The Kansas State Wildcats and the UCLA Bruins will meet in the Valley of the Sun when they get down against one another in the 2017 Cactus Bowl. The intriguing match-up is slated to get started on Tuesday, December 29th at 9 p.m. EST. The game can be seen on ESPN for your late night college football fix. As of now, the Wildcats are a slight -2 point favorite and the contest’s total sits at 63.5.
The Kansas State Wildcats travel into Chase Field after closing out 2017 strong by winning four of their last five games. Head coach Bill Snyder’s bunch finished out the regular season with a 7-5 record to land them in the postseason. Kansas State was also 5-4 in the Big 12, putting them in a tie for fourth place.
The UCLA Bruins arrive here after having a 6-6 overall record. Unfortunately, their head coach Jim Mora Jr. will not be attending as he was fired before their final regular season game. Chip Kelly will be their new leader and Jedd Fisch will coach them up for the Cactus Bowl. If not for a last-second field goal to topple the Cal Bears 30-27, the Bruins would be at home watching the 2017 bowl season unfold.
Kansas State Wildcats (7-5)
The Kansas State Wildcats struggled on offense this year. A huge part of that was a knee injury to their team captain quarterback Jesse Ertz. Backup signal-caller Alex Dalton stepped for their next four games but also suffered a head injury. Before his demise, he completed 42 passes for 585 yards with two touchdowns and two interceptions. Lastly, third-stringer Skylar Thompson took over the reigns. In the three games that he was under center, he completed 63 percent of his throws for 662 yards with five scores and two picks. Dalton is still questionable for this match so it is unclear who will be in the starting role come game time.
Because of the injuries, the Wildcats tried to control the football with their rushing attack. Alex Barnes was consistently called upon to move the chains. In all, Barnes carried the football 134 times for a team-high 702 yards and six trips to the back of the end zone. The next three leading rushers were all three of Kansas State’s quarterbacks.
Three wide receivers did the best they could despite having three different players distributing the ball to them. Altogether, the trio brought in 102 passes for just under 1,700 yards and 13 touchdowns. Wideout Isaiah Gruber led the unit with 51 catches that were good for 510 yards and four scores. Byron Pringle was their big-play guy, catching 28 more for 705 yards and six touchdowns.
Defensively, the Wildcats were a lot like the Kansas State teams of the past. They were solid against the run but consistently struggled to stop opposing quarterbacks. That was their downfall in the pass-happy Big 12. The secondary finished out the season ranked 129th in the nation, allowing 310 yards a game through the air. The front seven was great, holding schools to 121 yards a contest which was good for 18th in the country. Overall, their defense conceded 25.8 points per battle (59th).
UCLA Bruins (6-6)
The UCLA Bruins are lucky to even be playing in the Cactus Bowl after squeaking out a victory in their final regular season affair. Interestingly enough, the Bruins were 6-0 in the Rose Bowl this year but were 0-6 everywhere else. Their pass-happy offense closed out the year as the fifth best in the nation, putting up 345 yards a game. This attack was led by junior quarterback Josh Rosen. Rosen’s numbers were solid, completing 282 passes for 3,717 yards with 26 touchdowns and 10 picks. He was injured in their 11th game but is listed as probable for the 2017 Cactus Bowl.
The Bruins may have been one of the best passing teams in the FBS but they couldn’t run the ball to save their souls. Running backs Bolu Olorunfunmi and Soso Jamabo only combined for 989 yards and 11 trips to the promised land. No other rusher even eclipsed 200 yards for the Bruins this year. The backfield finished out the season ranked 114th in the country.
Josh Rosen spread the ball around to four different wide receivers throughout the 11 games he participated in. The foursome was effective, racking up well over 2,800 yards of offense and 22 touchdowns. Junior Jordan Lasley had a spectacular year, bringing in 61 catches for 1,136 yards and eight scores. On the other side, teammate Darren Andrews was also a factor. He tallied 60 catches for 773 yards and a team-high 10 end zone nabs.
The UCLA Bruins and defense shouldn’t be mentioned in the same sentence together. The squad was downright porous in 2017. The front seven couldn’t stop a soul, letting teams put up 282 yards on the ground. The secondary was pretty much average considering schools took advantage of the Bruins weak front for most of their contests. Even so, they finished 40th in the nation, allowing 206 yards through the air. The end result was a Bruins’ defense that surrendered 36 points a game (119th).
Prediction
When these two programs were matched up in the 2017 Cactus Bowl, the first thing that came to my mind was points. I have to admit I chuckled a little at the 63.5 total. Here is why. The one thing that the UCLA Bruins can do effectively is to throw the football. The one thing the Kansas State defense can’t do is stop the pass. In fact, their one of the worst teams in the country at it. On the other hand, the one thing the Wildcats do is run the ball well. Of course, the Bruins couldn’t stop you or me in that department.
Combine the two and you have the makings of a high-scoring game. Take this over 63.5 and completely forget about the two-point spread. If neither of these teams is your favorite, who cares who comes out on top. The money is clearly best spent in this match-up’s over/under, the rest is just eye candy. If you put my feet to the fire, I’d say take the Wildcats because Bill Snyder will have them prepared and is also one of the best coaches in the nation.
To lay a wager on the 2017 Cactus Bowl, head over to BetDSI Sportsbook and sign up today.
Trends
The Wildcats are 2-7 ATS in their last 9 bowl games.
The Under is 4-1 in the Wildcats last 5 games in December.
The Bruins are 4-10 ATS in their last 14 games overall.
The Over is 5-1-1 in the Bruins last 7 non-conference games.
