The 9-3 Pittsburgh Panthers will travel to El Paso, Texas to take on the 8-4 Oregon State Beavers in the 2008 Sun Bowl, which will be played on New Year’s Eve Day.
Our team of writers and handicappers break down the matchup and hand out a Sun Bowl Free Pick, which takes place Wednesday December 31 at 2:00PM ET.
Oddsmakers from online sports book Sports Interaction have made Oregon State -3 point spread favorite. The over/under for this game has been set 52 total points.
Top Public Betting Trend: Pittsburgh is 4-1 against the spread in its last five games, but Oregon State is an impressive 8-2 against the number in its last 10 contests.
Key Stat: The Beavers average 32.8 points per game this year and 253.7 passing yards per game. They’ve also been solid against the pass this year defensively, holding opponents to 188.6 YPG.
Game Outlook: Both of these teams have had solid seasons, although Oregon State blew an opportunity to play in the Rose Bowl this year by losing to Oregon in their regular season finale. Still, the Beavers have been outstanding versus the number this season, compiling an 8-4 mark. Pitt might be 4-1 in their last five games against the spread, but the Panthers are also an inconsistent 6-6 on the season despite posting a 9-3 record. The key will be whether or not the Panthers can throw the ball to win, because Oregon State’s pass defense has been outstanding this season. If Pitt falls behind, can their passing offense lead them back? The Beavers will likely pound the ball on the ground in efforts to open up the play action pass and then take their chances down field. If they get a comfortable lead early in this one, watch Oregon State to force Pitt into some mistakes and take advantage of costly turnovers. This looks like a close matchup on paper, but we give the nod to the Beavers to cover the 3-point spread. For the rest of our College Football Bowl Free Pick, see below.
Our Free College Football Bowl Pick for the Sun Bowl matchup between the Oregon State Beavers and Pittsburgh Panthers game is
OREGON STATE BEAVERS -3
TheSpread.com Projected Final Score
Oregon State Beavers 30
Pittsburgh Panthers 24
We also predict that this game will GO OVER THE TOTAL (52 Sports Interaction.com) SET BY ODDSMAKERS
What a snooze fest this game turned out to be. 😛