilized all season. Hicks enjoyed an excellent third-year sophomore campaign, completing 58.7 percent of his passes for 3,442 yards with a 32/9 touchdown-to-interception ratio.

Hicks has a pair of 1,000-yard receivers at his disposal in junior Trey Quinn and junior Courtland Sutton. Quinn has snared 106 receptions for 1,191 yards and 12 TDs, while Sutton has 62 catches for 1,017 yards and 12 TDs. Sophomore WR James Proche is also a reliable target, hauling in 40 receptions for 816 yards and six TDs.

SMU is ranked 12th in the country in total offense, 16th in passing yards and eighth in scoring (40.2 points per game). This unit is balanced, though, with a trio of RBs who eclipsed the 500-yard rushing mark.

Junior Xavier Jones ran for a team-best 1,019 yards and nine TDs while averaging 6.0 yards per carry. KeMon Freeman, a true sophomore rushed for 527 yards and 11 TDs with a 4.2 YPC average, while Braeden West rushed for 512 yards and two TDs with a 7.9 YPC average.

Proche is listed as ‘questionable’ with a hamstring injury. Starting junior CB Jordan Wyatt is ‘out’ with a knee injury. This is a huge loss for the SMU secondary. Wyatt recorded 49 tackles, one sack, 3.5 tackles for loss, four interceptions for 165 return yards and two TDs, eight passes broken up and three forced fumbles.

The SMU defense will also with without starting senior DE Dimarya Mixon, who went down with a season-ending injury in late October. Mixon had 15 tackles, 1.5 sacks, one TFL and one QB hurry in the Mustangs’ first six games. The team’s leading tackler, safety Mikial Onu, is ‘questionable’ due to a concussion. Onu produced 93 tackles, two interceptions, one TFL, six PBU and one forced fumble.

Even if SMU’s defense was healthy, it’s a unit that has plenty of issues anyway. The Mustangs are ranked No. 122 in the nation in total defense, 121st in pass defense, 113th in run ‘D’ and 113th in scoring ‘D’ (35.5 PPG).

SMU was a single-digit favorite three times during the regular season, going 3-0 SU and 1-2 ATS.

Louisiana Tech (6-6 SU, 6-6 ATS) is bowling for a fourth straight year in the fifth season of Skip Holtz’s tenure. The Bulldogs started 4-6 but won back-to-back games both SU and ATS to garner postseason eligibility, including a 20-6 win over UTSA in a pick ‘em affair in the regular-season finale in Ruston.

Boston Scott was the catalyst against the Roadrunners, rushing for 138 yards and one TD on 20 carries. His 35-yard dash to paydirt with 2:23 remaining put the game on ice. The LT defense limited UTSA to just 201 yards of total offense and forced a pair of turnovers.

Louisiana. Tech is 3-0 SU and 2-1 ATS in three postseason appearances on Holtz’s watch, including a 48-45 non-covering win over Navy as a seven-point ‘chalk.’

Louisiana. Tech lost three games by three combined points, including a 17-16 loss at South Carolina when the Gamecocks rallied from a 16-0 deficit in the fourth quarter. The Bulldogs also dropped a 23-22 decision at UAB and lost 24-23 to North Texas at home. They defeated only one opponent that made the postseason, winning 23-22 at Western Kentucky.

Holtz’s team has been an underdog five times, compiling a 2-3 spread record with one outright victory. One of those non-covers was a fourth heartbreaker for SU purposes, a 34-27 loss to Southern Miss in overtime as a one-point home underdog. We’ll also note that five of LT’s six wins came by margins of at least 14 points.

QB J’mar Smith, a third-year sophomore just like Hicks, has completed 55.4 percent of his passes for 2,758 yards with a 13/5 TD-INT ratio. Smith has also rushed for 356 yards and a pair of TDs.

