Utah vs California - College Football Odds

Utah is ranked 23rd in the country but they are underdogs in college football odds against California in the Poinsettia Bowl on Wednesday night at 8:00pm EST in a game that can be seen on ESPN. The Utes have won eight straight bowl games which is the longest streak in the nation and last season they upset Alabama in the Sugar Bowl. Utah finished third in the Mountain West this season behind TCU and BYU. This will be the second time in the last three seasons that Utah will be playing in the Poinsettia Bowl. California is a 3-point favorite in college football odds with a total of 52 at online sportsbooks.

The Bears come into this game off a bad loss to Washington in their season finale but they still have the respect of the college football odds makers against a Mountain West team. California was hoping to have running back Jahvid Best for this game but he has still not recovered from injury. Shane Vereen has done well in relief of Best though as he has rushed for 444 yards and four TDs in the last three games. He will be facing a Utah defense that struggles against the run, allowing 141.3 yards per game. Utah is tough against the pass though, allowing just 172.8 yards per game.

Utah is no stranger to playing tough teams so they should be ready for California on Wednesday night. "We look at it as another challenge," coach Kyle Whittingham said. "We've had a bunch of those BCS opponents over the last seven or eight years and our guys are prepared and looking for a chance to play these higher-profile teams. And Cal-Berkeley is certainly one of those teams." Utah had a 1,000-yard rusher and receiver in the same season for only the second time ever. Eddie Wide has 1,032 rushing yards and David Reed has 1,085 receiving yards. College football lines have Utah +3 as underdogs against California in the 2009 Poinsettia Bowl on ESPN.

The Bears have won their last four bowl games including 24-17 last year over Miami in the Emerald Bowl. Overall, Cal is 10-8-1 in the postseason, while Utah is 11-3. California has won four of the six all-time meetings against the Utes. The Utes are 6-1 ATS in college football betting for their last 7 bowl games. The Utes are 26-7-1 ATS in their last 34 games as an underdog. The Golden Bears are 5-2 ATS in college football odds for their last 7 non-conference games. The Golden Bears are 1-4 ATS in their last 5 games as a favorite. The Under is 7-2 in the Utes last 9 games overall. The Over is 5-1 in the Golden Bears last 6 Bowl games. The Over is 4-1-1 in the Golden Bears last 6 vs. the Mountain West.