College Bowl Game Odds
College football bowl games coincide with one of the most feverish times for NJ sports betting. This year’s bowl season might be exceptional with even more legal online sportsbooks to pick from.
For people who would like to bet on bowl games, here’s a quick guide to the ins and outs of college bowl game betting including live odds for every bowl direct from NJ online sportsbooks.
Live College Football bowl game odds
Bowl game odds are released when the matchups are set but you can put a futures bet down in advance on who you think the National Champion will be. See the current real-time odds at NJ online sportsbooks for this year’s bowl games below. Use the drop-down menu to toggle between odds boards. Click on any odds to jump right to the sportsbook, claim your bonus bets and lock in your bowl bet.
Rutgers University gets Gator Bowl invite
For Rutgers University football fans, the 2021 college bowl season is much different. It’s because the 5-7 Rutgers Scarlet Knights have accepted a late invite to the Gator Bowl. This will be the program’s first bowl appearance since 2014.
Rutgers is replacing Texas A&M who pulled out due to COVID-19. It means Rutgers will face 10-3 Wake Forest Demon Deacons, ranked No. 17.
The Gator Bowl is scheduled for 11 a.m. EST on Dec. 31 in Jacksonville, Fla.
NJ sportsbooks are not permitted to post odds as New Jersey regulations prohibit wagers on games that either take place in the Garden State or involve NJ teams.
College football bowl game schedule
There are 44 games in this 2021-22 bowl season. Bettors will have wagering options for two+ weeks, so there is no shortage of opportunities.
Nevertheless, here is the schedule and matchups for 2021.
| Date | Bowl | Time (ET) | TV | Conference Matchup |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| December 17, 2021 | Bahamas | Noon | ESPN | Middle Tennessee vs. Toledo |
| December 17, 2021 | Cure | 6 PM | ESPN2 | North Illinois vs. Coastal Carolina |
| December 18, 2021 | Boca Raton | 11 AM | ESPN | Western Kentucky vs. Appalachian State |
| December 18, 2021 | Celebration | Noon | ABC | South Carolina State vs. Jackson State |
| December 18, 2021 | New Mexico | 2:15 PM | ESPN | UTEP vs. Fresno State |
| December 18, 2021 | Independence | 3:30 PM | ABC | UAB vs. BYU |
| December 18, 2021 | Lending Tree | 5:45 PM | ESPN | Eastern Michigan vs. Liberty |
| December 18, 2021 | L.A. | 7:30 | ABC | Utah State vs. Oregon State |
| December 18, 2021 | New Orleans | 9:15 PM | ESPN | Lousiana vs. Marshall |
| December 20, 2021 | Myrtle Beach | 2:30 PM | ESPN | Old Dominion vs. Tulsa |
| December 21, 2021 | Famous Idaho Potato | 3:30 PM | ESPN | Kent State vs. Wyoming |
| December 21, 2021 | Frisco | 7:30 PM | ESPN | UTSA vs. San Diego State |
| December 22, 2021 | Armed Forces | 8 PM | ESPN | Missouri vs. Army |
| December 23, 2021 | Frisco Football Classic | 3:30 PM | ESPN | North Texas vs. Miami (Ohio) |
| December 23, 2021 | Gasparilla | 7 PM | ESPN | UCF vs. Florida |
| December 24, 2021 | Hawaii | 8 PM | ESPN | Memphis vs. Hawaii |
| December 25, 2021 | Camellia | 2:30 PM | ESPN | Georgia State vs. Ball State |
| December 27, 2021 | Quick Lane | 11 AM | ESPN | Western Michigan vs. Nevada |
| December 27, 2021 | Military | 2:30 PM | ESPN | Boston College vs. East Carolina |
| December 28, 2021 | Birmingham | Noon | ESPN | Houston vs. Auburn |
| December 28, 2021 | First Responder | 3:15 PM | ESPN | Air Force vs. Louisville |
| December 28, 2021 | Liberty | 6:45 PM | ESPN | Mississippi State vs. Texas Tech |
| December 28, 2021 | Holiday | 8 PM | Fox | UCLA vs. NC State |
| December 28, 20201 | Guaranteed Rate | 10:15 PM | ESPN | West Virginia vs. Minnesota |
| December 29, 2021 | Fenway | 11 AM | ESPN | SMU vs. Virginia |
| December 29, 2021 | Pinstripe | 2:15 PM | ESPN | Maryland vs. Virginia Tech |
| December 29, 2021 | Cheez-It | 5:45 PM | ESPN | Clemson vs. Iowa State |
| December 29, 2021 | Alamo | 9:15 PM | ESPN | Oregon vs. Oklahoma |
| December 30, 2021 | Duke's Mayo | 11:30 AM | ESPN | North Carolina vs. South Carolina |
| December 30, 2021 | Music City | 3 PM | ESPN | Tennessee vs. Purdue |
| December 30, 2021 | Peach | 7 PM | ESPN | Michigan State vs. Pittsburgh |
| December 30, 2021 | Las Vegas | 10:30 PM | ESPN | Wisconsin vs. Arizona State |
| December 31, 2021 | Gator | 11 AM | ESPN | Wake Forrest vs. Rutgers |
| December 31, 2021 | Sun | 12:30 PM | CBS | Washington State vs. Miami |