Junior WR Teddy Veal has a team-high 69 receptions for 832 yards and five TDs. Rhashid Bonnette has 32 catches for 574 yards and two TDs. Scott has rushed for a team-best 937 yards and eight TDs while averaging 5.7 YPC, and Jarred Craft has run for 516 yards and three TDs with a 4.6 YPC average. Scott also has 20 catches for 181 yards and one TD, while Craft has 13 receptions for 74 yards and a pair of TDs.

Louisiana. Tech’s defense has an elite pass rusher in junior DE Jaylon Ferguson, who had six sacks, 2.5 TFL’s, 38 tackles, five QB hurries and a pair of blocked kicks this season. Ferguson had 14.5 sacks in 2016.

Junior LB Dae’Von Washington recorded a team-high 66 tackles, two interceptions, 0.5 sacks, 4.5 TFL’s, one PBU, one forced fumble and two QB hurries. Junior LB Brandon Durman has missed four games in a row and is listed as ‘questionable’ vs. SMU due to an undisclosed injury. In the team’s first seven games, he had 36 tackles, one sack and two TFL’s.

The ‘over’ is 7-5 overall for the Mustangs after cashing in their last three regular-season games. They’ve seen their games average combined scores of 75.7 PPG.

The ‘over’ is on a 4-2 run for the Bulldogs, but totals have been an overall wash (6-6) for them on the season. They’ve watched their games average combined scores of 55.4 PPG.

**B.E.’s Bonus Nuggets**

-- West Virginia WR David Sills V has announced that he’ll return to school for the 2018 campaign. QB Will Grier announced the same thing last week. Sills had 60 receptions for 980 yards and 18 TDs during the regular season.

-- Oregon ponied up big money to keep DC Jim Leavitt around on Mario Cristobal’s new staff.

-- South Carolina flipped Tennessee commit Jaycee Horn on Monday and he’ll sign with the Gamecocks on Wednesday. Horn is the son of Saints’ legendary WR Joe and is a 4-star CB out of Alpharetta, just outside of Atlanta.

-- According to an AL.com report on Tuesday, 5-star recruit and true freshman MLB Dylan Moses sustained a foot injury at Alabama’s practice on Monday. The injury has put Moses’s status for the New Year’s Day CFP semifinal game vs. Clemson in doubt. With MLB Shaun Dion Hamilton out for the season, Moses had 21 tackles and one interception as the starter in the Crimson Tide’s last two games.

-- Florida pulled a major coup on Tuesday when Ole Miss WR Van Jefferson announced he will be transferring to play for the Gators. Jefferson, a rising fourth-year junior, will have to seek a waiver from the NCAA to be eligible to play right away. However, this waiver is expected to be granted to Jefferson and QB Shea Patterson, who is transferring to Michigan. All Ole Miss rising seniors are eligible right away at their new schools, while others have to get a waiver. In two seasons with the Rebels, Jefferson started 15 games and had 87 receptions for 967 yards and four TDs.

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NCAAF

Wednesday, December 20

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DXL Frisco Bowl Betting Preview and Odds: Louisiana Tech vs Southern Methodist
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Louisiana Tech Bulldogs vs Southern Methodist Mustangs (-4.5, 70)

Game to be played at Toyota Stadium, Frisco, Texas

SMU will face Louisiana Tech in the inaugural Frisco Bowl on Dec. 20 with a new coach. Sonny Dykes, whose first head coaching job was at Louisiana Tech in 2010, will coach the Mustangs at the bowl game formerly known as the Miami Beach Bowl before being moved to Toyota Stadium in Frisco, Texas, in the offseason. Chad Morris, who led SMU to its first bowl game since 2012, was hired at Arkansas on Dec. 6 after building a 14-22 record in three seasons with the Mustangs.

The Bulldogs won their final two games to become bowl eligible and earn their fourth straight postseason bid under coach Skip Holtz. Louisiana Tech is one of nine programs in the country that enters the postseason with three straight bowl wins. The Bulldogs are playing their third bowl in the past four years in North Texas after winning the Heat of Dallas Bowl in 2014 and the Armed Forces Bowl in Forth Worth last year.

