The New Year’s Six Bowls tend to provide more excitement during the bowl season, while top-level teams off the College Football Playoff pitch struggle. That may be the case again this season, and the Cotton Bowl between No. 6 in Oklahoma and No. 7 in Florida may end up being the best game of all, as it forms pairs of two teams that must be a big showdown for each other . The Sooners are one of the hottest teams in college football, winners of seven consecutive games and with a defense in the top ten in recent months. The Gators, for their part, have the best attack in the country with weapons across the field.
Oklahoma is looking for its first postseason victory since the 2017 Sugar Bowl against Auburn. The Sooners made it to the playoff semifinals in the past three years, but lost every time. Florida expects its third consecutive bowl victory under coach Dan Mullen, as well as its third consecutive season ending in the top 10 in the ranking at the end of the season.
Surprisingly, these two historically relevant programs only met once before this match. That was in 2009, when Tim Tebow and Urban Meyer took the Gators to their latest national championship over Sam Bradford and Bob Stoops at the Orange Bowl. Will the Gators get another victory over the Sooners in Texas? Let’s take a closer look at the clashes and storylines to follow before making some expert choices both upward and against spread.
Storylines
Florida: Dropouts have been a big part of the 2020 season, both in the regular season and in bowling. You can argue that no individual opt-out is greater for a team than tight end Kyle Pitts. In just eight games, Pitts accumulated 770 receiving yards – an average of almost 100 yards per game and 18 yards per reception – and 12 touchdowns. It was the book’s definition of a deficiency mismatch. He has the opportunity to be a big pick in the first round of the NFL, so his decision to leave early and skip the bowl makes sense. Kadarius Toney has emerged as a legitimate WR1, but he is also out. Trevon Grimes and Jacob Copeland too. Who will be the impact pass catcher in this game?
Oklahoma: Sooners’ defense appeared strong in the second half of the season, but Florida will be by far the most difficult attack they have faced. Oklahoma has a good balance of rush passes with strikers Ronnie Perkins and Isaiah Thomas, along with linebacker Nik Bonitto. Defenders Tre Brown and Brendan Radley-Hiles are making a tight cover on the side. Defensive coordinator Alex Grinch did an excellent job at turning the corner with this defense. Slowing the attack on Florida’s elite passes and putting pressure on quarterback Kyle Trask will be the key to victory.
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Viewing information
Games: Cotton bowl
Meeting: Wednesday, December 30 | Time: 8 pm ET
Location: AT&T Stadium – Arlington, Texas
TV: ESPN | Live broadcast: fuboTV (try for free)
Cotton Bowl prediction, choices
Most recent odds:
Florida Gators +7.5
Florida is one of the favorites for the field goal. The real test of whether Oklahoma will win is whether its defense is up to the challenge. Offensively, Oklahoma is still good, but a little less consistent than last year. Rhamondre Stevenson’s running back will be instrumental in controlling the game. Yes, there will be points scored, but the Oklahoma defense must do enough to keep things from getting too out of control. It may even be enough to achieve absolute victory. Choose: Oklahoma +3 | Oklahoma 37, Florida 34
So, who wins Florida against Oklahoma? And which side of the spread reaches almost 60% of the time? Visit SportsLine now to see which side is behind, all from the model in a 56-36 run on college football choices that were highly rated this season.