Rose Bowl Betting History

Since the inception of the College Football Playoff in 2014, the Rose Bowl presented by Northwestern Mutual is used as the destination of one of the semifinal games every three years. The game is played on New Year’s Day, unless January 1 falls on a Sunday, in which case the game is played on January 2.

Betting History of the Rose Bowl

The very first Rose Bowl was played on January 1, 1902, and the game has been held annually on New Year’s Day since 1916. With very few exceptions, the Rose Bowl has been played between teams from the Pac-12 and Big Ten since 1947.

From 2007 to 2016, betting favorites were dominant in the Rose Bowl, going 8-2 straight up (SU) and 6-4 against the spread (ATS). The Pac-12 is 50-43-3 all-time in 96 Rose Bowl appearances, but in games that don’t include USC, the conference’s record drops to 25-34-3 SU. From 2014 to 2016, the combined score went OVER the posted total.

Former Rose Bowl MVPs include Christian McCaffrey (2016), Marcus Mariota (2015), Andy Dalton (2011), Keyshawn “Interior Design Star” Johnson (1996), Jack Del Rio (1985), Warren Moon (1978) and Jim Plunkett (1971). Vince Young won back-to-back MVP awards in 2005 and 2006, leading Texas to a 41-38 win over USC for the national championship in his final collegiate game.

The 2017 Rose Bowl saw the No. 3-ranked Georgia Bulldogs take on the No. 2-ranked Oklahoma Sooners. Each team posted only one outright loss on the season, with the Sooners coming into the game riding an eight-game winning streak. Six of those wins came in double-digit form but it wasn’t enough to keep the Sooners from succumbing to the Bulldogs 54-48. The total was set at 62.5 and went way, way, way, way OVER. As for the home spread at +2.5, bettors who picked Oklahoma found themselves with a losing bet.

2018 Rose Bowl

On January 1, 2019, the No. 9-ranked Washington Huskies (10-3) will play the No. 6-ranked Ohio State Buckeyes (12-1). For the latest odds, a free pick and handicapping information, visit our Rose Bowl Game Center. 

Washington by the Numbers

• Conference: Pac-12
• ATS: 4-9
• ATS Home: 2-5
• ATS Away: 2-4
• O/U: 3-10
• O/U Home: 2-5
• O/U Away: 1-5

Ohio State by the Numbers

• Conference: Big Ten
• ATS: 6-7
• ATS Home: 5-3
• ATS Away: 1-4
• O/U: 7-6
• O/U Home: 4-4
• O/U Away: 3-2

How to Bet on the Rose Bowl

Betting on any bowl game requires research and a trip to our NCAA football pages. We have you covered with odds, free picks, betting trends, news and stats.

These are the main types of bets you can make on the Rose Bowl:

• Simply pick a winner by placing a moneyline bet on the team you think is going to dominate
• A totals bet (also called OVER/UNDER) requires you to predict if the total combined score from both teams will be OVER or UNDER a certain amount set by the sportsbooks
• For a point spread wager you need to figure out if the favorite or the underdog is going to win or lose by a set number of points
• Props are bets made on individual players (how many rushing yards will X player have, how many sacks will Y player have, etc.) and non-football related things like who will win the coin toss 

Where to Bet on the Rose Bowl

Betting on the Rose Bowl requires a secure sportsbook. Any of the books we feature here are trustworthy and have numerous bowl betting options.

Rose Bowl Bites

• O.J. Simpson was the 1968 Rose Bowl MVP and he has lived a quiet life ever since without controversy or criminal charges. NOT!
• USC has the most Rose Bowl appearances with 34, Michigan follows with 20, Stanford has 15, Ohio State and Washington each have 14, and UCLA has 12.
• Current NFLer Sam Darnold holds two Rose Bowl records for touchdowns (5) and total offense (473 yards).

For updated lines and great Props for all Bowl games head over to Bovada today.