Betting on the Cotton Bowl

This year, the 81st Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic will be remembered as the first time in the game’s history that it was guaranteed to feature a team from the Group of Five. Here’s a great alternative for sports bettors to start the new year, betting on the Cotton Bowl.

Broncos: Western Michigan is making only its eighth bowl appearance.

The Broncos posted their first bowl victory last season over Middle Tennessee, 45-31 in the Bahamas Bowl. This marks their second postseason game in the Lone Star State.

Badgers: Wisconsin has played in 27 bowl games, including 15 consecutive, the longest streak in the Big Ten.

After four straight losses, they have won their last two — over Auburn in the Outback Bowl and USC in the Holiday Bowl.

The Badgers are 2-0 in bowl games in Texas. They beat UCLA, in the 2000 Sun Bowl, 21-20, and Colorado in the 2002 Alamo Bowl, 31-28.

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So we have an undefeated underdog, Western Michigan (13-0), taking on Big Ten runner-up Wisconsin (10-3) on Monday at AT&T Stadium. It will be the first time a non-Power Five team has played in the Cotton Bowl since BYU in 1997.

The Western Michigan Broncos were the only Division I team besides Alabama to finish the regular season undefeated, winning the MAC Championship with a 13-0 straight up and 9-4 against the spread record. The Broncos hope to put the finishing touches on this dream season with an upset win over the Wisconsin Badgers in the Cotton Bowl.

Western Michigan is a 7.5-point average underdog in online sportsbooks. The team has won each of its last 15 games and is 11-4 ATS over that stretch.

Broncos quarterback Zach Terrell was nothing short of sensational this season, passing for 3,376 yards and 32 touchdowns with just three interceptions. The senior has had an illustrious career for Western Michigan, but is just now finding his way into the limelight on the heels of the team’s undefeated season. Western Michigan’s schedule was obviously soft playing in the Mid American Conference, but the Broncos did everything they could to prove they were the real deal in winning their 13 games by an average margin of 24.1 points per game.

In Western Michigan’s last 13 games as a betting underdog, the Broncos are 11-2 ATS and 7-6 SU. The Broncos are 7-3 SU in their last 10 games as an underdog of 10 points or less.

Wisconsin finished the regular season ranked fourth in the nation in scoring defense, allowing 15.5 points per game, but the defense enters this bowl game on a low note. The Badgers failed to capture the Big Ten Championship despite holding a 28-7 lead in the second quarter, eventually losing 38-31 to Penn State and giving up 384 passing yards.

Monday’s total is set at 52.5 points. The OVER is 10-3 in Wisconsin’s last 13 games coming off of a loss as a favorite.

The big challenge for Western Michigan in this game will be winning the battles on the lines. The Broncos have excellent speed and skill in the open field, but that won’t matter if the Badgers are able to impose their will in the trenches. Sign up at Heritagesports.eu and earn more money, betting on the Cotton Bowl.