Liberty Bowl Picks and Predictions | Texas Tech vs Mississippi State
Liberty Bowl Betting Preview
GoldSheet offers their Liberty Bowl betting preview between Texas Tech and Mississippi State on Tuesday, December 28. At the time of posting, the Bulldogs from the SEC have climbed to a 10-point favorite over the Red Raiders from the Big XII, with the total at 58.5 points.
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| Liberty Bowl | Betting Notes |
|---|---|
| Point Spread: | Mississippi State Bulldogs -10 vs Texas Tech Red Raiders |
| Total: | 58.5 Points |
| Game Time: | 6:45pm ET / 3:45pm PT on Tuesday, December 28 |
| Stadium: | Memorial Stadium in Memphis, Tennessee |
| TV: | ESPN |
Liberty Bowl Predictions
This matchup might have been more interesting a decade ago, when it was not long after Mike Leach was forced out at Texas Tech under controversial circumstances. Most have likely forgotten…though, from what we gather, Leach hasn’t. And that creates an interesting dimension to the handicap of the Liberty Bowl in front of the pro-MSU crowd that would like to see the Bulldogs run up a score no matter the foe.
As a historical footnote regarding Texas Tech, the last two times the Red Raiders played in a bowl with an interim coach, they have won–after Leach’s ouster in 2009, under Ruffin McNeill, beating Michigan State in the Alamo Bowl, then with Chris Thomsen in Sen. Tommy Tuberville’s wake at the 2012 Car Care Bowl over Minnesota.
The difference in this year’s disjointed campaign in Lubbock is that the coaching switch happened midseason, when Matt Wells was dismissed in late October and OC Sonny Cumbie promoted in the interim, after which Tech went only 1-3 SU, though the win was a doozy against Iowa State.
Cumbie has parlayed this audition into a new upcoming head coaching gig at La Tech, which begins after this game, with Baylor aide Joey McGuire moving in thereafter at Lubbock. Got all of that?
As the poster child for a program in transition, the Red Raiders would seem to have some other obstacles to overcome here. Tech ran through QBs like drinking water this season, starting three of them thanks mostly to Oregon transfer Tyler Shough breaking a collarbone in September. By the end of the season, frosh Donovan Smith was able to provide an occasional spark, and did pass for 322 yards and 3 TDs in the upset of the Cyclones, but had a deer-in-the-headlights look the next week vs. Oklahoma State when completing only 9 of 29 for a mere 83 yards.
Meanwhile, Leach’s MSU seemed to figure out a lot by the end of the season when it put together a five-game spread cover streak before a tough Egg Bowl loss vs. 8th-ranked Ole Miss. While Leach’s offense grabs the headlines, it was the D, under coordinator Zach Arnett, a Rocky Long disciple who uses many of the same unorthodox 3-3-5 looks as his mentor, advancing his platoon to a 21st ranking in overall D, that had as much as anything to do with the late-season surge.
Of course, anyone who follows the SEC knows of QB Will Rogers, who was risking Tommy John surgery early in the season when throwing 60 or more passes per game before Leach begrudgingly began to balance the offense (somewhat…the Bulldogs still ran dead last in national rush stats), though in truth many of the Rogers dinks take the pace of runs. Rogers also completed a staggering 75% of his throws for 4449 yards and 35 TDs…not quite Bailey Zappe-like stuff, but probably more than the Red Raiders can handle. Especially if Leach (who hasn’t covered in his last five bowls at Washington State and last year with MSU, by the way) still has some animosity toward Tech after that messy divorce 12 years ago.
Interested in placing a bet on this evening’s Liberty Bowl? BetMGM is offering a $1,000 Risk-Free Bet for first-time bettors in New Jersey, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Indiana, Colorado, Tennessee, Iowa, Michigan, Virginia, Washington DC, Wyoming, Mississippi, Arizona and Louisiana.
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Liberty Bowl Stats
College football handicappers Ralph Michaels and JM Sports have put together a 66-page Bowl Betting Guide featuring everything from first quarter scoring to yards per point to plays per minute. Don’t place a bet on the Liberty Bowl before diving into this FREE download.
College Football Daily
Join Joe Raineri, Dave Cokin, Tony Mejia and Bryan Leonard for College Football Daily as we preview this week’s bowl slate. In this episode, we’ll break down Purdue vs Tennessee (Music City Bowl); Pittsburgh vs Michigan State (Peach Bowl); Arizona St vs Wisconsin (Las Vegas Bowl); Rutgers vs Wake Forest (Gator Bowl).
WagerTalk Live Odds Screen
WagerTalk’s live odds screen features up-to-the-minute lines from a variety of offshore and domestic sports books. Track the moneylines, point spreads, first half lines and betting percentages for all of the college football bowl games, including this Liberty Bowl showdown between Texas Tech and Mississippi State, from your desktop or phone.
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