Utah State has its opponents right where it wants them — on the road. The Aggies went 7-0 outright on their travels, while Oregon State was 1-5 in away games. The ’dogs are a quick-strike team, with more gains of 40-plus yards than anyone in FBS, and hope to make the Beavers pay without LB Avery Richardson, the Pac-12 tackles leader. Mountain West members broke even straight-up versus the Pac-12 this season, with one victory coming from the Aggies over Washington State.

First-ever LA Bowl -- If momentum matters entering a bowl game, Utah State has it all as the Aggies smashed San Diego State in an upset for the Mountain West title, while Oregon State lost in the Civil War to Oregon with a chance to play in the Pac-12 title game. I do think this matters more for USU overall to beat a Pac-12 school. QB Logan Bonner and WR Deven Thompkins is one of the best duos in the country. OSU is without leading tackler Avery Roberts for the game and won't have second-leading receiver Tre’Shaun Harrison for the first half due to an ejection vs. the Ducks. Wouldn't shock me if Utah State won outright, but I was waiting for this to get to +7.5 to make the pick.

The Aggies’ run defense has been porous at best and downright bad at worst. The Beavers have made a living on the ground this year, averaging 217.33 yards per game -- tops in the Pac-12. That running game is a big reason why they’ve scored touchdowns on 72.22% of their red zone trips -- second most in the conference. This will be an old-school slugfest, which favors the Beavers in a big way.