“Bear Bets” are real wagers that Chris “The Bear” Fallica is actually making.
College football bowl season is here!
Just like we’ve done all year, we have our weekly picks posts and gambling show.
As always, I look forward to sharing my best football bets and gambling nuggets (Bear Bytes) with you.
So if you are looking to throw a few bucks down on the big games, I’ve got you covered.
Let’s have some fun and, hopefully, make some money.
Here are my favorite wagers so far for this bowl season.
Record
Last Week: 2-1
Season: 50-35-2
(All times ET)
No. 12 Clemson @ No. 5 Texas (4 p.m., Dec. 21, TNT)
It’s simple, but Clemson scored three on Georgia and 14 at home against South Carolina. Now, the Tigers have to face another SEC defense — one that’s arguably the best in the country — on that team’s home field? Clemson isn’t going to be able to run here, and I’d be very surprised if the Tigers hit 20 points.
PICK: Clemson team total Under 19.5 points scored
Should the Longhorns play Arch Manning in the CFP?
No. 9 Tennessee @ No. 8 Ohio State (8 p.m., Dec. 21, ABC)
All I’ve heard for two weeks is “Tennessee moneyline; Tennessee plus the points.” Yet the number hasn’t budged from 7.5. This feels a lot like the situation prior to the Georgia game when the number looked high and money came in on the ‘dog, but the number didn’t reflect it. We saw what happened that night in Athens. The fact the number has stayed north of 7 tells me the books are quite comfortable with the Tennessee exposure. There’s a recency bias here at play because of what we last saw from Ohio State against Michigan. Much like we saw with the Eagles in the NFL against the Steelers, expect to see the WR be a much bigger part of the game. That’s the way to attack Tennessee because the Vols do have an advantage with their DL against the Ohio State OL. Look, too, at how the Vols have fared in true road games. And no, I am not considering a game in Nashville against Vandy as a true road game. Those stats are 330 yards per game, 4.7 yards per play and 56 total points at Arkansas, Georgia and Oklahoma. Nico Iamaleava threw for 519 yards in those games. This is still an Ohio State defense that has been lights out since the Oregon loss and a scheme change. Could Will Howard implode under pressure if the OL doesn’t hold up? Sure. But I think we’re going to get a Penn State– or Indiana-type performance from the Buckeyes on Saturday.
PICK: Ohio State (-7.5) to win by more than 7.5 points
How will Ryan Day, Ohio State approach the game plan vs. Tennessee?
Oklahoma vs. Navy (noon, Dec. 27, ESPN)
I don’t know why Oklahoma is a 7-point favorite here. The Sooners have been gutted by the portal, and I have a hard time seeing the motivation here. They’re coming off a disappointing season and are now facing a service academy that will be highly motivated to follow up its blowout win over Army with another scalp against an SEC team. Blake Horvath is now healthy, and we’ve clearly seen how that has an effect on the Midshipmen offense. The highlight of the Sooners’ season was clearly the win over Bama, and I also have a feeling that the OU season essentially ended that night as well. Could one be so bold as to play Navy on the ML, but maybe on an alt line here?
PICK: Navy (+7) to lose by fewer than 7 points, or win outright
Chris “The Bear” Fallica has covered sports for nearly three decades. While college football has been his focus, he also enjoys the NFL, Soccer, Golf, Tennis, MLB, NHL and Horse Racing, with an “occasional” wager on such events. Chris recently won the inaugural Circa Football Invitational and finished in the Top 10 of the Golden Nugget Football Contest. He’s a multiple-time qualifier for the NHC Handicapping Championship. Remember, “The less you bet, the more you lose when you win!” Follow him on Twitter @chrisfallica.
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