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Free Pick: Washington vs. Oklahoma St. Cactus Bowl Betting Odds & Preview

2015 Cactus Bowl: Huskies vs Cowboys Odds

The TicketCity Holiday Bowl Bowl betting action sees the Washington Huskies taking on the Oklahoma State Cowboys on Friday, January 2nd at Sun Devil Stadium in Tempe. Cappers Picks provides free NCAA football handicapping tips all season long.

Washington and Oklahoma State both capped off their regular seasons with huge wins over each team’s in-state nemesis.

College Football Lines

2015 Cactus Bowl
Washington (8-5, 4-5 Pac-12) @ Oklahoma State (6-6, 4-5 Big 12)
Friday, January 2nd 7:15 PM ET @ Sun Devil Stadium – Tempe
NCAA Football Spread: Washington -6
NCAA Football O/U: 56.5
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The Huskies dropped the Cougars 31-13 while Oklahoma State upset Oklahoma in OT to become bowl eligible.

It’s been quite a year for Chris Peterson as his first season at the helm of the Huskies. Despite some tumbles along the way, the team managed to get bowl eligible a game early and they were able to get the extra practices vital to helping a new coach learn about his backup players.

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For Oklahoma State, it’s been a season to forget mostly. Despite becoming bowl eligible, the Cowboys were disappointed with their finish. A strong conference made it difficult for the Cowboys, who will also be without their young star Tyreek Hill, who was dismissed from the team a couple weeks ago.

Washington

The heart of the Huskies success this year has come from the team’s defensive efforts. Second in the nation in sacks, the Huskies boast three First Team All-Americans in Hau’oli Kikaha, Danny Shelton and Shaq Thompson.

On the year, Kikaha finished with 18 sacks and 24 tackles for loss, both tops in college football this season. He also had 67 tackles, 2 forced fumbles and a fumble recovery. Shelton finished with 89 tackles, 9 sacks, 16.5 tackles for loss and 4 fumble recoveries.

Thompson’s stat line is a little different. Playing linebacker, he amassed 71 tackles, 2 tackles for loss, 1 sack, 1 interception, 5 passes defended, 3 forced fumbles, 4 fumble recoveries and FOUR defensive touchdowns. On offense, Thompson ran the ball 61 times for 456 yards and 2 scores as well. This versatility earned him the 2014 Paul Hornung award, given to the most versatile player in college football.

On offense, Cyler Miles did a pretty good job overall in his first year as starter. He completed 194 of 291 passes for 2,129 yards, 16 touchdowns and 3 interceptions. He also ran the ball 109 times for 280 yards and 4 rushing touchdowns.

Miles’ biggest target this season was Jaydon Mickens, who caught 53 passes for 535 yards and 3 touchdowns.

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Joining Thompson in the run game are Dwayne Washington and Lavon Coleman. Washington has 119 carries on the year for 655 yards and 9 scores while Coleman ran the ball 138 times for 565 yards and 1 touchdown.

Oklahoma State

The Cowboys are looking to capitalize on the momentum from their huge win over Oklahoma and turn the tables on the Huskies in this game. They are going to need starting quarterback Daxx Garman to step it up big time in order to do so.

On the year, Garman is 152 of 177 passing for 2,041 yards, 12 touchdowns and 12 interceptions. His biggest target this season has been the combo of Brandon Sheperd and David Glidden. On the year, Sheperd has 34 receptions for 639 yards and 4 scores. Glidden has racked up 40 catches for 568 yards and 2 scores.

On the ground, the team was going with the 2-headed monster of Desmond Roland and Tyreek Hill. On the season, Roland has rushed the ball 171 times for 647 yards and 10 touchdowns. Hill, before his dismissal from the team, had 102 carries for 534 yards and 1 touchdown.

Despite the record, the Cowboy defense has been pretty good this season.

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As a team, Oklahoma State has racked up 89 tackles for loss, 31 sacks, 11 interceptions, SIX blocked kicks, 8 forced fumbles and a fumble recovery.

NCAA football handicapping trends

  •  Huskies are 4-1 ATS in their last 5 games overall
  •  Huskies are 1-3-1 ATS in their last 5 vs. Big 12
  •  Cowboys are 2-5 ATS in their last 7 games overall
  •  Cowboys are 2-7 ATS vs. a team with a winning record
  •  Cowboys are 2-7 ATS vs. a team with a winning record

Cactus Bowl Prediction

The defenses on both Washington and Oklahoma State alone have to make a football fan excited to watch this one. In years past, I would have called this a shootout of sorts. This season, it could be a defensive battle.

Oklahoma State has to rely on getting the ball out quickly before the pass rushers of Washington can get to them. The Cowboy offensive line this season has struggled and the Huskies need to capitalize on that.

4* Free NCAA Betting Pick: Huskies -6

This will be a lower score game than predicted and you COULD take the under.

Final Cactus Bowl Score: Washington 24 – Oklahoma State 14

But I’m going to stay confident and say the Huskies will not only win this, but will cover the spread as well.

Check out our Updated College Football Bowl Game Odds.

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By Brandon Banks

Brandon Banks is a newcomer to the Cappers Picks Blog, he has been a sports writer for a few years now. He's been a very successful bettor, especially in NFL, College football & NCAA hoops betting. Reasons for success - not affiliated with any SCAMDICAPPERS. Stay tuned to Brandon, he'll be picking NFL, CFB, CBB and NBA games daily here on the blog.