TaxSlayer Bowl Odds

Taking over for the Gator Bowl, the first TaxSlayer Bowl invades the college gridiron on January 2 with the Iowa Hawkeyes facing the Tennessee Volunteers.

The Hawkeyes have lost their last two bowl games, including falling to LSU 21-14 in last year’s Outback Bowl as an 8-point underdog. Despite back-to-back SU losses Iowa is a healthy 5-1 ATS in their last six bowl games.

Tennessee hasn’t appeared in a bowl game since 2010 when they lost to North Carolina 30-27 in double overtime as a 1-point underdog in the Music City Bowl.

For updated lines and totals on all of this year's bowl games head over to the college football betting boards at Sportsbook and Sportsbook today.

TaxSlayer Bowl
Friday, January 2 @ 3:20pm ET
Everbank Field, Jacksonville, Florida

Team: Iowa Hawkeyes
Conference: Big Ten
Records: 7-5 SU, 6-6 ATS, 6-5-1 OU

Team: Tennessee Volunteers
Conference: Southeast
Records: 6-6 SU, 6-6 ATS, 5-6 OU

Sportsbook Spread / Total (from Sportsbook)
Tennessee -3.5 / 51.5 Points

TaxSlayer Bowl Betting Trends: UNDER is 5-1-1 past seven Gator Bowls . . . Iowa 5-1 ATS past six bowl games . . . Tennessee is 3-10 SU in bowl games since 2000

Iowa stumbled to the finish line of the regular season, dropping their last two games. In their season finale the Hawkeyes were a 1-point home favorite and lost to Nebraska 37-34. After a 5-1 start to the season, during which they were 3-3 ATS, Iowa went 2-4 SU and 3-3 ATS the rest of the way.

Tennessee earned their bowl invite by winning three of their last four games. That included a 24-17 win over Vanderbilt as a 15-point road favorite in their last game. The final score fell UNDER the posted total in that game, snapping a four-game OVER streak for the Volunteers. In seven games as the favorite this season Tennessee was 5-2 SU and 3-4 ATS.

Tennessee has appeared in the Gator Bowl five times over the years, but the last time was two decades ago in 1994. The Vols defeated Virginia Tech in that game and posted a 3-2 record SU in their five Gator Bowl appearances.

TaxSlayer Bowl History
YearBowlTeamScoreTeamScoreSpreadATS SportsbookSU Sportsbook
1995Gator BowlSyracuse41Clemson0-2SYRACUSYRACU
1996Gator BowlNorth Carolina20West Virginia13+6UNCUNC
1997Gator BowlVirginia Tech3North Carolina42-9UNCUNC
1998Gator BowlGeorgia Tech35Notre Dame28+2.5GATECHGATECH
1999Gator BowlMiami28Georgia Tech13-4.5MIAMIMIAMI
2000Gator BowlClemson20Virginia Tech41-6.5VTECHVTECH
2001Gator BowlVirginia Tech17Florida State30EvFLASTFLAST
2002Gator BowlNorth Carolina State28Notre Dame6+2N.C.STN.C.ST
2003Gator BowlWest Virginia7Maryland41-4.5MARYLMARYL
2004Gator BowlWest Virginia18Florida State30-9.5FLASTFLAST
2005Gator BowlLouisville24Virginia Tech35-9.5VTECHVTECH
2006Gator BowlGeorgia Tech35West Virginia38-9GATECHWESTV
2007Gator BowlTexas Tech31Virginia28+6.5VIRGNATXTECH
2008Gator BowlClemson21Nebraska26-1NEBRNEBR
2009Gator BowlFlorida State33West Virginia21-2.5FLASTFLAST
2010Gator BowlMichigan14Mississippi State52-3MIS.STMIS.ST
2011Gator BowlFlorida24Ohio State17+2.5FLAFLA
2012Gator BowlNorthwestern34Mississippi State20-1NWESTNWEST
2013Gator BowlGeorgia19Nebraska24+8.5NEBNEB
2014TaxSlayer BowlIowa28Tennessee45-3TennesseeTennessee

------ ARCHIVED ARTICLES | BOWL GAME PREVIEWS FROM PREVIOUS YEARS ------

In a rematch of last year’s high-scoring Capital One Bowl, the Georgia Bulldogs and Nebraska Cornhuskers meet on New Year’s Day once again, this time in the Gator Bowl. Neither team is expected to have its starting quarterback, so the future of these Top 25 programs will be on display. Georgia opened as a double-digit favorite, but the line moved toward the Cornhuskers early.

For updated lines and totals on all of this year's bowl games head over to the college football betting boards at Sportsbook and Sportsbook today.

Gator Bowl
Wednesday, January 1 @ 12:00pm ET
EverBank Field, Jacksonville, Florida

Team: Georgia Bulldogs
Conference: Southeastern
Records: 8-4 SU, 3-7-2 ATS, 9-3 OU

Team: Nebraska Cornhuskers
Conference: Big Ten
Records: 8-4 SU, 6-6 ATS, 6-6 OU

Sportsbook Spread / Total (from Sportsbook)
Georgia -9 / 60.5 Points

Gator Bowl Betting Trends: The UNDER is 4-1-1 past six Gator Bowls . . . The UNDER is 10-2 past 12 Nebraska bowl games . . . Georgia is 6-2 ATS past eight bowl games.

A win over SEC power Georgia would go a long way toward helping improve confidence in Nebraska coach Bo Pelini, who has been under fire throughout an up-and-down season. He’ll likely have to do it without senior quarterback Taylor Martinez and as a nearly double-digit underdog.

