If you're a fan of a lot of running the ball, you're going to love Military Bowl betting action this year, as 5Dimes Sportsbook presents all of the NCAA football gambling odds for the game between the Toledo Rockets and the Air Force Falcons.
It goes without saying that Air Force is going to run the heck out of the football. This is the only team that is still playing of the three service academies, so this is one of just two chances you will get to see the triple option at work in the bowl season (the other being with the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets).
This team averaged over 320 yards per game on the ground this year. RB Asher Clark rumbled for 1,096 yards and six TDs, while both RB Mike DeWitt and QB Tim Jefferson, Jr. found the end zone 10 times.
It seems a bit odd that Jefferson didn't even reach the 500 yard mark this year on the ground after running for almost 800 yards a year ago, especially considering the fact that this is his fourth year as the starting pivot in this offense. However, when you have 11 different players who have at least 100 rushing yards on the year and five more with at least 50 rushing yards, you don't necessarily have to do all that much.
Though Toledo's offense is a heck of a lot more conventional in the spread than Air Force's is, don't count it out. The Rockets average 493.9 yards per game, and though they rank No. 29 in the game through the air, they also rank No. 14 on the ground at 221.8 yards per game.
RB Adonis Thomas needs 45 yards on the ground to reach the 1,000 yard barrier on the year. Just like the Falcons, the Rockets will use a slew of backs. Thomas, RB Morgan Williams, and RB David Fluellen will all carry the ball at least a half dozen times.
Under center, expect to see a lot of both QBs Terrence Owens and Austin Dantin. They have very similar stats this year, but both are used effectively. Owens had 1,812 passing yards and 209 rushing yards, combining for 16 scores against three picks. Dantin had 17 scores against three picks and finished with 1,399 yards in the air and 193 more on the ground.
Air Force's offense hasn't had a ton of success in recent bowl games, which is why the Rockets are favored by three points at Bookmaker on the Military Bowl odds. Considering the fact that the average Toledo game this year has had over 73 points in it, the fact that the 'total' is set at 70 is no surprise.
