2021 Orange Bowl: How to watch, keys to victory, and a prediction

Texas A&M will face off against North Carolina in the 2021 Orange Bowl as both teams look to finish strong and gain momentum for next season.

The 2021 Orange bowl will have a team in Texas A&M that feels they should have gotten in the playoff facing off against an upstart North Carolina team that is looking to get its biggest win yet in the second Mack Brown tenure in Chapel Hill.

Texas A&M has been building toward playing in a game like this since they hired Jimbo Fisher away from Florida State and gave him all that guaranteed money.

This could be the final game for Aggies quarterback Kellen Mond and he is looking to close a long career in College Station with a big win in the Orange Bowl.

North Carolina had a good season and really finished the season on a high note with a 62-26 beatdown win over Miami and that victory earned the Tar Heels a spot in the New Years Six. North Carolina is led by a high scoring offense, but that offense will be without three of their key playmakers in running back Javonte Williams and Michael Carter and wide receiver Dazz Newsome.

All three players decided to opt out and prepare for the NFL draft and that is a big blow for a team that is so reliant on explosive plays from their offense.

Mack Brown has plenty of familiarity with Texas A&M as a program, having faced them annually when he was the head coach at Texas.

Brown is building a winner in Chapel Hill and he could use another win over the Aggies to really help the recruiting to help get North Carolina to that next level in the ACC. A win here for Fisher and the Aggies can show their progress towards competing with Alabama and Georgia for SEC titles

Here is how you can watch Texas A&M vs North Carolina in the Orange Bowl on Saturday.

Date: Saturday, Jan 2

Time: 8:00 p.m ET

Venue: Hard Rock Stadium

Location: Miami, FL

TV: ESPN

Live Stream: WatchESPN or FUBO TV

Keys to Victory

For the Texas A&M offense, establishing the run with star back Isaiah Spiller will be the key. North Carolina’s run defense is below average and one of the Aggies strengths and it will help keep the Tar Heels offense off of the field.

For the Texas A&M defense, getting pressure on North Carolina quarterback Sam Howell and forcing him to make mistakes will be the key. Without his top playmakers, North Carolina is going to rely on Howell to make good decisions and make plays and Howell has a tendency to to force plays and that is when he makes mistakes.

For the North Carolina offense, it will have to find a running back to step up and replace Williams and Carter, who were the best running back duo in the country. This offense works best when they can run to set up the deep pass and they will need someone to step up on Saturday day night.

For the North Carolina defense, stopping the run and forcing Mond to make plays will be the difference. Mond is talented, but when the game is put on his shoulders, he tends to struggle to make plays. This will be a big test for the Tar Heels run defense.

Betting Odds

All odds provided courtesy of the Action Network

Spread: Texas A&M -7.5

Total: 65.5

Prediction

North Carolina has had a good season, but missing their top three playmakers is going to be a lot to overcome. Texas A&M is a similar team to Notre Dame and the Fighting Irish handled North Carolina when they were at full strength. Howell is a terrific quarterback, but playing a top defense without your best playmakers is going to be too tall of a task. Give me the Aggies to win and cover.

Final Score: Texas A&M 35, North Carolina 20