NCAA Football
2024-12-26 - Kansas State Wildcats at Rutgers Scarlet Knights
A Sports Betting Pick by FirstDown
United States : College Football Rate Bowl
Thursday 26th December 2024 - Scheduled 5:30pm
10:30pm (British Time)
Preview
The majority of eyes of those interested in College Football will have turned to the end of the month and the beginning of the New Year when the four Playoff Quarter Final games are set to be played.
However, teams outside of the elite twelve are focusing on concluding their season with a strong Bowl performance and two of those meet in Phoenix where the Rate Bowl is set to be played.
The Rutgers Scarlet Knights (7-5) are set as the underdog when they face the Kansas State Wildcats (8-4) and both teams will feel they missed out on achieving bigger things after making strong starts. There is also the added factor of the transfer portal, which has become much more important in College Football than it ever was previously, and that means the players on both rosters are potentially distracted.
In the main part, the Wildcats feel that things are settled on their side of the field even if some of the players are still perhaps being tempted away. At one stage it looked like Kansas State might do enough to earn a Playoff spot, but they crumbled down the stretch and it is the Arizona State Sun Devils that will be representing the Big 12 next week in their first season in the Conference.
Motivation can be hard to factor in and you do have to feel the Wildcats will be disappointed, but they look like a team that will match up well with the Scarlet Knights when Kansas State have the ball.
The Line of Scrimmage is hugely important to the Wildcats and they have been able to rip off some big gains on the ground thanks in part to dual-threat Quarter Back Avery Johnson. They will be without DJ Giddens at Running Back, who is heading to the NFL, but the Kansas State Offensive Line will want to show they are more than a strong Running Back and can open up some significant running lanes.
This should really open things up for Johnson when he steps back to throw and he should be able to expose some of the holes that were evident in the Rutgers Secondary down the stretch.
Showing strength at the Line of Scrimmage was also a key part of what the Kansas State Wildcats wanted to do when the Defensive unit has moved onto the field. Earlier this season they had looked really strong up front, but the regular season showed signs of wear and tear and Rutgers may have more success than they may have expected if this game was played in October and not December.
Athan Kaliakmanus has been the only Quarter Back to throw for Rutgers this season, but he has been a touch inconsistent and will need the Offensive Line to establish the run. There are times when Kaliakmanus has made some solid plays, but the inconsistency remains an issue and he is going to be faced by a Kansas State Secondary that have been playing the pass pretty well.
Prediction
There feels like a bit more balance can be established Offensively by the Kansas State Wildcats and that may give them the edge in this Bowl Game.
Take nothing away from Rutgers, who have had a solid season, but the Wildcats can end this one on a high with a solid win at Chase Field.
The Pick :
Rutgers Scarlet Knights 20-30 Kansas State
