AAA's VERY EARLY OUTBACK BOWL BLOWOUT (January 1st!)
(NCAAF) Wisconsin vs. Auburn,
Point Spread: -7.00 | -105.00 Auburn (Home)
Result: Loss
This is an 8* BLOWOUT on Auburn.

Some times a favorite is a favorite for a reason and in this case, I think Auburn should in fact be a much larger one. When the smoke clears at the end of this one, I expect the Tigers to have pulled away down the stretch for the comfortable ATS cover. Both teams had letdowns at the end of the season. The Badgers had seven straight wins when they entered the Big Ten title game on December 6th, outscoring opponents 280-123 in the process, but were destroyed 59-0 at the hands of the Buckeyes. Wisconsin was blind-sided four days later once again when coach Gary Andersen stunned the school with the announcement that he was going to Oregon State. The Badgers will be leaning heavily on RB Melvin Gordon, who was the Heisman Trophy runner-up, topping the nation in rushing yards per game and rushing TD's. Wisconsin also relies on its two-QB system of Tanner McEvoy and Joel Stave; note though that the duo struggled mightily vs. Ohio State, especially Stave (the passer), who was just 17 of 43 for 187 yards and three INT's. The Tigers finished 8-4 and were just 1-3 in their final four, losing 55-44 to Alabama on November 29th. In these types of Bowl games, "motivation" is always a factor that professional handicappers take into consideration and after Auburn redshirt freshman Jakell Mitchell was shot dead on December 14th, making him the fourth recent Auburn player to die in the last 2.5 years, suffice it to say, I think the Tigers will use the tragedy as a very serious rallying point on the field. Every player will be wearing Mitchell's No. 31 on their helmets for the game. Expect Auburn to also lean heavily on its star RB Cameron Artis-Payne, who finished with 1,482 yards rushing and 11 TD's, as well as QB Nick Marshall, who threw for 2,315 yards, 18 TD's and seven INT's while rushing for 780 yards and 11 major scores on the ground. Wisconsin was pretty good against the run, but was no doubt completely exposed by Ohio State last time out, I think the Tigers take a page out of the Buckeyes playbook today for sure. Wisconsin is down a coach, while Auburn is down a couple of key players. The bottom line is, despite missing a copule of players, I think the TIGERS are the more complete team on both sides of the ball and have no problem laying the points in this bowl.

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