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There are a lot of strategies that sharp bettors use when approaching college football’s bowl season. Some of the normal handicapping theories from the regular season don’t apply as directly and new ones — like motivation and bowl experience — can play a huge role.
In a recent article, ESPN’s Chad Millman talked to Kenny White, who used to run the oddsmaking service Las Vegas Sports Consultants. Among many other useful tidbits, White talked about how he actually likes to look for inexperienced bowl teams.
“You’re looking for a team that is thrilled to be there and looking forward to the game,” White told Millman. “I’m more likely to give a team a higher ranking if it hasn’t been to a bowl for a while, because that will generate excitement amongst the program and fans.”
Quarterback Blaine Gautier and Louisiana-Lafayette are headed to the first bowl in school history.
This theory is just one of many to take into consideration when handicapping a specific bowl game, but below I’ve provided a list of the last three times each team appeared in a bowl. Use it to get a feel for how acquainted each team — and, perhaps more importantly, its fan base — has become with the bowl season.
A lot of teams, especially in the bigger bowls, have gone three straight years, so this theory won’t apply as much. But in many of the smaller bowls, you find teams that have only had one bowl appearance in the last 10, 15 or 20 years.
And for some teams — like Louisiana-Lafayette in the New Orleans Bowl — this is the school’s first-ever bowl game, so there’s a much better chance the fan base will be thrilled.
The six most ‘inexperienced’ bowl teams? Louisiana-Lafayette, Vanderbilt, Baylor, Arkansas State, Temple and Utah State.
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NEW MEXICO BOWL
Temple (2009, 1979, 1934)
Wyoming (2009, 2004, 1993)
POTATO BOWL
Ohio (2010, 2009, 2006)
Utah State (1997, 1993, 1961)
NEW ORLEANS BOWL
San Diego State (2010, 1998, 1991)
Louisiana-Lafayette (First-ever bowl game)
BEEF ‘O’ BRADY’S BOWL
Florida International (2010)
Marshall (2009, 2004, 2002)
MAACO BOWL
Arizona State (2007, 2006, 2005)
Boise State (2010, 2009, 2008)
HAWAII BOWL
Nevada (2010, 2009, 2008)
Southern Miss (2010, 2009, 2008)
INDEPENDENCE BOWL
Missouri (2010, 2009, 2008)
North Carolina (2010, 2009, 2008)
LITTLE CAESARS BOWL
Western Michigan (2008, 2006, 1988)
Purdue (2007, 2006, 2004)
BELK BOWL
Louisville (2010, 2006, 2005)
NC State (2010, 2008, 2005)
MILITARY BOWL
Toledo (2010, 2005, 2004)
Air Force (2010, 2009, 2008)
HOLIDAY BOWL
California (2009, 2008, 2007)
Texas (2009, 2008, 2007)
CHAMPS SPORTS BOWL
Florida State (2010, 2009, 2008)
Notre Dame (2010, 2008, 2006)
ALAMO BOWL
Washington (2010, 2002, 2001)
Baylor (2010, 1994, 1992)
ARMED FORCES BOWL
BYU (2010, 2009, 2008)
Tulsa (2010, 2008, 2007)
PINSTRIPE BOWL
Rutgers (2009, 2008, 2007)
Iowa State (2009, 2005, 2004)
MUSIC CITY BOWL
Mississippi State (2010, 2007, 2000)
Wake Forest (2008, 2007, 2006)
INSIGHT BOWL
Iowa (2010, 2009, 2008)
Oklahoma (2010, 2009, 2008)
MEINEKE CAR CARE BOWL
Texas A&M (2010, 2009, 2007)
Northwestern (2010, 2009, 2008)
SUN BOWL
Georgia Tech (2010, 2009, 2008)
Utah (2010, 2009, 2008)
KRAFT FIGHT HUNGER BOWL
Illinois (2010, 2007, 2001)
UCLA (2009, 2007, 2006)
LIBERTY BOWL
Cincinnati (2009, 2008, 2007)
Vanderbilt (2008, 1982, 1974)
CHICK-FIL-A BOWL
Virginia (2007, 2005, 2004)
Auburn (2010, 2009, 2007)
TICKETCITY BOWL
Houston (2009, 2008, 2007)
Penn State (2010, 2009, 2008)
CAPITAL ONE BOWL
Nebraska (2010, 2009, 2008)
South Carolina (2010, 2009, 2008)
OUTBACK BOWL
Michigan State (2010, 2009, 2008)
Georgia (2010, 2009, 2008)
GATOR BOWL
Ohio State (2010, 2009, 2008)
Florida (2010, 2009, 2008)
ROSE BOWL
Wisconsin (2010, 2009, 2008)
Oregon (2010, 2009, 2008)
FIESTA BOWL
Stanford (2010, 2009, 2001)
Oklahoma State (2010, 2009, 2008)
SUGAR BOWL
Michigan (2010, 2007, 2006)
Virginia Tech (2010, 2009, 2008)
ORANGE BOWL
West Virginia (2010, 2009, 2008)
Clemson (2010, 2009, 2008)
COTTON BOWL
Kansas State (2010, 2006, 2003)
Arkansas (2010, 2009, 2007)
BBVA COMPASS BOWL
SMU (2010, 2009, 1984)
Pittsburgh (2010, 2009, 2008)
GODADDY.COM BOWL
Arkansas State (2005)
Northern Illinois (2010, 2009, 2008)
NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP
Alabama (2010, 2009, 2008)
LSU (2010, 2009, 2008)