Senior Ron Kellogg III and freshman Tommy Armstrong Jr. have split time in place of the injured Martinez, and the results haven’t been pretty. Nebraska stumbled down the stretch, losing two of its last three, including an ugly 38-17 loss at home against Iowa.

Georgia senior QB Aaron Murray tore his ACL late in the season in a win over Kentucky and is out for the bowl game. Backup Hutson Mason led a comeback win over Georgia Tech and will start for the Bulldogs against the Cornhuskers.

Georgia won last season’s bowl meeting, 45-31, as a 9.5-point favorite.

-------------------------------

The Northwestern Wildcats have been making money for their supporters on the college football odds all season long at a sparkling 11-1 ATS, and they'll be underdogs on January 1 as they take on Mississippi State in the Gator Bowl.

For updated lines and totals on all of this year's bowl games head over to the college football betting boards at Sportsbook, Sportsbook, and Sportsbook today.

Gator Bowl
Tuesday, January 1 @ 12:00pm ET
Everbank Field, Jacksonville, Florida

Team: Mississippi State Bulldogs
Conference: Southeastern
Records: 8-4 SU, 6-6 ATS, 4-6-1 OU

Team: Northwestern Wildcats
Conference: Big Ten
Records: 9-3 SU, 11-1 ATS, 5-6 OU

Sportsbook Spread / Total (from Sportsbook)
Mississippi State -2.5 / 52 Points

Gator Bowl Betting Trends: Northwestern is 3-1 ATS in past four bowl games . . . Mississippi State is 5-1 ATS in past six bowl games.

-------------------------------

The Florida Gators have won three straight bowl games and five of their last six bowl games overall while Ohio State has won each of its last two bowl games.

For Gator Bowl lines and totals on all of this year's bowl games and live wagering on games, check out Sportsbook today.

Gator Bowl
Monday, January 2 @ 1:00pm ET
EverBank Field, Jacksonville, Florida

Team: Florida Gators
Conference: Southeastern
Records: 6-6 SU, 3-8-1 ATS, 6-6 OU

Team: Ohio State Buckeyes
Conference: Big Ten
Records: 6-6 SU, 6-6 ATS, 6-6 OU

Spread / Total (from Sportsbook)
Florida -2.5 / 44 Points

In a rematch of the 2006 BCS National Championship Game, the Ohio State Buckeyes and the Florida Gators meet with much lower stakes in this year’s Gator Bowl. This is the first non-BCS Bowl Game that Ohio State has played in since 2004 and they are slight underdogs.

Considering the turmoil around the program, Ohio State started off fairly strong with a 6-3 SU start (5-4 ATS), but the Buckeyes finished the season with three straight losses including as a favorite to Purdue and Penn State and against hated-rival Michigan (1-2 ATS). [ Earn up to $100 in free bet bonuses when you check out the latest offers at Sportsbook - and get $25 free BCS bowl perks at Sportsbook ]

Florida looked poised for a great season at 4-0 SU (3-0-1 ATS) with four double-digit wins, but fizzled out to a 2-6 SU finish with eight straight losses ATS to end the season. Offensive coordinator Charlie Weis jumped ship to take Kansas’ head coaching position.

Quarterback John Brantley was expected to do big things for the Gators this year, but he failed to impress for the second straight year. Brantley finished with 1,912 passing yards and 10 touchdowns with six interceptions.

Beware Gator Bowl underdogs, as they are 4-1 ATS past 5 editions of the game.

-------------------------------

Michigan has the sixth-best offense in the FBS, but the run defense of Mississippi State is enough for the Gator Bowl odds to favor the Bulldogs by 4.5 points over the Wolverines.

Gator Bowl
Saturday, January 1 @ 1:30pm ET
EverBank Field, Jacksonville, Florida

Team: Michigan Wolverines
Conference: Big Ten Conference
Records: 7-5, 3-8 ATS, 6-5 OU

Team: Mississippi State Bulldogs
Conference: Southeastern Conference
Records: 8-4 SU, 6-5 ATS, 3-8 OU

Spread / Total (from Sportsbook)
Mississippi State -4.5 / 60 Points

Mississippi State has a way of shutting down the big guns, and they proved that when they held Heisman Trophy Sportsbook Cam Newton to his worst rushing game in a season where he dominated on the ground.

The Bulldogs also bring a second-best rushing attack in the SEC with an average of 215.8 yards per game. With this up against a Michigan team that ranks second-worst defensively in the Big Ten, allowing 187.7 yards per game could make Mississippi State more popular in the college football betting world.

ADVERTISEMENT: Everyone has the Wolverines at +3.5 except one sportsbook that has them at +4. An extra half point for the underdog often makes the difference, check out the Gator Bowl odds and free $25 bowl wager at Sportsbook.

Denard Robinson set records for rushing yards by a quarterback in the NCAA with Michigan this season, but the third-best run defense in the SEC belongs to Mississippi State, and that should bode well for the Bulldogs' chances of a win and a cover of the NCAAF odds in the game.

Sophomore Robinson led a Michigan offense that was sixth-best in the FBS with 500.9 yards per game, but to expect that against the Bulldogs would be detrimental to their game plan.

Michigan will have to give Robinson, the Big Ten offensive player of the year, time so he can use his mobility against the powerful and quick defense of Mississippi State. The Wolverines must also contend with pesky Bulldog Johnathan Banks, who compiled 50 tackles and constantly applied pressure to opposing quarterbacks with his blitzing ability all year - and this will make Robinson feel added pressure in the pocket.

The Wolverines are also inexperienced in the postseason, but had its first winning season in three seasons under the guidance of head coach Rich Rodriguez.

Back to Top