We will figure out who will win the Guaranteed Rate Bowl on Tuesday night at Chase Field in Phoenix, Arizona as the West Virginia Mountaineers and Minnesota Golden Gophers square off. The Mountaineers are 6-6 this year and are riding a two-game winning streak after defeating the Kansas Jayhawks on the road 34-28. Senior Jarret Doege finished 16-of-21 for 170 yards with three touchdowns and an interception.
Meanwhile, the Golden Gophers are 8-4 and are also riding a two-game winning streak after defeating the Wisconsin Badgers 23-13 in the regular season finale. Senior quarterback Tanner Morgan went 11-of-16 for 199 yards with a touchdown and an interception.
West Virginia at Minnesota Betting Preview
West Virginia Mountaineers Preview: Brown Running Well
Senior running back Leddie Brown has been playing very well for the Mountaineers as he has recorded 223 rushing attempts for 1,065 rushing yards (4.8 yards per carry) with 13 rushing touchdowns as well as 36 catches for 217 yards (six yards per reception) with a receiving touchdown. In his last game against Kansas, he finished with 19 carries for 156 yards (8.2 yards per rushing attempt) with a rushing touchdown and three receptions for 15 yards (five yards per catch).
West Virginia has been playing pretty well on the defensive side of the field as they are giving up 24.3 points per game this season. Against Kansas, West Virginia allowed 28 points on 336 total yards of offense (249 passing, 87 rushing). The Mountaineers are able to force turnovers as they forced two throughout the game (both interceptions). They did a decent job at stopping the run as they gave up 3.2 yards per rushing attempt in the game.
Minnesota Golden Gophers Preview: Young Blood
Freshman running back Ky Thomas has been playing very well this season for the Minnesota Golden Gophers after defending Big Ten rushing leader Mohamed Ibrahim suffered a season-ending injury in the opener against Ohio State. Thomas has 145 rushing attempts for 680 yards (4.7 yards per carry) with five rushing touchdowns and six receptions for 44 yards (7.3 yards per catch). In the Wisconsin game, Thomas finished with 18 carries for 55 yards (3.1 yards per rushing attempt) with a rushing touchdown.
The Golden Gophers’ defense has been incredible this season as they are allowing 18.3 points per game. Against the Badgers, Minnesota gave up 13 points on 233 total yards of offense (171 passing, 62 rushing). The Golden Gophers went 4-of-14 on third down attempts and in 1-of-3 on fourth down tries. The biggest number was that they held Wisconsin to just 4.5 yards per passing attempt.
Who to Bet on Mountaineers at Golden Gophers
Most sportsbooks have the Golden Gophers listed as a five-point favorite in the neutral site bowl game. The Mountaineers are allowing 28.3 points in their last three games while the Golden Gophers are giving up 16.4 points in their previous five games.
West Virginia is 3-14-1 against the spread in their last 18 December games while the Golden Gophers have covered in their last four neutral site games.
All in all, go with the Minnesota Golden Gophers to cover the spread and obviously win this game.