After a day off from Bowl Games on Sunday, we’re back to action on Monday afternoon. The JLab Birmingham Bowl featuring Georgia Southern and Appalachian State will keep us entertained as we await the Rams and Falcons’ Monday Night Football game. Let’s jump in and take a look at this matchup and make our College Football Bowl best bets for Monday, December 29th.
Kickoff in the JLab Birmingham Bowl from Protective Stadium in Birmingham, Alabama is set for 2:00 ET on ESPN. These two teams did meet in the regular season, with Georgia Southern winning 25-23. The Georgia Southern Eagles come into this one with a 6-6 overall record after going 4-4 in the Sun Belt Conference. The Eagles are favorites in this game with no known opt-outs or transfer portal players.
On the other hand, the Appalachian State Mountaineers who went 5-7 but received a Bowl Game invite due to too many teams opting out. They are down big due to the transfer portal. Both of their quarterbacks AJ Swan and JJ Kohl have entered the portal. Along with them is receiver Davion Dozier, cornerback Elijah Mc-Cantos, linebacker Brayshawn Littlejohn, edge Thomas Davis, and tackle Denell Nix Jr.
College Football Bowl Best Bets: Monday, December 29th
OJ Arnold Over 73.5 Rushing Yards (-114)
OJ Arnold went wild against the Mountaineers when these teams matched up back in November. On 20 carries he racked up 105 rushing yards. Against Coastal Carolina, OJ ran for 267 rushing yards. He’s had at least 73 yards in four of the Eagles last five games.
Georgia Southern running back OJ Arnold put up one of the greatest performances in recent history last night.
• 21 carries, 267 yards, 2 rushing TDs
• 1/1 passing, 73 yards, 1 passing TD
• 4 receptions, 53 yards, 1 receiving TD393 total yards, 4 total touchdowns. 🦅 pic.twitter.com/2VrZ6D6DLO
— CFB Kings (@CFBKings) November 17, 2025
Georgia Southern -7.5 (-101)
The Eagles already got the better of the Mountaineers a few weeks ago. And back then, Appalachian State had multiple quarterbacks, and a bunch more players. This Appalachian State team is not only missing one, but two quarterbacks along with other key players. Eagles roll in this one.
