College Bowl Picks 2023-24: Recent Odds and Predictions Against the Spread
The Jacksonville State Gamecocks and James Madison Dukes are two of the hungriest teams to prove a point during college football bowl season. Jacksonville State and James Madison both recorded the requisite number of six wins to qualify for a bowl, but they had to wait to earn bowl berths because they were ineligible for automatic qualification due to their transition from the FCS to the FBS. The Gamecocks and Dukes got into their respective bowl games because there were not enough six-win teams to fill the 82 bowl positions.
Jacksonville State gets to showcase its team first on the bowl schedule, as it plays the Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns in the New Orleans Bowl on December 16. James Madison takes on the Air Force Falcons in the Armed Forces Bowl on December 23, and despite a coaching change, it is expected to have its best players on the field.
Jacksonville State (-3) vs. Louisiana
Saturday, December 16 (2:15 p.m. ET, ESPN)
Jacksonville State carries some of the most motivation into bowl season of the Group of Five participants. The Gamecocks went 8-4 in their first season in Conference USA, but had to wait until the final day of the regular season to learn their postseason fate. Head coach Rich Rodriguez built Jacksonville State into a strong FCS side and that skill showed off in its first FBS season. The Gamecocks did lose two of their last three games, but they were competitive with the South Carolina Gamecocks in a buy game and lost by three points to the New Mexico State Aggies, a C-USA title game participant. Quarterback Zion Webb recorded just under 2,000 total yards and he could hurt the Louisiana defense on countless occasions in the New Orleans Bowl. Louisiana allowed over 30 points in five of its six losses, three of which occurred over its final four games. The Ragin’ Cajuns beat the UL-Monroe WarHawks in their season finale to become bowl eligible, but that is not much of an achievement given ULM’s struggles this season. Jacksonville State was the more consistent team this season, owns more motivation and will not be affected by the transfer portal, like other successful Group of Five teams.
Air Force vs. James Madison (-3)
Saturday, December 23 (3:30 p.m. ET, ABC)
Most teams in James Madison’s position would not be looking forward to the bowl game. However, the Dukes appear to be keeping their core in tact for one more contest before key pieces go separate ways.