Miami Football: How to watch, keys, prediction for Cheez-it Bowl

The 2020 Cheez-It Bowl features a battle between ranked teams and two dynamic offenses in Miami football vs Oklahoma State

The 2020 Cheez-It Bowl will feature two teams that at one point in this 2020 season, had playoff aspirations. Miami football and Oklahoma State have both had good seasons, but have been defined more by what happened in their losses than how they have done in their wins.

The Oklahoma State Cowboys suffered another blowout loss to their arch-rival Oklahoma in blowout fashion and Miami is trying to bounce back from their embarrassing loss to North Carolina. This is the only matchup of ranked teams in a non-playoff or New Years Six bowl and it should be a good one.

One thing to keep an eye on in this bowl game is who plays and who does not. Oklahoma State is dealing with the loss of star running back Chuba Hubbard, who opted out to prepare for the NFL draft after a bit of a disappointing season in 2020.

For Miami, the Hurricanes will be without their star pass rushing duo in Jaelan Phillips and Quincy Roche, who have also opted out to prepare for the NFL Draft. It appears for the time being that the Hurricanes will have quarterback D’Eriq King and tight end Brevin Jordan and that will be a big boost for the Hurricanes offense.

When you think of these two teams traditionally, you assume that Oklahoma State has the better offense and a bad defense and that Miami football has the better defense, but less explosive offense.

That is not the case in the 2020 Cheez-It Bowl. Oklahoma State’s offense suffers from inefficiency and turnovers, while its defense has been stingy all season long. Miami’s defense is best when the get a pass rush with Phillips and Roche, but with those two guys out, it could be a major concern against a passing attack that features an explosive weapon in wide receiver Tylan Wallace.

Here is how you can watch the 2020 Cheez-It Bowl.

Date: Tuesday, Dec 29

Time: 5:30, p.m. ET

Venue: Camping World Stadium

Location: Orlando, FL

TV: ESPN

Live Stream: WatchESPN and FUBO TV

Keys to Victory

For the Miami offense, the Hurricanes need to get off to a fast start and sustain drives to be able to keep their defense, who is missing their two best players, off the field.

In two losses to Clemson and North Carolina, Miami’s offense could not match the explosiveness that the opposing offense provided and it resulted in Miami getting blown out.

For the Miami defense, I would be concerned with loss of Phillips and Roche, as well as Oklahoma States ability to run the football.

Even without Chuba Hubbard, Oklahoma State is a pretty good team running the football and North Carolina gashed Miami consistently on the ground. Miami’s linebackers have been a bad unit all season and they will be tested again in this game.

For the Oklahoma State offense, not turning the ball over could determine whether they win or lose. In their loss to Texas, turnovers were the deciding factor and it has been an issue with quarterback Spencer Sanders in his time in Stillwater.

For the Oklahoma State defense, getting pressure on D’Eriq King will be key. Both Clemson and North Carolina got pressure without blitzing King and that affected Miami’s big play ability. The pass defense for the Cowboys has been solid all season, but mobile quarterbacks have given them trouble and King is one of the best in the country.

Betting Odds

All odds are provided courtesy of the Action Network.

Spread: Oklahoma State -3

Total: 58.5

Prediction

When first looking at this matchup, I think there are some things that favor Oklahoma State. Mike Gundy has done very well in bowl games and is a really good play caller, who will look to exploit Miami’s linebackers in the run game. Miami will be without their top two players on defense and the Cowboys defense has been solid all season. However, the only two quarterbacks Oklahoma State has faced that are the caliber of quarterback of D’Eriq King are Sam Ehlinger and Spencer Rattler, and the Cowboys struggled in both of those game. The Cowboys are turnover prone on offense and don’t have the capability that North Carolina has on offense. I think D’Eriq King will be the best player on the field and will lead Miami to victory in close game.

Final Score: Miami 27, Oklahoma State 24