Free ACADEMY SPORTS + OUTDOORS TEXAS BOWL Prediction: Longhorns vs Tigers Odds
Looking forTexas Longhorns vs. Missouri Tigers free picks? ACADEMY SPORTS + OUTDOORS TEXAS BOWL betting sees the Longhorns taking on the Tigers Wednesday December 27th at NRG Stadium in Houston, Texas. Cappers Picks provides complimentary handicapping picks all NCAA football bowl season long so stay tuned for more FREE college football predictions like this Texas Missouri free pick.
College Football Handicapping: Texas Bowl
(6-6) Texas Longhorns vs. Missouri Tigers (7-5)
Date: Wednesday, December 27th
Time: 9:00 pm EST
Venue: NRG Stadium, Houston, Texas
NCAA Football Spread: MIZZ -3
NCAA Betting Total: 60
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It’s been a long road back for the once-proud Texas Longhorns football program, and at 6-6, it seems the journey is not yet complete. They will “lock horns” with an old Big 12 Conference rival in the Mizzou Tigers, off their own seven-win campaign in the permanently tricky SEC.
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These programs are pretty evenly matched, which makes this one a tough one to call. Missouri features the much stronger offensive attack, while Texas has the superior defense. It’s a classic case of what-beats-what in the House that J.J. Watt Built (sorry, I meant the Houston Texans’ home of NRG Stadium) and should raise pulses with two passionate fan bases, and in doing so, get people’s blood moving again after a Christmas feast.
Texas Longhorns
Texas will likely be missing a major component of its team’s identity with LB Malik Jefferson listed as doubtful with a turf toe ailment. Jefferson simply led the Horns 110 tackles – 10 TFLs – and four sacks. He’s usually all over the field, so the defense must rally around his absence if he is unable to go.
Elsewhere, the offense is still a work in progress under first year offensive guru head coach Tom Herman, as this bowl game is a Homecoming of sorts for him, as he formerly coached the Houston Cougars. The largest chunk of Texas’s limited offensive production in 2017 has been forged by freshman QB Sam Ehlinger, an Austin native that has secured the starting job with 1,803 passing yards, 10 pass TDs as well as 368 rushing yards and a couple of majors on the ground.
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If others among Texas’s ample recruited talent step up on defense and Ehlinger is giving the Missouri defense fits, you have to like the Longhorns’ chances in this bowl game.
Missouri Tigers
The Tigers of ‘Mizzou’ feature an explosive passing attack they hope will terrorize the Longhorns secondary on December 27th. The straw that stirs the drink is junior QB Drew Lock, who put up a beastly 3,695 passing yards and 43 TDs to just 12 picks. The pocket passer has 70 pass TDs in his first three seasons in Columbia, so it’s not this guy’s first rodeo in the college game. At 6’4 225 lbs, he certainly has the look of a successful passer in the NFL.
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Lock has definitely elevated some players around him this year. Still, there’s talent in the black and gold on its own merit too. Four Missouri rushers are averaging nearly six yards per carry, with the leaders being Ish Witter (992 yards, five TDs) and Larry Rountree III (629 yards, six TDs). Catching the ball, senior (and Texas native) J’Mon Moore has had a great year, with 60 receptions, 1,017 yards and 10 trips to the Promised Land. Freshman TE Albert Okwuegbunam is a hot red-zone target, with only 25 grabs but 11 majors in 2017.
Interestingly, the Tigers had an uncannily streaky year during the regular season, with one win followed by five straight losses followed up by six wins in a row. The late surge was enough to earn head coach Barry Odom a two-year extension in Columbia.
Free Texas Bowl NCAA Football Pick
It’s true that the Longhorns have the talent on their roster to put up an eye-catching performance any time they take the field. However, consistency has been a problem for the ‘Horns, and has been for some time now. That said, it’s tough to not pick the Tigers, who feature their veteran QB and a proven arsenal.
4* Free NCAA Betting Pick: Missouri -7.
If Ehlinger can start doing some athletic things and confounding that pedestrian Missouri defense, then Texas looks good to grab the bowl win in its home state. Yet, I think the smart money is with Drew Lock and the Tigers’ offense that is not only high-flying, but in excellent form of late. Either way, expect a compelling match-up in the 2017 Texas Bowl in Houston.
Texas Bowl Free Score Prediction: Missouri 42 – Texas 31
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