SoFi Hawai’i Bowl Prediction
Despite having homefield advantage on Saturday night, will the Hawaii Rainbow Warriors stumble as a small favorite when they take on Louisiana Tech in the SoFi Hawai’i Bowl at 10:30 p.m. ET?
Game Snapshot
228 Hawaii Rainbow Warriors vs. 227 Louisiana Tech Bulldogs
10:30 p.m. ET, Saturday, December 22, 2018
Aloha Stadium, Honolulu, Hawaii
Public Betting Trends
According to oddsmakers from online sports book BetNow.eu, the Rainbow Warriors are 1-point favorites to beat the Bulldogs. The total, meanwhile, sits at 61 points. As of this writing, 52% of the public betting tickets wagered on this matchup are on the Warriors.
Hawaii Rainbow Warriors
Hawaii redshirt sophomore QB Cole McDonald completed 29-of-46 passes for 452 yards and three touchdowns in Saturday’s 31-30 overtime win over San Diego State. Hawaii HC Nick Rolovich gave McDonald the start, and it was the right decision in hindsight. The redshirt sophomore nearly averaged 10 yards per attempt despite slinging the ball 46 times, and he connected with three different receivers for touchdowns. Despite the efficient night, McDonald and the Rainbow Warriors needed overtime to walk away with the win over the Aztecs to improve to 8-5. McDonald will likely be the starter in the bowl game after Saturday’s big game.
Louisiana Tech Bulldogs
Louisiana Tech redshirt junior QB J’Mar Smith completed 24-of-44 passes for 280 yards, no touchdowns, and one interception in Saturday’s 30-15 loss to Western Kentucky. This didn’t go as planned for the Bulldogs who entered the game as double-digit home favorites. Smith was having one of his worst games of the season before exiting late in the game with an undisclosed injury. He had two clear favorite pass-catchers in this one with Adrian Hardy and Alfred Smith combining for 230 of the team’s 280 total passing yards. Despite the embarrassing loss to a 3-9 Western Kentucky squad, the Bulldogs are bowl-eligible with a 7-5 overall record and 5-3 in conference.
Betting Trends
Hawaii
The over is 7-1 in the Rainbow Warriors’ last eight games versus Conference USA opponents.
Louisiana Tech
The under is 5-0 in the Bulldogs’ last five games overall and 4-0 in their last four games coming off a loss.
Prediction
The Rainbow Warriors are just 9-23 against the number in their last 32 games when facing an opponent with a winning record. They’re also just 15-34-2 against the spread in their last 51 games overall and are 1-4 ATS in their last five matchups with Conference USA opponents. On the other side, the Bulldogs have been a great play in bowl games, covering in five of their last six bowl matchups. They’re also 15-2 against the spread in their last 17 games coming off a double-digit loss at home and have covered in five of their last seven non-conference games.
SoFi Hawai’I Bowl Prediction: Louisiana Tech Bulldogs +1