SMU and Oklahoma State are the only FBS teams with a 3,000-yard passer, 1,000-yard rusher and two 1,000-yard receivers, so it should come as no surprise that the Mustangs averaged 40.2 points per game. Sophomore quarterback Ben Hicks threw for 3,442 yards and 32 touchdowns while Trey Quinn and Courtland Sutton each caught 12 touchdowns. It will be a big test for a Bulldogs defense that ranked near the middle of Conference USA in opponents' points (26.7) and passing yards (215.1).

TV: 8 p.m. ET, ESPN.

LINE HISTORY: Oddsmakers opened SMU as five-point favorites and the number was bet down slightly to 4.5. The total hit betting boards at 68 and was bumped up to 70 as of Tuesday afternoon.

WHERE THE ACTION IS: As of Monday night, SMU was drawing 68 percent of the tickets written and 81 percent of the money wagered according to William Hill US.

INJURY REPORT:

Louisiana Tech - LB B. Durman (Questionable, Undisclosed), WR M. Gaines (Questionable, Undisclosed), WR A. Smith (Out For Season, Undisclosed), LB R. Cleveland (Out For Season, Undisclosed), CB E. Kitchen (Out For Season, Undisclosed), OL D. Melancon (Out For Season, Undisclosed), CB M. Sam (Out For Season, Undisclosed).

Southern Methodist - OL N. Natour (Questionable, Leg), WR J. Proche (Questionable, Hamstring), DB J. Wyatt (Out, Knee), DL D. Mixon (Out For Season, Knee).

ABOUT LOUISIANA TECH (6-6 SU, 6-6 ATS, 6-6 O/U): Sophomore quarterback J'Mar Smith threw for 2,758 yards and 13 touchdowns, including five scores to Conference USA co-newcomer of the year Teddy Veal (69 catches, 832 yards). Junior defensive end Jaylon Ferguson (26.5 career sacks) had a team-high six sacks while senior safety Secdrick Cooper had 63 stops and two interceptions. Freshman cornerback Amik Robertson led the team with four interceptions to go with 58 tackles and two sacks.

ABOUT SMU (7-5 SU, 6-6 ATS, 7-5 O/U): Quinn (106 catches, 1,191 yards) leads the country with 8.8 receptions per game, needs six catches to tie the single-season school record and is tied with Sutton (62 catches, 1,017 yards) for second place in single-season touchdown catches. Senior defensive end Justin Lawler joined Quinn and Sutton as first-team All-AAC picks after blocking three kicks and leading the Mustangs with 9.5 sacks and 15.5 tackles for loss. The Mustangs' defense allowed at least 31 points in its final five games, which included three straight losses before a last-second goal-line stand in the finale snapped the skid.

TRENDS:

* Bulldogs are 4-1 ATS in their last 5 bowl games.
* Mustangs are 4-0 ATS in their last 4 non-conference games.
* Over is 17-8 in Bulldogs' last 25 games overall.
* Under is 5-1 in Mustangs' last 6 games in December.

CONSENSUS: The public is siding with the favorite SMU Mustangs at a rate of 61 percent and the Over is getting 51 percent of the totals action.

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WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 20
GAME TIME(ET) PICK UNITS

LT at SMU 08:00 PM

LT +4.5

U 71.5

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La. Tech routs SMU in Frisco Bowl
December 20, 2017

FRISCO, Texas (AP) J'mar Smith threw three touchdown passes and ran for a score, Louisiana Tech's defense scored twice and the Bulldogs rolled to a 51-10 victory over sloppy SMU on Wednesday night in the Frisco Bowl.

Smith completed 15 of 23 passes for 216 yards, and Teddy Veal caught four passes for 84 yards for Louisiana Tech (7-6). The Bulldogs led 42-10 at the half.

SMU (7-6) fumbled on its first offensive snap and turned it over on its first three drives and six times overall.

