2024 New Year’s Day Bowl Games Odds and Predictions

The 2024 New Year’s Day bowl games feature the most prominent matchups on the NCAAF bowl schedule, including both CFP Semifinals. We are analyzing the latest New Year’s Day bowl games odds, courtesy of the top College Football betting sites, and making our predictions for all five bowl games scheduled on the holiday.

What Bowl Games Are On New Year’s Day?

The following New Year’s Day bowl game odds are courtesy of Bovada:

The early afternoon New Year’s Day bowl games consist of three non-CFP matchups. The Cheez-It Citrus Bowl, which is a funny College Football bowl game name, and Vrbo Fiesta Bowl are part of the New Year’s Six Bowl series.

The ReliaQuest Bowl, formerly known as the Outback Bowl, will get New Year’s Day started in Florida at noon. At 5:00 p.m. ET, the first of two CFP Semifinal games will kick off with the Rose Bowl Game. 

Following Alabama vs. Michigan, Texas and Washington will collide at 8:45 p.m. ET in the Sugar Bowl for the right to play in the CFP National Championship game.

Best New Year’s Day Bowl Games Betting Sites

Before making our picks for the bowl games on New Year’s Day, let’s look at the best football betting sites for this traditional day of college football action.

Currently, Bovada is offering New Year’s Day college bowl game odds for every matchup on the board. In addition to superior odds, Bovada will be equipped with New Year’s Day live betting odds.

Bet on New Year’s Day bowl games in real-time as the game progresses after kickoff. This is a fantastic opportunity to find value and fine-tune your college football strategy on the New Year’s Day bowls.

Bovada accepts a wide range of deposit methods to get your money down on the big games. Additionally, you can get an exclusive free sports betting bonus by depositing at Bovada.

Deposit with your Visa or Mastercard and instantly score up to a $250 welcome bonus. As an extra bonus, deposit with cryptocurrency for up to a $750 welcome bonus to bet on New Year’s Day football at Bovada.

Ready to play at Bovada?

Visit Bovada

Wisconsin Badgers vs. LSU Tigers Odds

The ReliaQuest Bowl odds have shifted since opening at 10.5 points in favor of LSU. The line dropped to -7.5 two weeks later, but is back on the rise.

Despite Heisman Trophy winner Jayden Daniels announcing that he is bypassing the bowl game, LSU is a 9.5-point favorite to defeat Wisconsin.

Why? For one, the price was already baked into the odds. It was widely believed that Daniels wasn’t going to play in a non-CFP bowl game.

ReliaQuest Bowl Predictions

LSU will turn to third-year QB Garrett Nussmeier to fill in for Daniels. Nussmeier has spent three years on the bench in Baton Rouge. He has the talent to start at most programs in the country, but remained committed to the Tigers.

Last season, Nussmeier had an opportunity to be the starter. Ultimately, though, he was unseated by Daniels, who ran away with the QB1 job.

In three years, Nussmeier has passed for 1,325 yards, eight touchdowns, and six interceptions. Daniels will be missing, but his favorite weapon is playing in the ReliaQuest Bowl. Star receiver Malik Nabers announced that he is suiting up for the bowl game.

Nabers is the next great receiver to come out of LSU. The 6-foot standout hauled in 86 receptions for 1,546 yards and 14 touchdowns¹. The Biletnikoff Award finalist is set to do big things for the 9-3 Tigers in the ReliaQuest Bowl.

Aside from Daniels, LSU will retain most of its talent for the bowl game. Nussmeier is slated to have a strong performance against the 7-5 Wisconsin Badgers. Wisconsin lands in the ReliaQuest Bowl, but probably do not deserve a New Year’s Day bowl game.

The Badgers lost four of five games from October 4 to November 11 before finishing the season with wins against Nebraska, 24-17, and Minnesota, 28-14. Wisconsin doesn’t have the offensive prowess to keep up or the defensive talent to slow down the Tigers.

LSU is 6-0 ATS as a favorite in their last six games. Daniels skipping the ReliaQuest Bowl hurts, but not enough to prevent Nussmeier from consistently leading the top offense in college football down the field.

