By now, BetOnline customers know that Alabama and Georgia will be playing in the national championship game. But you are not through with college bowl game betting yet. Or perhaps more accurately, college bowl game betting is not done with YOU.
On Tuesday night, the LSU Tigers, like ‘Bama and Georgia, a member of the SEC, oppose the Kansas State Wildcats. It’s the Texas Bowl, kicking off at 9 PM ET at NRG Stadium in Houston. With a $6.4 million payout, it’s pretty lucrative. It will be televised by ESPN.
LSU transitioning to Kelly
LSU is in the kind of situation the NCAA has enabled for years. It’s one where the team has lost a head coach, then hired a new one, but has yet another coach for the bowl game.
In this particular instance, Ed Orgeron, wholed the program to a national title two seasons ago, is gone. And we should mention that he knew he was not going to be kept well in advance of this. Brian Kelly was snatched away from Notre Dame with a ten-year contract. That will leave the Bayou Bengals with offensive line coach Brad Davis as the interim coach. Davis is also being retained on Kelly’s staff, which is good news.
With a new coach and a new approach brings some departures, and there have to be a lot of players who are wondering how they are going to fit in. Kelly is busy filling out his staff, which is happening rather quickly. Between that and recruiting activities, it is unclear how much “indirect” influence he’s going to have on this game plan.
Who will be LSU’s quarterback? Good question.
Max Johnson, who actually had some pretty good numbers (2814 yards, 27 TD’s, 6 INT’s) is transferring. They don’t have Myles Brennan available (injury), and there has been an issue with backup QB Garrett Nussmeier. In the NCAA, you can play up to four games as a freshman and still redshirt. Mussmeier did that this season, but the school field for a waiver so he could preserve the redshirt.
They have been quiet about it,but he is #1 on the depth chart. If he doesn’t get to play, the options are slim. They would go with a walk-on, Matt O’Dowd, or wide receiver Jontre Kirklin, who they would convert back to QB (he did that in high school).
LSU Tigers vs. Kansas State Wildcats Texas Bowl
At BetOnline, these are the latest Texas Bowl betting odds, with Kansas State getting a lot of support:
| Team | SP/RL | TOTAL | ML | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| LSU | +4½ ( -110 ) | 47½ ( -110 ) | +160 |  |
| Kansas State | -4½ ( -110 ) | 47½ ( -110 ) | -185 | |
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A new bowl tradition – listing the opt-outs
There are some notable players on the LSU side who are opting out of this game.
Linebacker Damone Clark, a Butkus Award finalist, and defensive lineman Neil Farrell have decided to skip the festivities.
Running back Tyrion Davis-Price (1004 yards, 4.8 ypc) won’t be with the Tigers either. The next player on the rushing stats list is Corey Kiner with 271. So they may have their work cut out for them against a KS squad that is allowing just 3.8 yards per carry.
K-State – NO opt-outs!
Well, at least none that we are aware of. All the seniors want to play together one last time. And that is indicative, perhaps, of a different culture around this program than the LSU program.
Quarterback Skylar Thompson was suffering from an ankle injury, but he’s come around and is expected to play. No one should expect an aerial circus from the sixth-year senior. But he takes care of the ball (only 4 INT’s), and has completed almost 69%. And his leadership is valuable. That’s a stark contrast to whoever LSU will have behind center.
Texas Bowl Conclusion
There is more stability in the K-State program right now. That much should be evident. And it won;t be difficult for Chris Klieman’s team to hit the emotional high notes.
LSU has more depth in terms of its talent. But with the absences of key people, maybe that doesn’t apply at the skill positions of QB and RB.
Kansas State is patient and willing to grind it out, and that is the way they prefer to play. LSU may have to do that by necessity. And whether they insist they’re “excited” or not, there can’t help but be a little confusion at this very moment.
So we’re siding with motivated and disciplined Kansas State.
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