California Golden Bears vs UNLV Rebels Prediction, Picks and Game Preview - 12/18/2024

Game Time: 9:00 pm ET, Wednesday, December 18, 2024

Venue:  SoFi Stadium, Inglewood, CA

Where to Watch:  ESPN

DraftKings:  Point Spread:  Cal -1.5, UNLV +1.5; Over/Under:  50.5 points

Bet365:  Point Spread:  Cal -1.5, UNLV +1.5; Over/Under:  50.5 points

BetMGM:  Point Spread:  Cal -1.5, UNLV +1.5; Over/Under:  50.5 points

California Golden Bears:  6-6 (2-6) (14th place, ACC)

UNLV Rebels:  10-3 (6-1) (2nd place, MWC)

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California Golden Bears:  lost their last game on the road against the SMU Mustangs 38-6.

UNLV Rebels:  lost their last game on the road against the Boise State Broncos 21-7.

California is entering this game with a 6-6 record overall and they have a 2-6 record in their conference games too. They are 4-3 in their home games, 2-3 in their road games, and they are also 0-0 in their neutral site games this season, but they will be at a neutral site for this game. They lost their last game against SMU 38-6. Chandler Rogers was the starting QB and he completed 8/15 passes for 84 passing yards, 0 touchdowns, and 0 interceptions. Jaydn Ott led the team in rushing yards with 37. Nyziah Hunter led the receivers with 85 receiving yards on 5 receptions. Teddye Buchanan led the defense in that game with 5 solo tackles and 2 assisted tackles while Ryan McCulloch led the defense in sacks with 1. No one on the defense came away with an interception for them in that one.

 

 

 

UNLV is entering this game with a 10-3 record overall and they have a 6-1 record in their conference games too. They are 4-2 in their home games, 6-1 in their road games, and they are also 0-0 in their neutral site games this season, but they will be at a neutral site for this game. They lost their last game against Boise State 21-7. Hajj-Malik Williams was the starting QB and he completed 13/28 passes for 110 passing yards, 0 touchdowns, and 1 interception. Kylin James led the team in rushing yards with 95. Corey Thompson Jr. led the receivers with 32 receiving yards on 2 receptions. Jackson Woodard led the defense in that game with 6 solo tackles and 4 assisted tackles while Fisher Camac led the defense in sacks with 1. No one on the defense came away with an interception for them in that one.

The current betting odds have UNLV listed as a 1.5 point underdog in this game according to Draftkings Sportsbook. UNLV has looked really good in their games this season with their 10-3 record overall and their 6-1 conference record which has them right near the top of the MWC and even got them to the MWC Championship. They lost to Boise State 21-7 and that was their 2nd loss to them this season, but they still had a great year and will be looking to end the year with a positive here. Meanwhile, California hasn't looked great in their games this season with their 6-6 record overall which was enough to get them to this LA Bowl, but their 2-6 conference record has them near the bottom of the ACC. Cal got most of their wins in non-conference games which this is going to be, but they struggled against better opponents in the ACC and haven't looked that good lately either. They looked terrible in their season finale too, losing 38-6 to SMU, and the only thing they really have going for them here is a slight home advantage with this bowl game being in California. That will help Cal since they were 2-3 in their road games this season, but Nevada isn't a far travel and UNLV played better in their road games this year with their 6-1 road record. UNLV lost in their conference championship, but they also lost to a playoff team with a Heisman candidate and they will be looking to bounce back from that loss. Odom has been building a good program here over the last 2 years and they have the talent to go toe-to-toe with this mediocre Cal team and win this game. The best way to place a bet here is on UNLV to cover the spread in this game.

California UNLV Prediction:  Our NCAAF Pick for Wednesday, December 18, 2024 (9:00 pm ET start time) is UNLV 28 California 21.

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California Golden Bears: 4-7 ATS when playing against a top-level team (Win Pct. > 75%). 4-8 ATS versus good rushing defenses - allowing 120 rushing yards/game or less. 3-6 1H ATS off a road loss against a conference rival. 10-5 OVER off a loss against a conference rival. 6-3 OVER after allowing 37 points or more last game. 8-3 OVER when playing against a top-level team (Win Pct. > 75%).

UNLV Rebels: 23-15 ATS in all lined games. 6-2 ATS when the line is +3 to -3. 11-2 ATS in non-conference games. 4-1 ATS after scoring 14 points or less last game. 6-2 OVER when the line is +3 to -3. 6-2 OVER off a loss against a conference rival. 9-3 OVER after 1 or more consecutive straight up losses.

California Golden Bears:  F. Mendoza (QB) Questionable - Illness. C. Uluave (MLB) Questionable - Undisclosed.

UNLV Rebels:  None.

“That was a difficult loss. We just didn't give ourselves a chance to win.” - Justin Wilcox after his team’s loss against SMU in their season finale. 

“I have been in championship games before and come up on the wrong end of them. But you continue to learn from them and move your organization forward and find a way to get back to a game like this and win it.” - Barry Odom after his team’s loss against BSU in the MWC Championship.

WR Hunter, Nyziah

WR Brady, Jonathan  

WR Grizzell, Trond

TE Endries, Jack 

QB Rogers, Chandler

RB Ott, Jaydn 

WR Cain, Casey

WR White III, Ricky 

WR De Jesus, Jacob

TE Ballungay, Kaleo

QB Williams, Hajj-Malik 

RB Thomas, Jai'Den

Passing: F. Mendoza (3004)

Rushing: J. Thomas (598)

Receiving: N. Hunter (578)

Touchdowns: J. Thomas (7)

Passing: H. Williams (1845)

Rushing: J. Thomas (843)

Receiving: R. White (1041)

Touchdowns: R. White (11)

Coaches:

California Golden Bears: Justin Wilcox (8th season)

UNLV Rebels: Barry Odom (2nd season)