| December 31, 2021 | Arizona | 2 PM | Barstool Sports | Central Michigan vs. Boise State |
| December 31, 2021 | Cotton CFP National Championship Semifinal | 3:30 PM | ESPN | No. 4 Cincinnati vs. No. 1 Alabama |
| December 31, 2021 | Orange CFP National Championship Semifinal | 7:30 PM | ESPN | No. 3 Georgia vs. No. 2 Michigan |
| Jan. 1, 2022 | Outback | Noon | ESPN2 | Penn State vs. Arkansas |
| Jan. 1, 2022 | Citrus | 1 PM | ABC | Iowa vs. Kentucky |
| Jan. 1, 2022 | Fiesta | 1 PM | ESPN | Notre Dama vs.Oklahoma State |
| Jan. 1, 2022 | Rose | 5 PM | ESPN | Ohio State vs. Utah |
| Jan. 1, 2022 | Sugar | 8:45 PM | ESPN | Ole Miss vs. Baylor |
| Jan. 4, 2022 | Texas | 9 PM | ESPN | LSU vs. Kansas State |
| Jan. 10, 2022 | CFP National Championship | 8 p.m. | ESPN | Georgia vs. Alabama |
College football playoff game schedule
A few years back, the NCAA instituted a limited playoff system to determine an outright champion for that year. Four teams that the selection committee judges to be this year’s best will play two semifinals and a final game.
Here is the schedule for the NCAA College Football Playoff games:
Dec. 31, 2021
- No. 4 Cincinnati vs. No. 1 Alabama, 3:30 p.m.
Cotton Bowl (Arlington, Texas) - No. 3 Georgia vs. No. 2 Michigan, 7:30 p.m.
Orange Bowl (Miami, Fla.)
Jan. 10, 2022
- No. 3 Georgia vs. No. 1 Alabama, 8 p.m.
College Football Playoff National Championship
Lucas Oil Stadium (Indianapolis, Ind.)
Make sure to tune in to all the great action. And don’t forget to place your bets.
Ways to bet on college football bowl games
Point spreads
A point spread is a wager on the expected margin of victory in a game. The sportsbook establishes which team will likely win and by how many points.
Then, bettors have two options to wager. They can either predict that the favorite will exceed the given margin of victory, or the underdog will lose by less or win outright (also known as covering).
Moneyline
A moneyline bet is on the outright winner of the contest. The three-digit number next to each team’s name specifies what a winning bet will pay out.
A positive number is an amount that a $100 bet on that team will pay. A negative number is an amount one must bet to receive $100 as their payout.
Totals
Totals bets are better known as wagers on the over/under. The sportsbook establishes its estimate for the anticipated combined total of points the teams will score in a given match.
Players then bet on whether or not the combined total will exceed or fail to reach that mark. Betting that the teams will score more than the over/under is called “taking the over” and the opposite bet is known as “taking the under.”
Futures
Futures bets are wagers on the probability of a long-term event occurring. Many times, these sorts of bets will revolve around eventual champions of a particular sport or league.
These types of bets for college bowl games will likely pertain to the playoff games at the end of the season. Sportsbooks will offer odds for each playoff game team and its likelihood of winning the championship.
Propositions
Proposition bets are wagers on the possibilities of specific events occurring, either within a single game or within an entire season. Prop bets usually focus on specific player goals, rather than team ones.
Any bet about which player will score the first touchdown or whether a player will rush for a certain amount of yards is a prop bet. The possibilities for these types of bets are broader than other bet types and tend to be more granular.
Parlays
Parlays are nothing more than a combination of the above betting types. Players cast bets on more than one event or team at a time.
The catch is that all of the player’s choices must be accurate to pay out. So, parlays tend to be more challenging to win.
Bowl Pick’em contests
Bowl Pick’em contests tend to show up on various popular websites this time of year. ESPN, Yahoo, and other wide-distribution sites often run them for free. Sometimes, the sites will offer huge payouts if anyone can correctly select the entire set of bowl winners.
They can be a fun way to increase involvement in the complete slate of bowl games. There are so many bowl games these days that only the most diehard of fans can remain engaged throughout.
It is possible that DraftKings, FanDuel, or one of the other online sportsbooks in New Jersey will offer a Bowl Pick’em contest. However, it is unclear what the buy-in or prize structure for this kind of contest would be.