It was a disappointing debut for SMU coach Sonny Dykes against his former school. Dykes was 22-15 at Louisiana Tech from 2010 to 2012 before leaving for California in 2013. Dykes was fired by Cal a year ago, and spent this season as an offensive analyst at TCU before SMU hired him to replace Chad Morris on Dec. 11.

With most of the staff joining Morris at Arkansas, Dykes elected to coach the bowl game and installed graduate assistant G.J. Kinne as offensive coordinator for the bowl game.

It didn't have the desired effect.

Smith gave the Bulldogs a 7-0 lead on a 1-yard sneak with 7:43 remaining in the first quarter. Louisiana Tech had a short field to work with after Secdrick Cooper returned an interception 31 yards to the SMU 30.

Amik Robertson returned an interception 55 yards for a touchdown less than a minute later, pushing the lead to 14-0.

SMU held onto the ball on it's fourth drive, but couldn't reach the end zone and settled for a field goal after stalling at 8.

On the ensuing kickoff, Jaqwis Dancy had a 65-yard return, setting up a 6-yard touchdown pass from Smith to Veal for a 21-3 lead.

Louisiana Tech added returned another interception for a touchdown early in the second quarter. This time, Darryl Lewis had a 23-yard return down the sideline for a 28-3 lead.

Smith added touchdown passes to Veal and Kam McKnight, helping Louisiana set a school record for first-half points in a bowl game.

Trey Quinn scored SMU's touchdown on a on a nine-yard pass late in the second quarter. SMU quarterback Ben Hicks completed 19 of 33 passes for 127 yards.

THE TAKEAWAY

Louisiana Tech: The Bulldogs have won four straight bowl games and scored at least 47 points in their past. Three of those four bowl victories have come in the state of Texas.

SMU: SMU fell to 7-8-2 in bowl games and had its worst bowl loss since it lost the the 1983 Sun Bowl to Alabama 28-7.

[StarDust Bum]

Temple, FIU reach Gasparilla Bowl under new coaches
December 20, 2017

Gasparailla Bowl: Temple: (6-6) vs. FIU (8-4), Dec. 21, 8 p.m. Eastern (ESPN)

Line: Temple by 7.

Series Record: First meeting.

WHAT'S AT STAKE

Temple in appearing in a bowl game for the third straight season, seventh time overall. The Owls, seeking their first bowl victory since the 2011 New Mexico Bowl, lost to Wake Forest in last season's Military Bowl and Toledo in the Boca Raton Bowl two years ago. FIU has already tied a school record for wins in a season and is making its third bowl appearance, second in St. Petersburg, where the Golden Panthers played in the Beef `O Brady's Bowl in 2011.

KEY MATCHUP

FIU QB Alex McGough against a Temple defense anchored by ends Jacob Martin and Sharif Finch. The Owls ranked among the best in the American Athletic Conference in sacks per game and tackles for losses. McGough has been sacked 21 times.

PLAYERS TO WATCH

Temple: QB Frank Nutile completed 60.8 percent of his passes for 1,346 yards, 11 touchdowns and seven interceptions. David Hood and Ryquell Armstead pace the Owls in rushing with 562 yards and four TDs and 553 yards and four TDs rushing, respectively. WR Isaiah Wright leads Temple in receiving with 41 for 595 yards and three TDs. Adonis Jennings (39 catches, 691 yards) and Keith Kirkwood (39, 575) have seven TD receptions apiece.

FIU: McGough completed 231 of 354 passes (65.3 percent) for 2,791 yards, 17 TDs and 8 interceptions. Alex Gardner leads the Golden Panthers with 765 yards rushing and six TDs. Injured WR Thomas Owens led team with 59 receptions for 887 yards and six TDs, despite missing the final three games of the regular season.

FACTS & FIGURES

Temple coach Butch Davis and FIU's Geoff Collins are completing their first seasons in their current jobs. ... The Owls have won three of four games to even their record. ... Temple has started 42 different players this season, tied with Western Kentucky for the most among bowl eligible teams.

