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2024 Holiday, Vegas, and Arizona Bowls Game Keys & Picks

> Stephen Vilardo previews the matchups and gives us his picks ATS, straight-up, and Over/Under


  By Stephen Vilardo, SuperWest Sports

December 26, 2024



Bowl season is one of the best times of the year with some downtime from work for the holidays and a plethora of football each day.

Predicting the outcome of the postseason games has always been challenging, but it is even more so now with transfers and players opting out of bowl games to prepare for the NFL draft.

Nonetheless, here are my picks and previews for the Holiday Bowl between Washington State and Syracuse, the Las Vegas Bowl between  USC and Texas A&M, and the Arizona Bowl between Colorado State and Miami of Ohio.

Syracuse vs Washington State

Friday, December 27
5:00 pm PT, FOX

Line: Syracuse –11.5
Over/Under Point Total: 59.5
Broadcast team: Gus Johnson, Joel Klatt, Jenny Taft

The Holiday Bowl is a matchup between two programs seemingly headed in different directions.

Fran Brown has the Orange headed to San Diego with a 9-3 mark as winners of three in a row after knocking off then sixth-ranked Miami in the regular season finale. It appears Brown has Syracuse on the verge of being a consistent contender in the ACC.

The Cougars are 8-4 but enter having lost three in a row. They have been hit hard by players entering the portal since the season finale. Now Jake Dickert has also left for Wake Forest.

WSU is without a conference for one more season and now must get a coach to lead the rebuilding as well.

Syracuse wins if…Kyle McCord has a day. The nation’s leading passer is expected to play in the Holiday Bowl as are most of his talented wide receivers.

Washington State wins if…Zevi Eckhaus can come up big. The transfer from Bryant will step in for John Mateer and while the drop-off in QB might be significant, the Cougars should still be able to move the ball on the Syracuse defense.

If not, it will be a very long night.

My outlook: While the programs look to be in different spots, one clear similarity is that both teams can light up the scoreboard and have a hard time preventing opponents from doing the same.

This one soars over 59.5, but I don’t think the depleted Cougs can match Cuse’s firepower. The Orange should cover the 11.5 in the end.

—My Picks—
Against the spread: Syracuse
Points total: Over
Outright winner: Syracuse

Texas A&M vs USCusc logo

Friday, December 27
7:30 pm PT, ESPN

Line: Texas A&M –3.5
Over/Under Point Total: 51.5
Broadcast team: Dave Flemming, Brock Osweiler, Stormy Buonantony

Bowl season certainly gets dicey nowadays with opt-outs and transfers. This one is no different.

The Aggie defense will be hit hard in this one as the team’s top three defensive linemen—Nic Scourton, Shemar Stewart, and Shemar Turner – have all chosen to opt out of the bowl game to prepare for the NFL Draft.

The Trojans have also had their share of issues with 18 players entering the portal ahead of the bowl game.

USC’s offense has been hit especially hard with the departures of wide receivers Zachariah Branch and Duce Robinson along with running back Quentin Joyner.

Texas A&M wins if…the defensive line can piece something together. In addition to the opt-outs, A&M also has transfers from the D-Line. If the line can hold up against USC, the Aggies will be in good shape.

USC wins if…they can finish the game. The Trojans had a fourth-quarter lead in 11 of their 12 games this season, the Trojans only managed to win six of them.

My outlook: Obviously with some of the departures ahead of this game, the matchup loses some of its luster. But the reason for the big-name absences raises some eyebrows ahead of the game.

A&M’s stars are getting ready for the NFL, USC’s are looking for new homes. Mike Elko looks like he has the Aggies on a nice upward trend. Lincoln Riley looks like he is losing his team.

This one could be a back-and-forth game, and USC just might lose another fourth-quarter lead. I’ll take A&M to cover, but barely.

—My Picks—
Against the spread: Texas A&M
Points total: Over
Outright winner: Texas A&M

Miami (OH) vs Colorado State

Saturday, December 28
1:30 pm PT, The CW

Line: Miami –3
Over/Under Point Total: 42.5
Broadcast team: Thom Brennaman, Max Browne, Treavor Scales

The Rams were a bright spot this season.

After a 2-3 start to the season, Colorado State went on a tear, winning six of their last seven games—even with the season-ending injury to Tory Horton.

Miami also started slow, going 1-4 to open the year.

But the RedHawks caught fire in conference play and closed out the regular season on a seven-game winning streak before getting destroyed by Ohio in the MAC Championship game.

Miami Wins if…they can win the line of scrimmage, especially on defense. The Rams will look to run it on the RedHawks. Miami is 47th in the nation against the run, allowing 136.9 yards per game.

In their eight wins, they are allowing just 104.3. In the five losses, that jumps to 189.0 per outing. The RedHawks will need to keep the Rams’ rushing attack in check.

Colorado State wins if…they win the turnover battle. I could have said the line for CSU as well as I think this one really will be won in the trenches, but we covered that with Miami. So, turnovers!

In the last seven games, the Rams are +7 in turnovers and have gone 6-1. In the season’s first five games, they went 2-3 with a TO margin of -4.

My outlook: This one could be one of the better bowl games to watch. It may not offer a lot of fireworks, but it should be an extremely competitive tight contest.

Both teams will want to churn it out on the ground and play good defense. I like Colorado State to pull the upset, but the real play in this one for me is the under.

—My Picks—
Against the spread: Colorado State
Points total: Under
Outright winner: Colorado State