Dec. 22 College Football Betting Preview: More Army Success In Armed Forces Bowl?
Mizzou might have its hands full
Here?s a quick betting preview for the college football bowl game action on Wednesday, Dec. 22.
Armed Forces Bowl (8 p.m. ET) — Missouri vs. (-6.5) Army, 54
One storyline to watch: Run, run, run
It’s more than likely this game is won on the ground, as it pits two teams with impressive running attacks, although each side goes about it in a different way. Army’s preferred method of attack is obvious. The Black Knights have been running the triple-option offense pretty much forever. Only Air Force (ironically) attempted more rushing attempts per game than Army. Missouri, on the other hand, features a far more balanced (modern) offensive game plan, but one that did have success on the ground, ranking 35th nationally in yards per carry. However, a lot of that was thanks to senior running back Tyler Badie, who won’t play, which has to be part of the reason the line has gone from Army being favored by a field to more than a touchdown.
One trend to know: The service academies are 37-14 against the spread in bowl games since 1980 (Action Network)
Pick: Army -6.5
We’re very much on the wrong end of the line movement making this pick on the day of the game. Bettors who like Army hopefully got it when it was closer to a field goal. That being said, it wouldn’t be surprising to see the Black Knights completely dominate this game. There aren’t motivation concerns when the service academies head to bowl games, and playing in the Armed Forces Bowl should give Army even more reason to put forth a strong effort. The Knights are 3-0 in the Armed Forces Bowl, including a 70-14 rout of Houston in 2018. The bigger issue for Missouri might be its inability to stop the run. Only 15 teams in the nation allowed more yards per rush than the Tigers this season, so even knowing what Army wants to do might not make a difference.