[StarDust Bum]

Thursday's Best Bet
December 19, 2017

Bad Boy Mowers Gasparilla Bowl Betting Preview
Temple Owls vs Florida International Golden Panthers

The 2017 Gasparilla Bowl will feature some unique circumstances as it's the first-ever meeting between these two programs, and FIU and Temple will do battle at Tropicana Field which is where the MLB's Tampa Bay Rays play.

Having Bowl games at baseball stadiums is nothing new for the NCAA, as this is the 10th consecutive year this Bowl game formerly known as the St Petersburg Bowl will be played at Tropicana. FIU as a program is 0-1 SU in this game with a 20-10 loss to Marshall back in 2011, and this will be Temple's first ever appearance here.

Temple (-7); Total set at 57

It's the Owls who come in as the favorites despite being in FIU's backyard and having the worse overall record at 6-6 SU (compared to FIU's 8-4 SU mark), and that's mostly because the AAC conference as a whole is more widely respected than Conference USA in terms of overall depth and talent. But early action suggests that bettors believe records do actually matter and “home field” advantage might help the Panthers get the job done as underdogs.

VegasInsider.com is currently showing about 70% of bettors are grabbing the points with FIU and a little over half are taking a shot with the ML as well. Teams from the state of Florida are 2-3 SU all time in this Bowl game with the last win coming in 2012, and “public” underdogs are not ones I prefer to jump on board with, especially when the line has basically held true since opening weeks ago. But this is a bit of a hornets nest that Temple is walking into given the game's being played in Tampa and laying a touchdown in that type of environment is tough to do.

Although these programs have zero history with one another, they did square off against two common opponents this year in Massachusetts and Central Florida. Temple and FIU both got smoked by UCF with the Owls loss looking a little better (45-19 compared to 61-17 for FIU), but Temple was at home for that contest compared to FIU playing the Knights on the road. It's the results against UMass that are more interesting though as both of them were able to beat the Minutemen in home games, as FIU capped off their regular season with a 63-45 win over U Mass, while Temple beat them 29-21 back in Week 3.

On the surface that appears to be advantage FIU, but FIU actually closed as a home underdog of +2.5 in that game while Temple was a -14.5 home favorite in their meeting with the Minutemen. By those spreads you can see that oddsmakers definitely view the Owls in a much better light and will probably be rooting for the Owls to get the SU and ATS win if the action continues to hold on the pace it's shown. As tempting as it is to go against the grain and lay the chalk with Temple here, it's actually the total that I believe presents more value.

Outside of the first three years this Bowl game was played at Tropicana Field, the most recent six contests have shown that points can be hard to come by. Obviously “styles make fights” and you can't compare this year's combatants to the way teams before them played, but since that 2011 St Petersburg Bowl that FIU lost (20-10), only once have we seen more than 57 points scored in this game.

Part of that probably has to do with the fact that it is played on a baseball field (and a crappy baseball field at that) and it takes some adjustment for the players to get footing, sight lines etc. The past two years alone we've not had more than 33 points scored as crowds were sparse and teams really had a tough time “getting up” for a game like this. The crowd issue should be much better this year with FIU involved, but the whole adjustment to being on a baseball field could still be a factor.

While ATS bettors have hit FIU at a 70% clip, the 'over' in this game is seeing more than 90% support as of this writing. Given FIU finished the year with four straight 'overs' and is coming off a game that saw 108 points, and Temple went 5-0 O/U in their last five, you can see why the 'over' is getting a lot of love. But the multiple weeks off likely had a cooling effect on these offenses, and Temple is a team that prefers to play a defensive brand of football in general. Yes, they finished the year with five straight 'overs', but prior to that they began the season on a 1-6 O/U run with all six of those 'unders' coming in Games 2-7. The Owls are also 5-11 O/U in their last 16 games against a winning team, and 3-8 O/U when coming off a SU win.

