Quick Picks with Coach Rick Bowe, CFB/NFL Picks, CFB/NFL Free Picks, CFB/NFL Predictions 12/28/24

Quick Picks with Coach Rick Bowe, CFB/NFL Picks, CFB/NFL Free Picks, CFB/NFL Predictions 12/28/24

POP-TARTS BOWL

IOWA STATE vs. MIAMI (MIA -3.5, 58)

OVER 58

Miami blew a shot at the College Football Playoff when they lost their regular season finale to Syracuse. Iowa State was eliminated from the CFP when they lost in the Big 12 championship game to Arizona State. Which team will be more motivated today? That's a tough one to answer, but Miami QB Cam Ward is going to play today.

Ward is expected to be the No. 1 pick in next year's NFL draft. He is a big part of why Miami led the nation in scoring and total offense and had the nation's No. 2 passing attack. The reason why the 'Canes are not playing for a national title is its defense. Miami gave up 30-plus in 5 of its last 8 games.

Iowa State QB Rocco Becht has two 1,000-yard receivers. The Cyclones averaged over 30 points per game this season. Eleven of Miami's last 15 games have gone Over the total. This game total opened at 52 before climbing all the way to 58 (58.5 at some sportsbooks).

MILITARY BOWL

EAST CAROLINA vs. NC STATE (NCST -7.5, 60.5)

EAST CAROLINA OVER 23.5

It's been a tale of two seasons for East Carolina. The offense was listless as the Pirates started the season 3-4. Then, they fired head coach Mike Houston and Blake Harrell took over. ECU finished the season 4-1 with an offense that scored 56, 49, 38, and 40 points in its last four wins.

NC State is a pretty decent defense. The Wolfpack rank No. 21 in Rush Success Rate and 12th in Defensive Havoc, but they will not have defensive coordinator Tony Gibson today. Gibson will be the new head coach at Marshall. Not having Gibson on the sideline today is going to affect the Wolfpack defense. That's why I like ECU to hit this team total.

LA CHARGERS @ NEW ENGLAND (LAC -6, 42.5)

JUSTIN HERBERT UNDER 0.5 INTERCEPTIONS

It's pretty simple. If the Chargers win today, they are in the AFC playoffs. New England's season has long been over and the Patriots have now lost five in a row. They have allowed 144 or more rushing yards in each of their last three games and the Chargers will likely take advantage of the Patriots 24th-ranked run defense.

The Chargers are down to the bottom of the barrel as far as RBs are concerned, but their offensive line should dominate the line of scrimmage. That will allow the Chargers to run the ball successfully and allow LA to protect QB Justin Herbert. He has thrown just 3 INTs all season long. He threw one in each of the last two games. Prior to that, Herbert had a stretch of 11 straight games without an interception. With a run-heavy game script and clean pockets today, I like Herbert to get back on track against a defense that has just 7 picks all season.

Ylose expert Coach Rick Bowe delivers his daily Quick Picks. The Coach continues to roll up big wins in MLB, college football, the NFL, and much more. Coach Rick offers a unique perspective to handicapping. Check out his daily free picks right here and jump on his daily Best Bets, which you can find right here at Ylose.com/coach.