The best college football bowl bets come after Christmas

While there are some ugly matchups in the first week of the bowl season, we can look forward to unwrapping some great games after Christmas.

I am primarily an underdog bettor, but I will play a few favorites in the bowls. With so many more variables to consider, these games are challenging to handicap. Here are five of my best bets:

Military Bowl, Dec. 27

Wake Forest (+13½) over Temple: The Demon Deacons have been great as underdogs all season, covering five of six times. Their slow tempo tends to force high-powered offenses to play down to their level, as we saw with Clemson and Florida State. Wake has flown under the radar.

On the other hand, everyone has heard of the Owls’ ATS success. Temple covered 12 straight games after losing to Army on Sept. 2. This is where public perception and value come into play. For what it’s worth, the Owls will be without Matt Rhule, who left to become Baylor’s coach.

Alamo Bowl, Dec. 29

Oklahoma State (+3) over Colorado: This is the first bowl for the Buffaloes since 2007, and Mike MacIntyre never has coached in a bowl. Colorado had a tremendous season and finished 10-3 against the spread, but it dropped its past two ATS. The Buffaloes, who average 32.8 points per game, were trounced 41-10 by Washington in the Pac-12 championship game.

While we know the Big 12 has been criticized for not playing defense all season, and that is a concern, Oklahoma State’s defense is still one of the best. Quarterback Mason Rudolph will be the X-factor for the Cowboys. Rudolph, who passed for 25 touchdowns with four interceptions, has gone relatively unnoticed because of the success of Oklahoma’s Baker Mayfield. If Rudolph plays up to his standard, the Cowboys can win outright.

Orange Bowl, Dec. 30

Michigan (-6½) over Florida State: When this line first came out at 7, I thought it was high. It’s not. With coach Jim Harbaugh set to stay, the Wolverines will roll.

The Seminoles’ Dalvin Cook will face the best run defense he has seen all season. While laying a touchdown with a team that struggled offensively in its past two games seems like a bad idea, Michigan quarterback Wilton Speight will exploit a mediocre Seminoles secondary. Also, Florida State coach Jimbo Fisher has failed to cover in three straight bowl games.

Peach Bowl, Dec. 31

Washington (+15½) over Alabama: The Crimson Tide rolled to a 9-4 ATS record, so it’s no surprise this line has moved from 14 to 16½ in some spots. It could reach 17 by kickoff. But this line already is too high. Alabama coach Nick Saban has failed to cover three of his past four bowls, and I expect that trend to continue.

The Huskies and quarterback Jake Browning are being grossly underrated. They have four wins over ranked opponents by an average of 26 points. I will not bet on an outright upset, though, because Alabama is too good and anything less than a national championship would be a major disappointment for this team.

Cotton Bowl, Jan. 2

Western Michigan (+7½) over Wisconsin: I always love when smaller schools get matched against Power Five programs in bowls. The Broncos and coach P.J. Fleck have been a great bet in recent seasons, going 10-3 as underdogs since 2014. Western Michigan has covered its past six games outside the Mid-American Conference, including victories this season over Big Ten opponents Northwestern and Illinois.

Wisconsin’s defense allows only 15.5 points per game, but struggles against the pass. The Badgers allowed Penn State to throw for 384 yards in the conference championship game. Broncos quarterback Zach Terrell, who passed for 32 touchdowns with only three interceptions, will have an opportunity to produce a big game. Consider a money-line play at plus-250 or higher.

Kelly Stewart of Kellyinvegas.com is a sports betting contributor for the Las Vegas Review-Journal. Follow @kellyinvegas on Twitter.