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Read Full BioThe College Football Playoff continues on Thursday night when the Miami Hurricanes and Ole Miss Rebels meet in the semifinal round. ESPN has live coverage of the Fiesta Bowl starting at 7:30 p.m. ET.
Miami (12-2 SU, 9-5 ATS) defeated defending national champion Ohio State, 24-14. Ole Miss (13-1 ATS, 9-5 ATS) avenged its only loss during the regular season by defeating Georgia, 39-34, in the quarterfinal round.
DraftKings is dealing the Hurricanes as a 3.5-point favorite with a total of 52.5. The game is seeing strong two-way action with 51% of the spread handle and 58% of tickets on Ole Miss.
Best Bet Miami vs. Ole Miss: Against the Spread
Miami’s defense has allowed just 17 points in two CFP games, with wins over Texas A&M and Ohio State. The Hurricanes sacked OSU quarterback Julian Sayin five times and intercepted him twice.
But Ole Miss QB Trinidad Chambliss is much more mobile than Sayin, which could present problems for Miami. Ole Miss piled up 473 yards of total offense against a good Georgia defense. Chambliss finished with 362 passing yards and two TDs.
Former Georgia QB Carson Beck leads Miami. He was fairly quiet in the win over Ohio State, with just 138 passing yards and a touchdown. With Miami’s defense dominating the past two weeks, the question remains: Can it stop an Ole Miss offense that ranks second in total offense (496.2 yards per game) and 10th in scoring offense (37.6 points per game)?
The Hurricanes allow the fourth fewest points per game at 13.1, but we expect the more elusive Chambliss to be the difference on Thursday.
Pick: Ole Miss +3.5 (-118 at DraftKings)
Best Player Prop for Ole Miss
QB Trinidad Chambliss OVER 264.5 Passing Yards (-114 at FanDuel)
Chambliss and Co. will surely be watching the film of SMU’s 26-20 win over Miami. SMU quarterback Kevin Jennings mirrors Chambliss in many ways, and he torched Miami for 365 passing yards and a touchdown.
This game in a nutshell? If Ole Miss can protect Chambliss, or if he manages to routinely escape pressure on his own, the Rebels will win and vice versa. We’re betting on Chambliss, who’s exceeded this number of passing yards in five straight games dating back to early November.
Best Player Prop for Miami
WR Malachi Toney ATTD Scorer (+100 at FanDuel)
Malachi Toney leads the Hurricanes with eight receiving touchdowns, and he added one on the ground. If you haven’t seen the freaky fast freshman play, you’re in for a treat on Thursday night.
Toney has five TDs in Miami’s last five games, and we’re banking on him to find the end zone again at even-money odds.
