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Rice Owls vs Air Force Falcons Free Gambling Prediction & Bell Armed Forces Bowl Preview

Owls vs Falcons College Football Spread/Handicapping

Owls vs Falcons College Football Spread/Handicapping

Typical of early bowl matchups there is not much to get excited for in this one.  I am always a big fan of the service academies as I love seeing those triple option attacks pound against opponents, there might not be much else to entertain though.

Rice Owls (6-6) vs Air Force Falcons (6-6)
Saturday December 29
Amon G. Carter Stadium – Fort Worth, TX
11:45AM
Moneyline:  No ML currently posted SportsBettingOnline.ag
Spread:  Rice -1
O/U:  59

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Rice

The Owls had to finish very strong to earn a bowl spot this season.  They won 5 of their last 6 games to qualify, ultimately placing 4th in the Conference USA West division.  The lone loss was to eventual conference champion Tulsa and the the way they were playing they probably didn’t want the season to end.  At least they won’t have too far to travel for their fans to cheer them on…Key to the Owls success of late was tightening up their defense.  

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The averages don’t reflect it because they were hammered early in the year but in their late season run they gave up more than 24 points in just one victory.  Offensively this team is very balanced averaging more than 200 yards on the ground and through the air.  Junior QB Taylor McHargue is not a fantastic thrower but he does protect the ball and can be a running threat when pressured…I am surprised that Rice was installed as the slim favourite in this one.  They have been favoured 4 times this season and are just 2-2 in those contests.  I guess the linesmakers feel they have an advantage of being in-state but betting against a service academy in the Armed Forces Bowl doesn’t sound right to me.

Air Force

This will mark the 4th time in the last 6 years the Falcons will play in this bowl game – they won the last one in 2009 against Houston. [soliloquy id=”82219″]

Air Force had a disappointing season with their most regular season losses since 2006.  The only real head scratcher though was the one at UNLV who they usually dominate.  AF finished just behind the leaders in the Mountain West with a 5-3 conference record…The Falcons are as committed to the run game as ever, finishing #2 in the nation with 329ypg.  Running back Cody Getz was second string heading into the season but wouldn’t be denied.  He is small (5’7”) but durable carrying almost 200 times for more than 1200 yards.  No need to cover him though as he caught just two balls for 1 yard over the course of the season.  For the second year in a row the defense struggled giving up 28ppg, something they hadn’t done in 5 years before last…Air Force was an awful 3-9 ATS this season but with a -1 in this one you can throw that figure out.  I like them to overwhelm the Owls with their running game. Coach Calhoun will get them to play 4Q of defense and they should win easily.

Spread Pick:  Air Force +1
O/U Pick:  Under
Score Prediction:  Air Force 35 – Rice 17

By The Wiesguy

The Wiesguy is a newcomer to the handicapping scene. Hailing from Toronto, Canada he is always sweet on the underdogs and you can often find his thoughts, musings and picks at moneydogs.blogspot.com.