Champs Sports Bowl: Wisconsin vs. Florida State Preview

Two teams that had higher hopes in 2008 than the Champs Sports Bowl will hook up Dec. 27 at Florida Citrus Bowl. Wisconsin Badgers (7-5) of the Big Ten and the ACC’s Florida State Seminoles (8-4) will both be gunning for a bowl victory to soothe a disappointing season.

Oddsmakers currently have the Seminoles listed as 6-point favorites versus the Badgers, while the game’s total is sitting at 52.

Wisconsin needed overtime to beat Cal Poly 36-35 in their regular-season finale. Dustin Sherer had one TD strike and one interception in that game.

Drew Weatherford could only total 62 yards passing, while Jermaine Thomas rushed for one TD and 37 yards as Florida State lost 45-15 to Florida in Week 14.

The Seminoles did not cover the 17-point spread, while the combined score played OVER the posted total of 53.5.

Team records:
Wisconsin: 7-5 SU, 5-6 ATS
Florida State: 8-4 SU, 5-5 ATS

Wisconsin most recently:
When playing in December are 3-1
When playing on grass are 5-5
After outgaining opponent are 7-3
When playing outside the conference are 9-1

Florida State most recently:
When playing in December are 3-1
When playing on grass are 6-4
After being outgained are 6-4
When playing outside the conference are 7-3

A few trends to consider:
Wisconsin is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Florida State’s last 6 games
Florida State is 6-3 SU in its last 9 games