The Badgers will have to pass the ball, but Wisconsin’s QB Tanner Mordecai won’t have much success. Back LSU to cover by double digits over the Badgers.

Iowa Hawkeyes vs. Tennessee Volunteers Odds

Tennessee opened as 7.5-point favorites at the majority of sports betting sites. Currently, at Bovada, Tennessee is an 8.5-point favorite over Iowa.

If Volunteers’ QB Joe Milton announces that he is bypassing the Citrus Bowl to prepare for the 2024 NFL Draft, expect this line to move in favor of the Hawkeyes. Milton has been practicing with the team during the week, but hasn’t announced whether he’ll play.

Cheez-It Citrus Bowl Predictions

Tennessee finished 4-4 in the SEC and 8-4 overall this season. They had a topsy-turvy season that included some impressive efforts, but overall, it wasn’t what head coach Josh Heupel was looking for in Knoxville.

The Volunteers came up short in all of their signature matchups. They lost to Georgia, 38-10, Alabama, 34-20, and Missouri, 36-7. In a September trip to The Swamp, the Florida Gators upset the Volunteers by double digits, 29-16.

They did punish the likes of Vanderbilt, South Carolina, Connecticut, and UTSA. However, the Volunteers don’t have a marquee win on their resume. Narrow wins against Kentucky, 33-27, and Texas A&M, 20-13, don’t count².

If Milton doesn’t play, freshman Nico Iamaleava will get the start. Iamaleava is expected to have a promising future, but he’s only played in mop-up duty this season. Whether it’s Milton or Iamaleava, the offense will run into a physical Iowa defense.

Iowa went to the Big Ten Championship after a 10-2 season and 7-1 in the Big Ten. They didn’t do it with much offense, but the defense is one of the more physical units in college football. The Hawkeyes are fourth in the FBS, with 274.2 yards allowed overall per game.

Conversely, the Volunteers are 37th, with 349.5 yards allowed per game this season³. Tennessee wins games by throwing the football, but Iowa has a solid response with a Top 10 secondary. Iowa allowed an average of 8 points per game in their last six games⁴.

Iowa’s QB, Deacon Hill, will have solid support from the defense and benefit from an opportunistic field position. This is too many points to lay on the Vols.

Liberty Flames vs. Oregon Ducks Odds

Oregon is a heavy -850 favorite to beat Liberty in the Fiesta Bowl. The Ducks have an implied probability of 89.5 percent to defeat the Flames.

The Ducks opened as a 14.5-point favorite and the line has steadily risen. Heisman finalist Bo Nix indicated that he plans on playing in the Fiesta Bowl on January 1. The news has kept the odds overwhelmingly in favor of the Ducks.

Vrbo Fiesta Bowl Predictions

Many people believed that Nix was going to skip the Fiesta Bowl after losing to Washington in the Pac-12 Championship Game. However, Nix is expected to suit up, which doesn’t bode well for Liberty.

Nix had a Heisman resume for the Ducks this season. He passed for 4,145 yards, 40 touchdowns, and three interceptions on 77.2 percent completions. Nix also rushed for six touchdowns on the ground⁵.

Overall, Oregon was third in the nation, with an average of 510.6 yards per game. There were only two teams better in this regard than Oregon. LSU leads the nation while Liberty follows with 514.9 yards per game⁶.

The Flames rode the hot hand of QB Kaidon Salter to a perfect 13-0 campaign. Doing this against the likes of Buffalo, New Mexico State, and Old Dominion is much different than Oregon, though.

Despite playing in a loaded offensive conference like the Pac-12, Oregon played well defensively. They finished 26th in the FBS, with an average of 330.3 yards conceded per game. Liberty was just 42nd in defense after a straightforward Conference USA schedule.

Salter will make some plays, but this athletic Oregon defense will pose a much bigger challenge. With Nix returning for one final college game, expect the Ducks to be motivated.

At 9-3-1 ATS in 13 games, Oregon was a sharp bet this season. They should steamroll Liberty by at least three touchdowns in the Fiesta Bowl.

