The Ohio Bobcats and Georgia Southern Eagles put together a pair of extreme seasons. The Bobcats ranked sixth in points allowed per game (15.9) but 94th in points scored per game (22.5). Meanwhile, the Eagles ranked 37th in points scored (30.6) but 106th in points allowed (32.3). This matchup figures to be an intriguing one — albeit much less interesting following the opt-outs by several key players. Let’s dive into this Ohio-Georgia Southern pick and prediction for this year’s Myrtle Beach Bowl, which is my college football lock of the week. If you’re looking for more guide to betting on football.
College Football Lock of the Week: Best Myrtle Beach Bowl Bet
Myrtle Beach Bowl Odds
Odds via bet365
Georgia Southern: -180 | Ohio: +150
Georgia Southern -3.5: -122 | Ohio +3.5: -110
Over 48: -110 | Under 48: -110
Expert: Isaiah Sirois
Time: Saturday, Dec. 16 at 12 p.m. ET
Ohio-Georgia Southern Prediction
The Ohio Bobcats have had a bad start to the offseason. Quarterback Kurtis Rourke, running back Sieh Bangura, running back O’Shaan Allison and wide receiver Miles Cross all entered the transfer portal. While there is some chance they show up at the Myrtle Beach Bowl, I don’t believe it to be very high. Backup quarterback C.J. Harris is also out for the year.
The five players named above combined to generate 89.8% of Ohio’s rushing yards and 46.3% of the team’s receiving yards. Rourke and Harris ed for 97% of all attempts in the offense as well. The portal comes for all, but Ohio has been especially brutalized.
No noteworthy players from Georgia Southern have entered the portal so far. That means head coach Clay Helton will get to work with the same cast of players he had all season. Things weren’t always great in Statesboro this year — the offense ranked 60th in expected points added (EPA) per play while the defense ranked 84th — but they were good enough to produce a 6-6 record and bowl eligibility.
Georgia Southern enters the Myrtle Beach Bowl on a four-game losing skid that saw them eliminated from title contention in the Sun Belt, but Helton should be able to re-motivate this group, especially with much of the team staying intact. This is Helton’s second year in Statesboro, but he is still looking for his first bowl victory with the program and since his firing from USC in 2021.
Ohio head coach Tim Albin has a much more difficult task in front of him. Building a game plan around career backup Parker Navarro, who has 24 collegiate ing attempts as a graduate transfer, won’t be easy. Motivating a group that wanted a conference title won’t be easy, either. Albin even conceded that winning the game wouldn’t be the team’s “only motivation” in his press conference.
The spread for Saturday’s Myrtle Beach Bowl has been in flux since Rourke’s announcement. The Bobcats opened as a 2-point favorite but have been bid down to a 3.5-point dog. This raises the simple question of how much Rourke, Bangura, Allison and Cross should be worth to the spread. I say just over a full touchdown, so I’m willing to buy the Eagles up to 5.5-point favorites. You could still get them at 3.5 across the market as of publication.
