Quick Lane Bowl Odds and Picks – Nevada vs Western Michigan

• Western Michigan is a 6.5-point favorite over Nevada in the Quick Lane Bowl
• Nevada quarterback Carson Strong has opted out of the game
• The matchup and odds can be found below with a pick

Western Michigan will try to build off an impressive win to end the regular season when it faces Nevada in the Quick Lane Bowl at 11:00 a.m. ET Monday at Ford Field in Detroit.

Western Michigan (7-5) has won two of its last three games, including beating Mid-American Conference champion Northern Illinois 42-21 in the regular-season finale. Nevada (8-4) also finished the regular season on a high note by routing Colorado State 52-10 on the road.

In a game that will be televised by ESPN, Western Michigan is a touchdown favorite.

Western Michigan vs Nevada Odds

Odds as of December 26th at FanDuel.

Western Michigan Outlook

Northern Illinois isn’t the only conference champion Western Michigan has taken down this season. The Broncos also stunned Pittsburgh of the ACC in September.

Western Michigan is led by quarterback Kaleb Eleby. He has completed 63.6% of his passes while throwing for 3,115 yards and 21 touchdowns and being intercepted five times. Eleby has also rushed for five touchdowns.

https://twitter.com/mattalkire/status/1473553799495049216

Eleby threw five TD passes against Northern Illinois, including four to wide receiver Skyy Moore. Eleby connected on 21 of 26 attempts for 338 yards.

Moore had 12 receptions for 206 yards as he continued his fine season. In all, Moore has 90 catches for 1,247 yards and 10 touchdowns.

Moore ranks 12^th in the nation in receiving yards and 20^th in TD receptions.

Oh my. What a grab, Skyy Moore.

TD @WMU_Football! pic.twitter.com/vSG5qSxhiz

— CBS Sports Network (@CBSSportsNet) October 2, 2021

Sean Tyler went over the 1,000-yard rushing mark with 115 yards and a score on 17 carries. He has a total of 1,004 yards and nine rushing touchdowns while averaging 6.1 yards an attempt.

Western Michigan built a 28-7 lead against Northern Illinois. Without starting quarterback Rocky Lombardi, the Huskies passed for just 31 yards but had 268 yards rushing.

Nevada Outlook

The win over Colorado State turned out to be Jay Norvell’s last game as Nevada’s coach. As fate would have it, 10 days after his team trounced the Rams, Norvell was hired at Colorado State to replace Steve Addazio.

While Nevada hired Oregon co-defensive coordinator Ken Wilson as Norvell’s replacement, assistant coach Vai Taua will lead the Wolf Pack in the bowl game.

https://twitter.com/CoachKWils/status/1474481315567206401

Nevada will also be without quarterback Carson Strong, who was named the MWC Offensive Player of the Year for the second straight season. He has opted to skip the game to prepare for the NFL Draft.

Senior Nate Cox will likely get the start at QB. He attempted just 20 passes during the regular season, completing 14 for 158 yards with one touchdown and no interceptions. At 6-foot-9, Cox is the tallest quarterback in the nation.

Strong had a, ahem, strong final season in Reno with a 70.0% completion rate, 4,186 passing yards, 36 touchdown passes and eight interceptions.

He is sixth in the country in yardage and touchdowns. The TD passes are also a school record.

Nevada will also be without their top six receivers.

Romeo Doubs was Strong’s favorite target and has 80 catches for 1,109 yards and 11 scores. He is 11^th in the FBs in touchdown receptions.

Doubs and fellow wide receiver Tory Horton both scored two touchdowns against Colorado State as Strong had four scoring tosses. Horton finished with four receptions for 113 yards and Doubs had 97 yards on five catches.

I enjoy watching #Nevada’s offense and how they build off of concepts. Early in the game, they faked in the inside zone and turned into a delayed RB sweep.

Later in the game, same play, same formation, PA, Carson Strong hits Romeo Doubs deep for a TD. Love the play design. pic.twitter.com/cCRoPGJ9Ut

— Devin Jackson (@RealD_Jackson) December 21, 2021

Strong completed 17 of 22 passes for 288 yards. Nevada has the fourth-best passing offense in the nation with an average of 365.8 yards a game.

The Wolf Pack’s leading rusher is Toa Taua with 704 yards. He is averaging 5.1 yards a carry and has five touchdowns on the ground.

Taua will likely carry a heavier load following all the defections in the passing game. Nevada will also count on a defense that has 25 takeaways.

Western Michigan vs Nevada Prediction

This is the first meeting between the two schools.

Western Michigan is a miserable 1-9 all-time in bowl games. Nevada is making its fourth straight bowl appearance – it went 2-1 the last three seasons — and 19^th overall.

While Western Michigan is understandably the favorite with Strong and the receviers not playing, Nevada is still a dangerous underdog with veteran QB Cox running the offense.

The Pick: Nevada moneyline +205