College Football Bowl Game Anytime Touchdown Scorer Picks (Friday)

by Austin MacMillan |
Dec 29, 2023

We inch closer one day closer to the kickoff of the College Football Playoff, but first we have another full slate of bowl games being capped off by a really intriguing matchup in the nightcap with Ohio State taking on a highly motivated Missouri team.

Today's plays are mostly about relying on stars, headlined by Kentucky running back Ray Davis and Missouri wide receiver Luther Burden III, though I'm also taking another shot at a Defensive/ST touchdown in a game that features almost nothing to get excited about on the offensive side of the ball in the Notre Dame vs Oregon State game. Yesterday we cashed in three out of the four games on the slate, so let's stay hot and have a repeat performance in today's games.

Get instant alerts when a line reaches your target via the BettingPros App >>

Fridayâ€™s Best CFB Touchdown Scorer Picks

Kentucky vs Clemson - TaxSlayer Gator Bowl - 12:00 PM EST

Kentucky

RB Ray Davis Anytime TD Scorer (-120 @ FanDuel); 2+ TDs (+410 @ FanDuel)

I'm using an escalator strategy with this prop, taking Kentucky running back Ray Davis to find the end zone at least once and then sprinkling a little extra on him to score twice. Davis was an absolute workhorse this year, carrying the rock 186 times for 1,066 yards and 13 rushing touchdowns. He did damage in the passing game as well, catching 29 balls on the season for 317 yards and tacking on seven more touchdowns.

The Clemson team he'll be up against is littered with opt outs on the defensive side of the ball, and I see Kentucky as the far more motivated team to play in this bowl game. We also saw the Tigers lay an egg in the Orange Bowl this past year against a Tennessee team that had "nothing to play for" and I think we could be in for a repeat performance today. Davis is going to have plenty of opportunities to touch the ball today, and I like this escalator as a way to bet on him.

Notre Dame vs Oregon State - Tony the Tiger Sun Bowl - 2:00PM EST

Notre Dame

Notre Dame D/ST Anytime TD Scorer (+475 @ DraftKings)

This game might take the cake for the longest laundry list of opt outs in the entire bowl season, especially on the offensive side of the ball. Both sides will be missing their starting quarterbacks (Oregon State will be down their top two), starting running backs, several pass catchers and offensive linemen. If it wasn't for Iowa, this would have the lowest total set in a game for the remainder of the bowl season at 41.5, and I think the play will be reflective of that notion.

I have no idea who is going to make plays on either side of the ball, and I have no idea how each team's quarterback is going to get those potential playmakers the ball. I think that ND's defense should at least have the upper hand in this matchup and I think they'll be able to create some turnovers on Oregon Stateâ€™s third-string quarterback, so I'm rolling the dice that they'll be able to generate points of their own. There's also a "No TD Scorer" prop at DK for +6500 that I think absolutely has legs in this game as well.

Iowa State vs Memphis - AutoZone Liberty Bowl - 3:30 PM EST

Iowa State

WR Jaylin Noel Anytime TD Scorer (+100 @ DraftKings)

Quarterback Rocco Becht was a revelation for this Iowa State team that absolutely nobody believed in prior to the start of the season when you take into consideration the sports gambling infractions that had to be dealt with. And wide receiver Jaylin Noel was his favorite target. Noel caught 60 balls for 741 yards and a team-high six touchdowns receptions. He'll be up against an extremely susceptible Tigers defense that conceded 29 PPG to their opponents and ranked third-worst in the AAC at defending the pass that will also be working with some defensive replacements in the secondary for this game. It might come down to a coin flip between Noel and his running mate Jayden Higgins on which wideout finds the end zone, but I wouldn't be surprised to see both find paydirt and I'll take Noel as Becht's favorite target at plus money as my best bet for this game.

Ohio State vs Missouri - Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic - 8:00 PM EST

Missouri

WR Luther Burden III Anytime TD Scorer (+125 @ DraftKings)

The Missouri side is really the only side you can look at for an anytime touchdown scorer prop at the moment, because there's so much in flux on the OSU sideline as to who will and who will not be active for this game. Missouri, however, will pretty much be rolling out their season-long starters, and head coach Eli Drinkwitz has made it very clear that he and his team want this win badly. With that being said, I'm looking at Luther Burden III as the best wide receiver on the field to score a touchdown in this game, which might surprise the more casual fans to learn that he resides on the Tigers sideline.

Burden caught 83 balls this season for just shy of 1,200 yards and eight receiving touchdowns, far and away the favorite target of Missouri quarterback Brady Cook. Yes, the OSU defense proved to be one of the best in the nation on a weekly basis, but they will likely be working with a skeleton crew on the defensive side of the ball due to opt-outs and transfers. I think that leads to miscommunication and broken coverages with inexperienced players in the secondary, and I think getting Burden to score a TD at plus money is an insane price.

Make sure to check out our other best bets for Friday:

Navigate