Las Vegas Bowl Betting Guide: Arizona State Sun Devils vs. Wisconsin Badgers

The Arizona State Sun Devils and Wisconsin Badgers will have a tough act to follow after a thriller when the teams last met in 2013.

Wisconsin was in field goal position with less than 30 seconds left to play, but on a play when the Badgers downed the ball seemingly with enough time to run another play and kick a field goal, chaos ensued. An Arizona State player fell on the ball after Wisconsin had downed the ball. The officials didn’t add any extra time and the final 15 seconds ran off the clock.

Some information that might be of interest to those who bet online: Arizona State averaged nearly 31 points in its eight wins and went 7-0 when scoring at least 30 points but put up only 17.3 points in the four losses.

The Sun Devils have lost three of their last four bowl games

Wisconsin fell short of its expected win total of 9½ and failed to make the Big Ten title game despite having the best odds to win the conference’s West Division coming into the season.

Arizona State Sun Devils vs. Wisconsin Badgers

• Game: Arizona State (8-4) vs. Wisconsin (8-4)
• Location: Allegiant Stadium
• Day/Time: Thursday, Dec. 30, 10:30 p.m. ET
• Television: ESPN

Betting Lines

Tough Challenge Arizona State’s White

Rachaad White ended the 2020 season by running for 133 yards and 158 in wins over Arizona and Oregon State. He averaged 10 yards per carry and 105 yards per game, but the Sun Devils only played four games due to COVID, ending Arizona State’s streak of having a 1,000-yard rusher at three.

White got off to a bit of a slow start and was held under 75 yards in five of the first seven games. Since missing the Washington State game, the Arizona State coaches returned to building the offense around White.

It started with season highs of 28 carries and 202 rushing yards in a win over Southern California, followed by 184 yards as the Sun Devils defeated Washington to clinch a winning season. White had five touchdown runs in those two games. After only getting 15 carries in a loss at Oregon State, he ran for 98 yards as the Sun Devils topped rival Arizona 38-15 in the regular-season finale.

White is also featured in the passing game and is second on the team with 43 catches, just one behind Ricky Pearsall. He could have a tough test as Wisconsin leads the country in rushing defense, allowing just 61.1 yards per game. The 2.0 yards per carry allowed is also the best mark in the country.

Wisconsin has allowed only 16 rushing plays of at least 10 yards. Not only is that the best mark nationally, but the next closest team is Air Force at 33.

Arizona State has covered in just two of its last six games against the college football spreads.

Three Players to Watch

Running back White has rushed for 1,006 yards and is second on the Sun Devils with 43 catches. Quarterback Jayden Daniel is the second-leading rusher with 670 yards. Linebacker Kyle Soelle leads the team with 82 tackles.

Injury Report

Tight ends Jalin Conyers and Curtis Hodges, defensive backs Evan Field and Willie Harts and offensive lineman Henry Hattis are questionable. Defensive back Jack Jones opted out of the bowl game after entering the NFL Draft. Tight end Jake Ray and receiver Johnny Wilson are out. Jones is one of three Arizona State players with three interceptions.

Safety Evan Fields, linebacker Darien Butler and tight end Jalin Conyers who all missed the last couple of games or more for the Sun Devils are all back practicing today.

— DevilsDigest.com (@DevilsDigest) December 14, 2021

Wisconsin: Freshman Allen Sparks Ground Game

With the presence of Chez Mellusi, highly touted true freshman Braelon Allen had a chance to ease into life as a Big Ten running back. He has 12 carries in Wisconsin’s first four games, but when Mellusi was lost for the season due to injury, Allen took over the lead-back role.

Allen had seven straight 100-yard rushing games, including 228 in a win over Nebraska. The streak ended when he was held to 47 points in a loss to Minnesota that denied Wisconsin a chance to play in the Big Ten Championship Game.

Allen enters the bowl game with 1,109 yards while averaging 7.1 yards per carry. Four of his six catches came in the regular season, so perhaps Allen might see more work in the passing game in the bowl game than Badgers backs usually get.

Arizona State’s rushing defense numbers look pretty solid, but the Sun Devils did allow 237 yards in a loss to Oregon State, 208 yards in a loss to Utah and 198 yards in a win over UCLA.

Wisconsin has covered against the college football odds in four of its last six games.

Three Players to Watch

Running back Braelon Allen has rushed for 1109 yards and 12 touchdowns and is set to follow in the footsteps of elite Wisconsin running backs. Linebacker Leo Chenal leads Wisconsin with 106 tackles, including 17 or loss. He is also tied for the team lead with seven sacks. Linebacker Jack Sanborn has 14.5 tackles for loss.

Injury Report

Receiver A.J. Abbott, running back Jackson Acker, linebackers Spencer Lytle and Marty Strey are questionable. Tight ends Clay Cundiff, Hayden Rucci and Cam Large, running backs Che Mellusi, Quan Easterling and Isaac Guerendo, cornerback Deron Harrell and linebacker Aaron Witt are out.

Betting on the Game

Wisconsin leads the Big Ten with 81 tackles for loss

Arizona State is second in the Pac-12 with 15 interceptions including three returned for touchdowns. The Sun Devils are 10th in the Pac-12 in red zone offense, getting points on 39 of 49 trips to the red zone. They are also 10th in red zone defense as opponents have scored on 36 of 41 trips.

Arizona State has covered against the Las Vegas odds in eight of its last 10 games against Big Ten teams.

Wisconsin has lost five of its last six games against teams from the Pac-12 Conference.

The total has gone over in four of the last six games when Wisconsin was listed as the favorite. The total has also gone over in four of the last five games when the Sun Devils were listed as the underdog.