Cincinnati Bearcats vs. Louisville Cardinals Wasabi Fenway Bowl Betting Preview

The Cincinnati Bearcats and the Louisville Cardinals will travel to Boston to face off against each other in the Wasabi Fenway Bowl at Fenway Park on Saturday. 

The Bearcats come into this game at 9-3 after losing their last matchup with Tulane to keep them from making it to the American championship game.

Louisville ended the season at 7-5 and lost two of their last three games of the season against Clemson and Kentucky. 

They were about to take care of business at home against NC State to give them their seventh win of the season. Both teams will be playing without their head coaches from the regular season because Luke Fickell is heading to Wisconsin next season, and Scott Satterfield, from Louisville, will be heading to Cincinnati in 2023.

Let’s look ahead at this matchup between the Cincinnati Bearcats and Louisville Cardinals that was once the storied rivalry of the “Keg of Nails.”

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Odds

Louisville is the favorite in a game that is pretty equidistant for both teams to travel to. They are favored by two points and have odds of (-109) to cover that spread. 

The Bearcats, at +1.5, have odds of (-112) to cover the two-point spread. For the moneyline, the Bearcats have odds of (+102), and the Cardinals have odds of (-124) to win the game outright. The over/under for total points scored in the game is set at 39.5.

Keys To The Game

The main key for both teams will be the players who are playing (and not playing) in this game. Both teams have key players who are either out due to their declaration to the NFL draft or the transfer portal.

Star quarterback Malik Cunningham, lead running back Tiyon Evans, and their best receiver Tyler Hudson all declared for the NFL draft. They will also be without Trevion Coole And Jelen Mitchell at running back, who entered the portal after the end of the regular season.

Cincinnati is dealing with their own set of issues in terms of offensive personnel who are set to play in this game. Quarterback Ben Bryant is out for the season with injury so backup Evan Prater will get the start for the Bearcats. The Bearcats will also be missing their top six pass catchers from last season, including four wideouts and two tight ends who either went to the draft or transfer portal.

Expected Outcome

Your guess is as good as mine for what is going to happen in this game. The over/under is relatively low at 39.5, but maybe that is rightfully so. The impact to the defense is much less extensive on both sides than it was for the offenses. I’m going with Cincinnati to win, but that’s basically a shot in the dark with the rosters that will take the field on Saturday.