New Mexico and Hawaii are the only two teams who host their own bowl games, and the Lobos will bring in San Jose State for the first annual New Mexico Bowl. The Spartans haven’t made a bowl appearance in 16 years, but 2nd year coach Dick Tomey turned the program around to a 8-4 record this season.
San Jose State has played 5 games since the beginning of November and has looked impressive in all but a blow out against Hawaii. They took Boise State to the wire in a 3-point loss, but can run into problems offensively. The Spartans gain just 300 yards per game on average on the road.
New Mexico’s offense isn’t very high powered either as they average only 110 yards per game on the ground while putting up 22 points per game. The Lobos have only played 3 times since November 1st and will have been off for close to a month.
For our free pick in this one we are going to go with the UNDER. Both offenses have been struggling at times to put up points and this one appears a little high at 48.5. San Jose State is 6-0 UNDER the last two years on the road after allowing 14 points or less in their last game, and have gone UNDER in 9 straight overall this season. Don’t expect this one to be high scoring.
If you want to know which team is going to cover tonight’s game, take a look at what our expert handicappers have on tap for NCAA football bowl picks.
2006 New Mexico Bowl Best odds:
Northern Illinois +3.5 at Bodog
TCU -3 at BetCris
OVER 48.5 -109 at Pinnacle
UNDER 49 -115 at Bodog