College Football: 2017 Cactus Bowl Odds And Prediction

PHOENIX, AZ – JANUARY 02: Cornerback Khairi Sharif #10 of the West Virginia Mountaineers celebrates with the Motel 6 Cactus Bowl trophy after defeating the Sun Devils at Chase Field on January 2, 2016 in Phoenix, Arizona. The Mountaineers defeated the Sun Devils 43-42. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images) /

2017 Cactus Bowl Odds And Prediction

I hope you got everything you wanted from the holiday season and survived all of the get togethers with your inlaws and outlaws alike. The last bowl of the day is the Cactus Bowl, which is shaping up to be a really interesting one.

More from College Football Odds

For the rest of the bowl season, you will get my picks against the spread and point wagers just like I did all season long. I had a solid regular season, but I can make it look a whole lot better with a strong bowl season!

Just in case you missed any:
R+L Carriers New Mexico Bowl
Autonation Cure Bowl
Las Vegas Bowl
Gildan New Mexico Bowl
Raycom Camellia Bowl
Cheribundi Tart Cherry Boca Raton Bowl
DXL Frisco Bowl
Bad Boy Mowers Gasparilla Bowl
Bahamas Bowl
Famous Idaho Potato Bowl
Birmingham Bowl
Lockheed Martin Armed Forces Bowl
Dollar General Bowl
Hawaii Bowl
Zaxby’s Heart Of Dallas Bowl
Quick Lane Bowl

PASADENA, CA – SEPTEMBER 09: Josh Rosen #3 of the UCLA Bruins sets to pass in the fourth quarter of the game against the Hawaii Warriors at the Rose Bowl on September 9, 2017 in Pasadena, California. (Photo by Jayne Kamin-Oncea/Getty Images) /

Kansas State(-6.5) vs. UCLA at Phoenix, AZ(3):

Kansas State 7-5, 5-4 (t-4th Big 12(10):

Wins: vs.Central Arkansas(55-19), vs. Charlotte(55-7), vs. Baylor(33-20), at Kansas(30-20), at Texas Tech(42-35), at (13)Oklahoma State(45-40), vs. Iowa State(20-19)

Losses: at Vanderbilt(7-14), at Texas(34-40), vs. (6)TCU(6-26), vs. (9)Oklahoma(35-42), vs. West Virginia(23-28)

Record vs. bowl teams: 3-4

Kansas State took off when injuries forced Skylar Thompson under center. He is more dynamic and more of a passer than Jesse Ertz. In the last two games, both against bowl bound teams, Thompson had just nine incompletions and did not throw an interception. However, Kansas State is not built on offense. They can at least keep up now, but this is a team that revolves around defense. Can they handle one of the best pro passers of this draft class?

UCLA 6-6, 4-5 (t-7th PAC 12):

Wins: vs. Texas A&M(45-44), vs. Hawaii(56-23), vs. Colorado(27-23), vs. Oregon(31-14), vs. Arizona State(44-37), vs. California(30-27)

Losses: at Memphis(45-48), at Stanford(34-58), at Arizona(30-47), at (12)Washington(23-44), at Utah(17-48), at (11)USC(23-28)

Record vs. bowl teams: 3-6

The huge 34 point comeback to beat A&M in the opener was supposed to be the start of a special final season for QB Josh Rosen. It was, but this defense was awful. UCLA allowed more than 40 points in half of their games! The only team they held under 23 was Oregon. There is a chance that Rosen comes back for his senior season, mostly because he doesn’t want to play for the Browns, but this defense improved later in the year. They only allowed 55 points over the last two games, and one of those was against USC.

Prediction:

Luckily for UCLA, they don’t have to face a prolific offense. Kansas State is a capable offense, but they aren’t going to turn any heads. This line is so heavily towards K-State because technically Rosen isn’t cleared to play yet. The consensus is that Rosen will play, and this is going to be quite a test for him. Kansas State only allowed more than 30 points three times, and it was to the Oklahoma teams and Texas. There is a good chance that UCLA is held below 30, which would be a problem for them

Pick: Kansas State

Next: 2017 Capital One Bowl Mania Picks

Stay tuned for the rest of the bowl picks against the spread, and our DFS picks for the NBA, NFL, and even some NHL action! We have something for everyone