College Football Same Game Parlays: Bowl Games (Friday)
College football bowl season continues on Friday with a wall-to-wall schedule featuring three games. This stacked slate offers us a myriad of ways to get some skin in the game. Below, I've crafted a couple of college football same game parlays (SGPs) for Friday's slate, each of which comes with a payout of at least +294 odds. Here are my top SGPs for the GameAbove Sports Bowl and the Rate Bowl.
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Friday's Best College Football Same Game Parlays
(Odds courtesy of DraftKings Sportsbook)
GameAbove Sports Bowl Same-Game Parlay: Central Michigan vs. Northwestern
Leg 1: Northwestern -10.5 (-108)
At first, I thought the correct move in this game would be to take the points with Central Michigan. The Chippewas are much better in turnover margin per game (+0.7 vs. -0.4), and they'll also welcome back quarterback Angel Flores, which gives their offense a whole different dynamic.
However, upon further review, I believe Central Michigan is very overrated. They haven't beaten one team with a .500+ winning percentage this season. According to Pro Football Focus' (PFF) strength of schedule metric, the Chippewas are 114th in the nation. The Wildcats are 18th, and they still managed to rattle off a seven-win season. Coach David Braun is still in his infancy as the head coach in Evanston, so winning bowl games should still be a top priority. Ultimately, Northwestern is the more physical, battle-tested team. They'll welcome back top running back Caleb Komolafe (866 yards, 10 touchdowns), and he should run wild against an inferior opponent from the MAC.
Leg 2: Under 43.5 Points (-115)
Speaking of running wild, these programs rely heavily on the rushing attack. Central Michigan runs the ball on 66.5% of plays (fifth), while Northwestern does so on 54% of plays (51st). The teams are 125th in number of offensive plays per game (61.7) and 102nd (64.1), respectively.
I really don't see Central Michigan moving the ball much in this game. Their downfield passing attack is sparse (119th in passing yards per game with 166.2), so Northwestern should be able to stack the box and focus on stopping the run. I think we can thread the needle with this SGP, seeing the Wildcats cruise to a win while still also staying under the total. I'll predict a 31-10 final in favor of Northwestern.
Parlay Odds: +294
Rate Bowl Same-Game Parlay: New Mexico vs. Minnesota
Leg 1: New Mexico Moneyline (+102)
I'm backing the Lobos to pull off the upset as slim +102 Moneyline underdogs. New Mexico closed out the season on a six-game winning streak, outscoring the opposition by an average of 26.7 points to 18 points. It's safe to say they're in excellent form. Additionally, they've proven that they can punch up in weight by taking down UCLA (35-10), while also hanging around and covering (+34.5) against a decent Michigan (34-17) squad earlier in the season.
Leg 2: Under 42.5 Points (-105)
Additionally, I don't have any faith in Minnesota's offense to take care of business on Friday afternoon. The Golden Gophers finished the regular campaign ranked 99th in scoring (23.3 points per game), 119th in yards per play (five) and 129th in rushing yards per game (103.1). Minnesota was ranked outside of the top 110 in both yards per pass play (126th, 10) and yards per rushing play (114th, 3.6).
From a trends perspective, the under has cashed in five of New Mexico's last six games. As you saw above, their defense is only conceding 18 points per game during its current six-game heater. There's a very good chance they stonewall this lousy Minnesota offense. I'm taking the under as well.
Leg 3: First-Quarter Under 9.5 Points (-110)
For the third leg of this parlay, I'll toss in the first quarter under of 9.5 points. Minnesota was dead last out of 136 teams in offensive points per first quarter (0.9) this season. New Mexico wasn't much better, coming in at 104th (4.1). The Lobos will have their hands full against a gritty Gophers defense that only allowed 23.4 points per game during the regular season. I think we fall short of 10 points in the first quarter.
Parlay Odds: +633