As touchdown favorites I expect that Temple is the team that dictates and controls the pace for most of this game, and if that's the case, 57 or more points is going to be hard to reach. History is on the side of an 'under play here at Tropicana Field, and with sportsbooks likely needing this game to stay low with a vast majority expecting a shootout, I've got no problem fading the masses with this play.

Best Bet: Under 57 points

[StarDust Bum]

Thursday, December 21

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TEMPLE (6 - 6) vs. FLA INTERNATIONAL (8 - 4) - 12/21/2017, 8:00 PM
Top Trends for this game.
TEMPLE is 18-8 ATS (+9.2 Units) in all games over the last 2 seasons.
TEMPLE is 18-8 ATS (+9.2 Units) in all lined games over the last 2 seasons.
TEMPLE is 13-3 ATS (+9.7 Units) after playing a conference game over the last 2 seasons.

Head-to-Head Series History
There were no past matchups in this series during this time period.

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Thursday, December 21

TEMPLE @ FLORIDA INTERNATIONAL
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Temple's last 5 games
Temple is 4-1 ATS in its last 5 games
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Florida International's last 6 games
Florida International is 8-3 SU in its last 11 games

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December 21

Temple (-7) vs Florida International. Bad Boy Mowers Gasparilla Bowl, St Petersburg

Temple won three of last four games; they’re 3-3 vs spread as a favorite, 5-0 in games with a single digit pointspread this year. Owls scored 34+ points in their last four wins. FIU allowed 37+ points in all four of its losses this year; they’re 7-0 when allowing less than 37 points. Panthers are 7-3 vs spread as an underdog this season, 4-1 in games with single digit spread. Temple lost bowls the last two years, giving up 32-34 points; they were favored in those games. FIU split its two bowls; this is their first once since 2011. Favorites are 3-2 vs spread in this bowl the last five years, with an average total of 46.4. AAC non-conference favorites are 9-5 vs spread this season; C-USA underdogs are 8-23. Last two years, AAC teams are 7-2 vs spread when playing a C-USA opponent.

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Florida International (+7) vs. Temple

This line for the Gasparilla Bowl opened +8 and was quickly bet down to +7 before it even opened at some other major sportsbooks. Play it now before it dips below this key number. Florida International will be excited for this game after a 4-8 SU season last year. It is the Panthers' first bowl game in six years. They were a solid 8-4 SU this year and finished the regular season with back-to-back wins in which they scored 104 points combined on offense.

Temple will be less excited for this game after a mediocre 6-6 SU regular season. The Owls were 10-3 SU last year before losing their bowl game as a 12-point favorite. Temple was also 10-3 SU in the 2015 regular season when they lost by 15 points as a 2.5-point bowl favorite. The Owls were a weak offensive team this season, averaging just 24.8 points per game on 5.5 yards per play (versus opponents that allow 28.6 ppg and 6.1 yppl)

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.Thursday, December 21

Temple @ FIU

Game 215-216
December 21, 2017 @ 8:00 pm

Dunkel Rating:
Temple
81.975
FIU
76.899
Dunkel Team:
Dunkel Line:
Dunkel Total:
Temple
by 5
62
Vegas Team:
Vegas Line:
Vegas Total:
Temple
by 7 1/2
56
Dunkel Pick:
FIU
(+7 1/2); Over

[StarDust Bum]

2017 CFB Bowls Record:..............( BASED ON 5 UNITS )

DATE W-L-T % UNITS RECORD

12/20/2017 2-0-0 100.00% +10.00
12/19/2017 0-2-0 0.00% -11.00
12/16/2017 5-5-0 50.00% - 2.50

Totals...............7 - 7.........50.00%.....-3.50


Best Bets:..............ATS...............Units........ ..... .....O/U..................Units

12/20/2017....................1 - 0.................+5.00................1 - 0................+5.00
12/19/2017....................0 - 1.................- 5.50................0 - 1.................-5.50
12/16/2017....................3 - 2................+11.00...............2 - 3.................-6.50

Totals.............................4 - 3................+ 10.50..............3 - 4.................-7.00