2021 Birmingham Bowl Betting

Head coach Dana Holgorsen had a rough start to his Houston career with a 7-13 combined record in the first two seasons. However, he and the Houston players engineered a big turnaround with an 11-2 record in 2021. Ranked 21st in the AP Top 25, the Cougars have made NCAAF bowl games in eight of the last nine years.

Houston’s season began with a rough 38-21 loss to Texas Tech. It then went on an 11-game winning streak, which ended with a 35-20 AAF Championship loss to No. 4 Cincinnati.

The Houston offense has fired on all cylinders this season It scores 37.3 points and gains 415.9 yards per game. QB Clayton Tune is the leader of this offense, having thrown for 3,263 yards and 28 touchdown passes. Receiver Nathaniel Dell is the biggest beneficiary of Tune’s passes, catching 80 balls for 1,179 yards and 12 TD’s.

The Cougars are solid defensively as well, holding opposing teams to 21.0 points and 298.0 yards per game. The latter stat ranks sixth in the nation. However, four of Houston’s games did see opposing teams go over 30 points.

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The Auburn Tigers are making their second appearance in the Birmingham Bowl. In 2015, Auburn coasted to a 31–10 victory over the Memphis Tigers. It has now made a bowl game for the ninth consecutive season. As indicated by its 6–6 record, which is barely bowl eligible, the Tigers’ regular season has been anything but smooth.

Under first-year head coach Bryan Harsin, the team started with a promising 6–2 record. However, Auburn has lost its last four games—including a heartbreaking 24–22 loss to No. 1 Alabama in quadruple overtime. It finished 3–5 in the SEC and is 3–1 in non-conference games. The team is hoping to snap both the four-game losing streak along with a two-game bowl losing streak.

The Auburn offense racks up 29.4 points and 405.4 yards per game, including 164.3 on the ground. RB Tank Bigsby leads the ground game with 1,003 rushing yards and 10 touchdowns. Other notables for this team include Tashawn Manning (LG), Josh Shenker (TE), Shaun Shivers (RB), and Roger McCreary (CB).

The Tigers gives up 22.2 points and 369.8 yards per game. Interestingly enough, Auburn outscored opponents by 7.2 points on average but still finished .500.

Unfortunately for the Tigers, starting QB Bo Nix will miss the game due to his transfer to Oregon. Nix passed for 2,294 yards, 11 touchdowns, and 3 interceptions on the season. Sophomore TJ Finley, who’s thrown for 600 yards and 5 touchdowns so far, will lead the Auburn players in Nix’s place.

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This bowl may not quite be a College Football Playoff (CFP) game. Nevertheless, Auburn vs Houston figures to draw lots of sports betting action. 888 Sport and William Hill - two of the quickest sportsbooks to release lines for this game—slightly favour Auburn. Both online sportsbooks will offer plenty of in-play betting opportunities throughout the contest too.

Birmingham Bowl Moneyline Odds

As you may know, the moneyline is a straight-up bet on which team will win a game. It handicaps the favourite and underdog in a way that encourages wagering on both sides. The moneyline bet/betting is the most-popular form of sports betting among many gamblers.

In this particular game, Auburn is a slight moneyline favourite at between -130 and -135. If Auburn is one of your college football picks this bowl season, then you’d want the -135 odds, which BetVictor is currently featuring.

Of course, Auburn is no lock to win this contest. It’s only 1–4 straight-up (SU) in its last five games this season. Houston, meanwhile, is 11–1 SU over its past 12 contests. But then again, the Cougars are only 5–11 SU in their last 16 games against SEC opponents.

Three out of the last four Birmingham Bowls have been decided by a touchdown or less. That said, this game makes for plenty of excitement. Below, you can see this bowl’s results over the past 10 seasons.

South Florida and Cincinnati have both won 2 games apiece out of the 14 Birmingham Bowls. Of course, the Bearcats won’t have a chance to add to their total because they’ll be in the CFP in January 2022.

If you’re looking to win cash on this game, then you’re in the right place. The following tips discuss some of the attractive lines that you can jump on.

Auburn -2.5

This point spread is slim, and the Tigers haven’t fared well in their last five games. Nevertheless, Auburn looks like a solid bet on the spread. It has gone 9-2 SU in its last 11 December games and 8-2 SU in its last 10 contests as the favourite.

Houston and Auburn Over 51.5

Earlier, we highlighted the quarterback problem that Auburn is facing. Nevertheless, we still like the over simply due to Houston. The over has prevailed in 5 out of the last 7 games that Houston has played as an underdog.

First Team to 10 (Houston Even)

Auburn (-140) is the favourite to reach 10 points here. These odds aren’t surprising when considering that the Tigers are favoured. However, the Cougars feature an explosive offense that puts up over 37 points a game. You should watch Clayton Tune earlier in this one since he has some great passing stats.

Will This Game Go to Overtime (+800 Yes/-2000 No)

These types of bets are always long shots. If you’re looking to win serious money, though, then you might want to take a stab at “Yes.” After all, Auburn played four overtimes in its last contest.