After finishing the regular season 6-6, the Auburn Tigers take on the 7-5 Maryland Terrapins as 6.5-point favorites in a game with a 47.5-point total. Let’s dive into our Auburn-Maryland odds, pick and prediction for this year’s Music City Bowl. If you’re looking for more college football bets, check out our college football betting tools and our guide to betting on football.
Music City Bowl Pick: Auburn-Maryland Bet
Music City Bowl Odds
Odds via bet365
Auburn: -260 | Maryland: +210
Auburn -6.5: -110 | Maryland +6.5: -110
Over 47.5: -110 | Under 47.5: -110
Expert: Matt Gajewski
Time: Saturday, Dec. 30 at 2:00 p.m. ET
Auburn-Maryland News & Notes
Auburn Absences: QB Robby Ashford, TE Tyler Fromm, WR Ja’Varrius Johnson, WR Omari Kelly, WR Jyaire Shorter, WR Malcolm Johnson Jr., Edge Mosiah Nasili-Kite
Auburn Coaching Changes: N/A
Maryland Absences: QB Taulia Tagovailoa, RB Ramon Brown, RB Antwain Littleton, WR Tyrese Chambers, TE Rico Walker, TE Corey Dyches, CB Corey Coley Jr., DL Riyad Wilmot, LB Jaishawn Barham,
Maryland Coaching Changes: N/A
Auburn-Maryland Comparison
| Metric | Auburn | Maryland |
|---|---|---|
| Pace | 75th | 32nd |
| Overall Offense | 82nd | 60th |
| Run Blocking | 65th | 85th |
| Pass Blocking | 89th | 60th |
| Pass Rate | 126th | 9th |
| Overall Defense | 17th | 72nd |
| Run Defense | 25th | 109th |
| Pass Rush | 67th | 62nd |
| Coverage | 19th | 36th |
Music City Bowl Pick & Prediction
An interesting clash of styles in bowl season, Auburn takes on a depleted Maryland as 6.5 point favorites in game with a 47.5 total. As far as opt outs go, Maryland received a brutal blow when signal caller Taulia Tagovailoa opted to forgo this game and enter the NFL Draft. With Auburn more intact, this game should be one to build on.
Starting with Auburn’s offense, the Tigers lost Robby Ashford to the transfer portal, but Payton Thorne remains. Thorne actually put up a decent 2023 season, completing 62.3% of his passes for 7.0 yards per attempt, 15 scores, and nine turnover worthy plays. He also rushed for 520 yards, overcoming an offensive line that ranked 65th in run blocking and 89th in pass blocking. This team routinely rotates skill players, but Jarquez Hunter did finish with 865 rushing yards and 5.9 yards per carry.
Fortunately for Hunter and Thorne, this offense will battle a depleted Maryland defense that already ranked 72nd in overall defense. Even more problematic, they ranked 109th against the run and now will be without at least two of their better starters in the front seven, highlighted by the loss of Jaishawn Barham.
As for Maryland’s offense, this team may have been dealt a death blow with the loss of Tagovailoa. Tagovailoa exercised some true wizardry to get Maryland to seven wins. He completed 66% of his passes for 7.7 yards per attempt, 25 scores, and 20 turnover worthy plays, despite playing behind an offensive line allowing pressure on 23.4% of his drop backs. Maryland will have most of their skill players here, outside of tight end, but this offense routinely failed to help Tagovailoa in season. They will now turn to Billy Edwards, who has 56 career attempts.
As for Auburn’s defense, only Mosiah Nasili-Kite hit the portal. Auburn should also benefit from the month off after being one of the most injured defenses during SEC play. Despite the injuries, they somehow finished 17th in overall defensive efficiency, including 25th against the run and 19th in pass coverage. Mostly healthy here, they should have their way against a backup Maryland signal caller.
Music City Bowl Pick & Prediction and our Auburn-Maryland Bet: Auburn -6.5 (-110) at bet365
