Cure Bowl Odds - UTSA vs. Troy
One of the most underrated and interesting bowl matchups of the 2022 bowl season could be the Cure Bowl, as the UTSA Roadrunners, winners of Conference USA take on the Troy Trojans, winners of the Sun Belt Conference. It is a matchup of Top 25 teams, as UTSA is ranked No. 25, while Troy is ranked No. 24. Both teams had excellent seasons, as each team comes into this game with a record of 11-2. UTSA went 7-6 ATS in their 13 games, while Troy was a very profitable 10-3 ATS. The Roadrunners went over in eight of their 13 games this season, while the Trojans went under in seven of their 13 games. UTSA is listed as a 2.5-point favorite in this game with a total of 54.
2022 Cure Bowl at a Glance
Date: Friday, December 16, 2022
Time (ET) / TV: 3:00 PM / ESPN
Venue: Exploria Stadium, Orlando, Florida
Matchup: UTSA Roadrunners vs. Troy Trojans
College Football Betting Lines
Troy Trojans -1
UTSA Roadrunners +1
Total: 54.5
Cure Bowl Preview
UTSA averaged 38.7 points per game which was 12th best in the country and they put up 486.2 yards per contest. They gave up 26.5 points per game and allowed 404.8 yards per contest. Kevorian Barnes led the team with 713 rushing yards, Frank Harris threw for 3,865 yards, while Zakhari Franklin had 1,100 receiving yards. Head coach Jeff Traylor said his team is very excited to play in the game. “I couldn’t be more excited for our players to get to travel to one of the premier bowl destinations in the country in Orlando and play a fellow top-25 team and conference champion in Troy in the Cure Bowl," Traylor said to the media, "We’re thrilled about the matchup and the platform to showcase UTSA and the 210 Triangle of Toughness brand on national TV on the opening day of bowl season. It’s been an unbelievable season of overcoming adversity to achieve success and break records, and now there is an opportunity to get one more first for our school — a bowl win."
Troy averaged 26.2 points per game and put up 374.9 yards per contest. They shined on defense, giving up just 17.5 points per game, 8th best in the country. They allowed just 324.9 yards per game. Kimani Vidal led the team with 1,059 rushing yards, Gunnar Watson threw for 2,700 yards, while Tez Johnson had 818 receiving yards.
Cure Bowl Prediction
While both of these teams are ranked, neither team played much tough competition this season. UTSA has the better offense, while Troy has the better defense. We think in a bowl game that showcases both teams the offense usually has the edge. We’ll look for UTSA to win what could be a high scoring contest.
Cure Bowl Format
The Cure Bowl was founded in 2015 and usually features teams from the Sun Belt and American Conference. The game was held at Camping World Stadium in 2020, but came back to Exploria Stadium in downtown Orlando in 2021. The Cure Bowl places an emphasis on breast cancer research and awareness with proceeds from the game going to the Breast Cancer Research Foundation. The title sponsor of the game in 2022 is the Duluth Trading Company.
Cure Bowl Past Results
| SEASON |
WINNING TEAM |
LOSING TEAM |
SCORE |
| 2021 |
Coastal Carolina |
Northern Illinois |
47-41 |
| 2020 |
Liberty |
Coastal Carolina |
37-34 (OT) |
| 2019 |
Liberty |
Georgia Southern |
23-16 |
| 2018 |
Tulane |
Louisiana |
41-24 |
| 2017 |
Georgia State |
Western Kentucky |
27-17 |
| 2016 |
Arkansas State |
UCF |
31-13 |
| 2015 |
San Jose State |
Georgia State |
27-16 |
San Jose State traveled to Florida and secured the inaugural Cure Bowl victory to gain a spot in the bowl game annals. The Spartans won an initial bowl game for the second time since 2006, also winning the first New Mexico Bowl that year. SJSU wasn’t even bowl eligible after winning five games in 2015, but due to a lack of teams meeting the criteria, the Spartans qualified due to a high Academic Progress Rate.
The next two games featured the intended conference tie-ins with the Sun Belt flexing its muscles. Arkansas State picked up the second victory in the Cure Bowl, cruising to a 31-13 win over UCF. Georgia State evened its Cure Bowl record and became the first school to make two appearances with a thrilling 27-17 win over Western Kentucky in 2017. Tulane picked up its first-ever Cure Bowl victory knocking off Louisiana, 41-14, in the 2018 edition putting up the most points in the history of the bowl game.
Liberty made its bowl debut in 2019 beating Georgia Southern and they showed they were not a one-year wonder, as they upset Coastal Carolina in the 2020 Cure Bowl. The Flames were the first team to appear in consecutive games and they are the only multi-game winner of the Cure Bowl. Coastal Carolina was able to get some measure of revenge in 2021, as they outscored Northern Illinois to win the Cure Bowl
Most All-Time Wins
| WINS |
TEAM |
YEARS WON |
| 2 |
Liberty |
2019, 2020 |
| 1 |
Coastal Carolina |
2021 |
| 1 |
Tulane |
2018 |
| 1 |
Georgia State |
2017 |
| 1 |
Arkansas State |
2016 |
| 1 |
San Jose State |
2015 |
Since this bowl game is so young, there has been only one repeat winner and that was Liberty who won in 2019 and 2020. Attendance figures have been strong with the game played in a warm-weather state in the middle of December, and the proceeds benefiting a worthy cause. But we’ve seen only one Florida team make an appearance and bowl officials would like to see get more local flavoring. UCF is close by and maybe someday the Knights will participate, but given their recent success it’s unlikely to happen any time soon.
The AAC is the top Group of Five conference and the Sun Belt has quality teams, though none are located in the state of Florida. This matchup figures to gain steam moving forward and the attraction of competing in the Cure Bowl will only grow.
2022-23 College Football Bowl Games
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