It is officially bowl season and the first bowl game is the Bahamas Bowl at Thomas Robinson Stadium in Nassau. The 2022 Bahamas Bowl matchup is between the Miami of Ohio Redhawks and the UAB Blazers. This is an interesting matchup between two teams out of the MAC and C-USA conferences. The Bahamas Bowl is always an interesting game and the fact that we start off the bowl season with it makes it that much better. With that being said here is what I believe will happen in this bowl matchup.
UAB
UAB has had its ups and downs this season. They finished the season at 6-6 as they were horrendous away from home this season (1-5). However, this offense still put up some good numbers in 2022. They are ranked 12th in the country in rushing yards per game (243.4). This feat is is led by the nation’s leading rusher DeWayne McBride. McBride had 1,710 rushing yards to go along with 19 touchdowns. He averages 7.3 yards per carry and he is a focal point for this Blazer’s offense. Their starting quarterback Dylan Hopkins missed some time this season and the offense had to transition into a run-heavy offense. Defensively, the Blazers are solid against the passing game as they give up less than 200 passing yards per game and only give up an average of 23.4 points per game.
Miami of Ohio
Miami (OH) finished 6-6 on the season and had an interesting run in the MAC. The Redhawks had to win their last two games to become bowl eligible. They get to go to the Bahamas Bowl and there are some question marks for this team coming in. Brett Gabbert entered the transfer portal after only playing in four games, but has since changed his mind and is staying with Miami Ohio. Does he play? Does Miami Ohio start their backup Aevon Smith? We will have to wait and see.
Miami Ohio was one of the worst offenses in the MAC this year. They average 20.3 points per game and only put together 326.2 yards of total offense on average. Their best offensive player is Mac Hippenhammer, the red-shirt senior who had 52 receptions for 726 receiving yards and 8 touchdowns on the season.
Defensively, the Redhawks have a good run defense as they give up (on average) just under 136 rushing yards per game. The run is a big part of the UAB offense so the Redhawks will have to contain that if they want a chance to win this game. A big name for Miami Ohio that needs to step up is their leading tackler Ryan McWood.
Betting Trends
-Over is 3-1-1 in UAB’s last five bowl games.
–UAB 4-0 against the spread in their last four neutral site games.
-Redhawks are 4-0 against the spread in their last four bowl games.
-Miami of Ohio is 7-0 against the spread in their last seven neutral site games.
The Don’s Best Bet:
My best bet is the over 45 in this game at -110 odds. I think UAB offensively is going to dominate this game, but I do like Miami Ohio to put some points on this board. This game will finish with a 31-17 type of score game. I would lean the UAB line at -11, but I love this over. Start bowl season over right by cashing an over nothing better than that.