Syracuse vs. Washington State Prediction & Picks Tonight: Holiday Bowl Odds
Thanks to Washington State's current state of affairs, there has been tons of line movement for tonight's Holiday Bowl. With a new head coach, two new coordinators, and two new skill-position coaches, they enter the contest as the 17-point underdogs against Syracuse.
The Orange finished strong, winning seven of their last nine and three straight, while the Cougars lost their previous three. Tonight's Holiday Bowl takes place at Snapdragon Stadium in San Diego (8 p.m. ET, FOX).
Our Syracuse vs. Washington State prediction, part of our college bowl game predictions, agrees with the line movement and backs the Orange to win big.
Our college football bowl game opt-out tracker has you covered with the latest opt-out news and the impact on the college bowl game odds.
Syracuse vs. Washington State updated betting info
Syracuse opened as 6.5-point favorites at BetMGM, but the line has moved seismically in their favor, increasing to 17 points hours before kickoff.
A staggering 94% of the handles and 79% of the bets are on the Orange to live up to their status as prohibitive favorites. The Over/Under has dropped from 61.5 to 59.5, and Washington State's moneyline odds lengthened from +185 to +550.
Syracuse vs. Washington State prediction & best pick: Holiday Bowl
College football picks based on the odds from our best college football betting sites. Odds subject to change.
- Against the spread pick: Syracuse -16.5 (-110 via BetMGM) vs. Washington State ⭐⭐⭐
- My best pick: Kyle McCord Over 2.5 passing touchdowns (+115 via bet365) ⭐⭐⭐
Syracuse vs. Washington State ATS prediction
Syracuse to cover the spread: -16.5 ⭐⭐⭐
Best odds: -110 via BetMGM | Implied probability: 52.38%
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Who is left to coach the Cougars?
Opt-outs and the transfer portal significantly impacted several teams. However, Washington State needs to deal with not only player turnover, but a mass exodus from the coaching staff.
The departure of head coach Jake Dickert (left for Wake Forest) heavily impacted the Cougars’ preparation for this bowl game. There were also vacancies after the team's offensive and defensive coordinator and running backs coaches left.
Washington State figured to be one of the few teams in the country that could keep up with Syracuse’s dynamic passing attack, as John Mateer passed for 3,139 yards and 29 touchdowns.
However, Mateer has since committed to Oklahoma, leaving the Cougars without their top signal-caller.
Syracuse is setting offensive records
Syracuse scored 42 points in its regular-season finale upset of Miami, knocking the Hurricanes out of the College Football Playoff picture.
The Orange had been averaging 31.7 points prior to that game, which would have ranked eighth on the school’s single-season record list.
Quarterback Kyle McCord already entered that game as the school’s single-season leader in passing yards. His 470 yards against UConn were the second-most during a game in school history.
The Orange should dominate time of possession
Syracuse lost the time of possession battle by more than two minutes in its upset of Miami. But the Orange ranked third in the country in time of possession entering that game, with more than 34 minutes of possession per outing.
Washington State’s offense is heavily compromised without Mateer, so the time of possession advantage should be even more magnified in this game.
Caesars is juicing this prop as high as -115 to back the favorites at -16.5. We're taking advantage of the best number at BetMGM for one of your college bowl game predictions this week.
Syracuse vs. Washington State best pick
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Kyle McCord Over 2.5 passing touchdowns ⭐⭐⭐
Best odds: +115 via bet365 | Implied probability: 46.51%
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Syracuse asked a lot of McCord this year, as he dropped back over 600 times and produced 29 touchdowns.
He was set for a tough matchup on paper against a Washington State secondary that ranked in the top 35 in PFF’s coverage grade.
However, the Cougars lost 10 starters to the portal, including cornerbacks Ethan O’Connor and Stephen Hall, starting safety Adrian Wilson, and another safety in Jackson Lataimua who played 400 snaps.
The Orange were already going to be a handful to deal with, as they're the only FBS team with at least three players averaging 67-plus receiving yards this season. But now we may not see Syracuse’s punter at all in this game as the team feasts on a decimated Cougars defense.
The only time McCord threw for three-plus touchdowns in his previous seven games was during the passer's last matchup against Miami. But it's worth a flier at plus-money odds through one of our best sportsbooks to back him to do so again. A $10 winning wager would pay out $21.50.
Syracuse vs. Washington odds
See all of this week's college football odds and NCAAF scores.
Syracuse vs. Washington State live odds
Syracuse vs. Washington State opening odds:
- Syracuse: -6.5 (-110 via BetMGM)
- Washington State: +6.5 (-110 via BetMGM)
Syracuse vs. Washington injuries
Holiday Bowl game info
- When: Friday, Dec. 27
- Kickoff: 8 p.m. ET
- Where: Snapdragon Stadium (San Diego, Calif.)
- How to watch: FOX
- Weather: 62 degrees, 1% chance of precipitation, wind 7-mph WNW
- Favorite: Syracuse -16.5 (-110 via BetMGM)
College football betting odds pages
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- Caesars Promo Code: SBRBONUSDYW | Read our Caesars Review
- BetMGM Bonus Code: SBRBONUS | Read our BetMGM Review
- bet365 Bonus Code: SBRBONUS | Read our bet365 Review
- FanDuel Promo Code | Read our FanDuel Review
- DraftKings Promo Code | Read our DraftKings Review
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