Alabama Crimson Tide vs. Michigan Wolverines Odds

Despite the controversy of putting a one-loss Alabama in the Playoffs, over an undefeated Florida State, oddsmakers have given the Crimson Tide the second-best odds to win the CFP National Championship. As the Rose Bowl odds indicate, Alabama is just slightly behind the favored Wolverines.

Rose Bowl Game Predictions

Nick Saban and Alabama will garner plenty of support from public bettors in the Rose Bowl Game. It was not an easy road to the CFP, though. On September 9, Texas shocked Alabama with a 34-24 win in Tuscaloosa.

That wasn’t the only mishap that Alabama had this season. They didn’t lose any more games, but there was some turbulence. None larger than the Iron Bowl against the Auburn Tigers. Saban and company were down to one play in the final seconds on 4th and goal from the 31-yard line.

QB Jalen Milroe found Isaiah Bond in the corner of the end zone to defeat Auburn, 27-24. That wasn’t the only narrow call for Alabama this season. They beat Arkansas and Texas A&M by single digits and were weak in a 17-3 win over South Florida in September⁷.

We know it’s about peaking at the right time, but Alabama has looked vulnerable on more than one occasion. The key for Alabama will be Milroe’s performance against Michigan’s vaunted defense.

The Wolverines are second in overall team defense and in the secondary. They’ve conceded an impressive 152.6 yards passing per game in 2023⁸. Can Milroe get it done through the air? That will be the key to the Rose Bowl Game.

Michigan’s J.J. McCarthy possesses sneaky-good arm talent. He’s passed for 2,630 yards, 19 touchdowns, and four interceptions on 74.2 percent completions. Additionally, McCarthy has underrated mobility as a runner. The Crimson Tide are 26th against the pass, with 195.6 passing yards allowed per game.

After three straight Big Ten titles, and wins over Ohio State, the Wolverines will be asked to overcome recent struggles in the CFP. Michigan’s secondary should be the difference this time around, as they force Milroe into a couple of timely mistakes.

Texas Longhorns vs. Washington Huskies Odds

For the first time ever, Texas and Washington are in the College Football Playoffs. It’s definitely one of the most unlikeliest CFP matchups to take place.

The Longhorns have opened as more than a field goal favorite in the Sugar Bowl. Since then, the odds have remained unchanged at -4 in favor of the Big 12 champs.

Allstate Sugar Bowl Predictions

If you want a high-scoring shootout, Texas and Washington fit the bill. There should be plenty of points on the scoreboard in a potential duel between Quinn Ewers and Michael Penix Jr.

Ewers and Texas were nearly perfect after a 12-1 season and 8-1 in the Big 12. Texas’ lone loss came in the Red River Rivalry game against Oklahoma. Despite the loss to the Sooners, Texas has a huge win over Alabama and the Big 12 Championship on their resume.

Head coach Steve Sarkisian and the Longhorns were able to learn from the loss to Oklahoma and win their next seven games, including impressive blowouts over Texas Tech, 57-7, and Oklahoma State, 49-21.

The extended break should help Texas immensely. Star receiver Xavier Worthy hurt his leg in the Big 12 Championship, but will be back for the Sugar Bowl. Adonai Mitchell, Ja’Tavion Sanders, and Worthy make this a tough offense to stop downfield.

Texas is ninth in offensive yards per game, while Washington is tenth behind Penix Jr. Washington played against high-powered offenses in the Pac-12, but overcame them to finish 13-0 and capture the Pac-12 title.

However, they haven’t faced a defense like Texas that can take away the run. Penix Jr. excels when Dillon Johnson is running hard on the ground. The Longhorns have the front seven to limit Johnson in the box.

Texas is fourth in the nation, with 81.1 rushing yards allowed per game⁹. Penix Jr. should come up with some highlight reel plays, but he needs a running game to do it for all four quarters. The Longhorns can score at will in this matchup. While the Huskies should have their moments, they’ll hit walls in the form of Texas’ defense.

Texas’ offense is currently in top form and has the better defense, most notably in the trenches. Penix Jr. hits the Texas secondary with a few big plays, but it won’t be enough. Ewers outshines Penix Jr. and earns a trip to the CFP National Championship.