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2009 Liberty Bowl Predictions – Kentucky v. East Carolina Football Odds & Picks

The East Carolina Pirates are playing in their first January Bowl game in 17 years and are hoping for a win against Kentucky to put the icing on the cake of one of their best seasons in recent history. A win over Kentucky in the January 2nd Liberty Bowl would give the Pirates their first 10-win since 1991 and that’s what the odds makers have figured. East Carolina is a 3-point favorite with the total set at 41.

East Carolina got off to a fantastic start this season with a pair of wins over top 25 teams Virginia Tech and West Virginia. West Virginia has already played and won its bowl game and the Hokies will be playing in the Orange Bowl on New Year’s Day. The Pirates finished the season 9-4 and rose as high as No. 14 in the polls before dropping three straight games. It finished the season strong with six wins in its last seven games, including a 27-24 win over Tulsa in the Conference USA title game. The win gave the Pirates their first conference crown since 1976 when they won the Southern Conference. East Carolina will be making its third straight bowl appearance. It defeated Boise State 41-38 in the 2007 Hawaii Bowl and lost to South Florida in the 2006 Papajohn’s.com Bowl. This is East Carolina’s first January bowl game since a 37-34 win over N.C. State in the 1992 Peach Bowl. The Pirates recent success can largely be attributed to the fine job of coach Skip Holtz, who has decided to stay despite speculation that he might flee for a higher profile gig.

East Carolina’s numbers won’t wow you but they just find ways to win football games. They rank 83rd in the nation in total offense with 336.0 yards per game and 78th in points at 23.8 per game. QB Patrick Pinkney threw for 2,379 yards, 12 touchdowns, and seven picks. He completed 62.7 percent of his passes and threw for at least 200 yards seven times. If you like the Pirates to continue to find ways to get the job done, bet East Carolina at -3 at Bookmaker and receive a 20% cash sign up bonus.

The 6-6 Wildcats were not expected to be as good as they have been the past two seasons, but they managed to go bowling once again. They will be asked to win this game with backup QB Mike Hartline as starter Randall Cobb underwent knee surgery in early December will likely be unavailable. This will be a second chance for Hartline, who lost his job earlier this season. He’s thrown eight touchdowns and seven interceptions this season while completing 54.6 percent of his passes.

The Wildcats will likely need some help from the defense to offset the offensive uncertainty. The defense started the season strong but experienced some struggles in the second half. Kentucky held its first seven opponents to an average of 11.9 points, but it gave up an average of 35.4 in the last five games, including 63 to Florida and 42 to Georgia.

Kentucky limps into the postseason with three straight losses to end the season, but is making its third straight bowl appearance nonetheless. Its the first time the Wildcats have done that since the early 1950’s. Kentucky defeated Florida State 35-28 in last year’s Music City Bowl.

College football odds makers are expecting a few more points in this game than we saw the last time these two teams met. Kentucky won the only previous game between the teams, 6-3 on November 13, 1993. If you like the Wildcats to come through again in this year’s bowl game, bet Kentucky at +3 at Bookmaker.

Jimmy Boyd has caught fire this bowl season. Make sure you’re doing your football betting on Jimmy’s NCAA football picks for the most winners through the BCS title game.

If you liked this article, you may also be interested in:

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• East Carolina v. Virginia Tech Football Lines & Predictions
• 2008 Meineke Bowl Odds – West Virginia v. North Carolina Football Picks & Predictions

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