Two teams with massive fanbases will invade Sin City on New Year’s Eve for the Las Vegas Bowl.
Nebraska (7-5, 4-5) will be a bit disappointed with how its season shook out after a positive start, while Utah (10-2, 7-2) will play its first game without Kyle Whittingham wearing headseat since 2005.
The Utes are a two-score favorite on Wednesday evening.
Nebraska vs. Utah odds, prediction
As with plenty of bowl games these days, this one is about who isn’t in Vegas rather than who is in town. Whittingham, who was in charge at Utah from 2005 until last week, was always meant to leave the program after this campaign, but the fact that he did so to take the Michigan job rather than retire was a stunner.
His replacement, Morgan Scalley, was named “head-coach-in-waiting” in 2024 and will begin his tenure with the Las Vegas Bowl. Scalley has been on the staff at Utah for ages, so there is no lack of familiarity between the new boss and his charges.
As for Nebraska, the biggest news is that quarterback Dylan Raiola will not suit up for the Las Vegas Bowl. Raiola is expected to be a hot commodity in the transfer portal. The Cornhuskers will also be without star running back Emmett Johnson, who is entering the NFL Draft after a monster campaign.
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Utah will have its star quarterback, Devon Dampier, under center as he looks to make a final impression on NFL scouts.
With Raiola and Johnson out of the picture, it’s no wonder that this line has ballooned to Utah -15, but that’s just too many points to lay in a game with this many moving parts.
Instead, bettors can focus on the Over/Under, which looks to be a little lofty considering what Nebraska will try to do to win this game. Without Raiola, Matt Rhule and his staff will likely want to tone down the playbook and try to slow this contest down when they have the ball.
With one side of the matchup trying to keep things close to the vest, and the other playing under a new head coach, I find it hard to believe that we’ll see this game soar past 51 points.
The Play: Under 51.5 (-115, bet365)
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Michael Leboff is a long-suffering Islanders fan, but a long-profiting sports bettor with 10 years of experience in the gambling industry. He loves using game theory to help punters win bracket pools, find long shots, and learn how to beat the market in mainstream and niche sports.
