Hawaii Rainbows at Tulsa Golden Hurricanes
Friday, 12/24/10, 7:30 PM EDT, TV: ESPN
Opening Point Spread: Hawaii -13
Current Betting Line: Hawaii -10.5
Opening Total: 69
Current Total: 73
Hawaii enters its sixth appearance in the Sheraton Hawaii Bowl ranked No. 24 in the nation and will be taking on Tulsa at Aloha Stadium. The Warriors are 10-3 on the season and have won nine of their past 10 games to move into the rankings. “We’ve got a lot of leaders on this team and they’ve all bought into the program,” said coach Greg McMackin. “It’s a fun group to coach, it’s probably the most fun group I’ve had to coach in a long time.” The program is 3-2 in five previous trips to the Hawaii Bowl and will be making its 10th all-time major bowl appearance. Hawaii’s last appearance in this game was a 49-21 loss to Notre Dame in 2008, which followed three straight wins over Houston, UAB and Arizona State. the team was a dominating 11-2 ATS over the season and currently a double-digit favorite on the college football lines page.
The Warriors ended up being co-champions of the Western Athletic Conference and led the nation in passing offense and ranked eighth in total offense. Hawaii features the nation’s top passer in quarterback Bryant Moniz, as the junior has passed for 356.1 yards per game. Defensively, the team is much improved and leads the country in turnovers forced (36) and interceptions (23). Safety Mana Silva is the key player in the secondary and is tied for the national lead with eight interceptions. The program is 34-23 all-time versus current members of Conference USA.
Tulsa will play in its fifth bowl game in the last six years against an old WAC Rival on its home turf this Friday. The holiday game features two of the nation’s top 10 offenses and the Golden Hurricanes are excited to visit the island. “It’s a great feeling because Hawaii is probably somewhere I never would have gone if not for a bowl game,” said senior running back Charles Clay. “You won’t find one person that will say they don’t want to go to Hawaii.” The program will be playing in its 17th bowl game overall and has won its last two by posting a 45-13 win over Ball State last year and a 63-7 win in the GMAC Bowl the previous year. Tulsa is 8-4 ATS on the season.
The Golden Hurricanes averaged 39.7 points per game this season and are led offensively by quarterback G.J. Kinne and wide receiver Damaris Johnson. The nation’s leader for all-purpose years last season and this year, Johnson was named to the 2010 Associated Press All-American team. “This team has had a great season,” said head coach Todd Graham. “We faced some adversity early on and were able to overcome that.” Defensively, the secondary is going to face a major test in facing the aerial game of its opponent, while also trying to prove the season-long critics that have dubbed this the worst pass defense in college football.
Bettors will be interested in knowing that the Golden Hurricanes are 4-0 ATS on the road, while the Warriors are 5-0 ATS as a favorite of 10.5 or more points.
The college football handicappers at Maddux Sports are off to an incredible start and can’t wait for you to join them leading up to the BCS Championship Game.
