\n| TV:<\/td>\n | ESPN<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\nGuaranteed Rate Bowl Predictions<\/h2>\nInterestingly, since the Big Ten began allowing multiple teams to appear in bowls starting in 1975, you\u2019d have though that maybe Minnesota and West Virginia would have run into each other before…but they haven\u2019t, with this the first-ever meeting!<\/p>\n It won\u2019t be the Mountaineers\u2019 first-ever game at the Arizona Diamondbacks\u2019 ballpark, however, having narrowly beaten local Arizona State 43-42 in bowl action on this diamond six years ago. Interestingly, that wasn\u2019t a spread cover for the Mountaineers, just like their seven other bowl appearances since 2012, though Neal Brown is responsible for only one of those spread losses (last year\u2019s narrow win and non-cover vs. Army in the Liberty Bowl), with Dana Holgorsen getting blame for the other seven.<\/p>\n Not a very encouraging sign, perhaps, for the Mounties, who are also going to battle at Chase Field minus key RB Leddie Brown (1065 YR), who will skip the bowl to prep for the NFL instead. Even with Brown, WVU barely got bowl-eligible, needing to beat Texas and Kansas (and it wasn\u2019t easy vs. the Jayhawks) to get to the required six wins.<\/p>\n Also potentially working against the Mounties in Phoenix is that offensive analyst Kirk Ciarrocca has been hired by…Minnesota (!)…as P.J. Fleck\u2019s new OC for 2022. Though it\u2019s a return engagement in Minneapolis for Ciarocca, who held the same title from 2017-19 with the Gophers before briefly moving to Penn State, then Morgantown, and his return has generated so much excitement in the Twin Cities that QB Tanner Morgan has already announced he\u2019ll return for a sixth season next fall. (And do you think Fleck might Ciarocca\u2019s brain just a bit for some info on the Mountaineers for this game?).<\/p>\n ![\"Guaranteed](\"https:\/\/www.wagertalk.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/minwvu.png\") <\/a><\/p>\nThere looks like a bit more to like here about Minny, which overcame a rash of injuries to the RB corps early in the season (including 1000-yard rusher Mo Ibrahim) to finish on a 6-2 SU run, with one of the losses a narrow 27-22 setback to Iowa in what ended up determining the Big Ten West, before upsetting Wisconsin to win back Paul Bunyan\u2019s Axe and deny the Badgers the division.<\/p>\n The best platoon on the field might be Fleck\u2019s defense which is only allowing 284.8 yards (ranks 4th nationally) and 18.3 points (ranks 9th) per game, which is going to be extra-tough for WVU QB Jarret Doege to solve…especially without his top threat Leddie Brown. Bowls have also been good lately for the happy-go-lucky Fleck, whose Gophers have throttled Georgia Tech and upset Auburn in their last two postseason excursions.<\/p>\n Interested in placing a bet on tonight’s Guaranteed Rate Bowl? BetMGM is offering a $1,000 Risk-Free Bet<\/a> for first-time bettors in New Jersey, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Indiana, Colorado, Tennessee, Iowa, Michigan, Virginia, Washington DC, Wyoming, Mississippi, Arizona and Louisiana.<\/em><\/p>\n
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