Western Michigan vs BYU 2018 Famous Idaho Potato Bowl Odds & Pick

Western Michigan returns to the Famous Idaho Potato Bowl for the first time since 2014, when they lost by two touchdowns to the Air Force Academy. They finished 6-6 a year ago but did not draw a bowl invitation, and they haven’t won a bowl game since they took down Middle Tennessee, 45-31, in the 2015 Bahamas Bowl. BYU comes in winless on this field, losing all five of their matchups against Boise State, including a five-point loss in November that saw BYU quarterback Zach Wilson take a sack four yards from a touchdown as the game clock wound down to zero. Check out our NCAAF betting preview of this Friday matinee.

Western Michigan vs BYU 2018 Famous Idaho Potato Bowl Odds & Pick

The 2018 #Potatobowl will feature @WMU_Football and @BYUfootball Congratulations to both teams! pic.twitter.com/r7j3EUXcil

— FamousID Potato Bowl (@IDPotatoBowl) December 2, 2018

When: Friday, December 21, 2018, 4:00pm ET Where: Lyle Smith Field at Albertsons Stadium, Boise, ID TV: ESPN Radio: Bronco Radio Network / Cougar IMG Sports Network Live Stream: WatchESPN 2018 Famous Idaho Potato Bowl Odds: BYU -12.5

Why should you bet on the Broncos?

Western Michigan lost starting quarterback Jon Wassink to injury but kept plugging away on offense, scoring 33.2 points per game and rolling up almost 450 yards a week thanks to a rushing game that averaged more than 205 yards a contest. Kaleb Eleby has been serviceable filling in for Wassink, completing over 64 percent of his passes. Tailback Levante Bellamy rumbled for 1,172 yards, and Jamauri Bogan added 702 more yards on the ground. The issues for Western Michigan dome on defense, as they permitted 33 points per week. The Broncos lost 3 of 4 down the stretch, getting routed by Toledo and Ohio U. at home before losing to Ball State on the road by one. They salvaged their season with a 28-21 win over Northern Illinois in the last game of the regular season. However, they come in against a BYU team that is well ahead of them in terms of talent. If you like the Broncos, you think BYU might come in taking this game lightly against what they might see as a largely inferior opponent — which happens sometimes in bowl games, especially in the first week.

Why should you put your money on the Cougars?

BYU finished the season at 6-6 and initially balked at the idea of going to a bowl, but then they relented are heading to Idaho for the program’s first meeting with Western Michigan. When BYU won, they did it with their defense, that permitted just under 22 points per game. Their offense struggled to move the ball, scoring just 25 points per contest. The passing game featured balance, as ten different Cougars caught between 12 and 25 passes. However, there was not a dominant receiver who emerged. Their running game was similar, as Lopini Katoa, Matt Hadley and Squally Canada combined to rush the ball, but their total output was just over 1,200 yards. BYU has failed to cover the spread in four straight bowl games, but they did cover in their last four games of the regular season. The Cougars have been an enigma, knocking off Wisconsin on the road but losing by 25 points at home to Utah State and then losing by a 7-6 margin to Northern Illinois, also at home. So which Cougars will show up? It’s hard to say…which is why it’s hard to justify this gargantuan spread.

Expert Pick and Final Score Prediction

In bowl games like this, the team from the smaller conference is often much more excited to be there than the team that had grander aspirations, as one would imagine that BYU had after knocking off Arizona and Wisconsin in the early going. BYU might be able to pull off a close win, but I’m not sure that they will be particularly engaged given the site, the bowl date and the opponent. Either way, I don’t see the Cougars covering that spread. I predict a final score of BYU 27, Western Michigan 24.