Duke’s Mayo Bowl– Tar Heels vs Mountaineers Free Picks
UNC QB Drake Maye Is Out For The 2023 Duke's Mayo Bowl
The North Carolina Tar Heels will take on the West Virginia Mountaineers in the Duke’s Mayo Bowl on December 27. It would’ve been more exciting if this game had happened in the regular NCAAF season.
North Carolina’s starting stud quarterback, Drake Maye, has opted out of the Duke’s Mayo Bowl to prepare for the NFL Draft.
Maye is projected to be a top-five pick and the No. 2 quarterback off the board in the 2024 NFL Draft.
However, he’s not the only NCAAF player who won’t be suited up for this game. North Carolina has seven significant players in the transfer portal; five players headed into the NFL Draft, and four more players who are injured.
Only DB D.J. Jones and DL Myles Murphy will play in the college football bowl game for the Tar Heels. Jones is still headed into the transfer portal, while Murphy will join the NFL Draft pool after this game.
On the other hand, West Virginia has nine significant players in the transfer portal and a couple of players who will likely remain out due to injuries.
Therefore, the line movement has been a bit wild in this one. West Virginia opened as a 3.5-point favorite, with oddsmakers suggesting Drake Maye would sit out. They were right. However, with more and more North Carolina players out of this game, the line has jumped to -6.5 in favor of West Virginia.
Meanwhile, the total opened at 55.5 and is currently at 56.5. However, West Virginia was at -166 on the moneyline earlier in the month. Now, the Mountaineers are sitting at -215.
Is that still good value for the 2023 Duke’s Mayo Bowl?
Duke’s Mayo Bowl Information
North Carolina Tar Heels vs West Virginia Mountaineers 
Day/Time:
Location: Bank of America Stadium, Charlotte, NC
Stream: ESPN
Breaking Down North Carolina’s Bowl Game Roster
The North Carolina Tar Heels are super depleted heading into the Duke’s Mayo Bowl.
North Carolina has seven players in the transfer portal.
- DT Kedrick Bingley-Jones
- WR Tychaun Chapman
- LB Sebastian Cheeks
- WR Andre Greene
- CB Tayon Holloway
- DB D.J. Jones (Will Play)
- TE Kamari Morales
The Tar Heels also have five players headed into the 2024 NFL Draft.
- C Corey Gaynor
- LB Cedric Gray
- QB Drake Maye
- DL Myles Murphy (Will Play)
- WR Tez Walker
Finally, North Carolina won’t have four players due to NCAAF injuries.
- TE John Copenhaver
- S Will Hardy
- CB Alijah Huzzie
- WR Bryson Nesbit
Backup quarterback Conner Harrell will start after taking only 21 snaps this season. Meanwhile, North Carolina also has Omarion Hampton at running back. He rushed for 1,442 yards on 234 carries with 15 touchdowns this season.
West Virginia Lost Nine Players To The Portal Too
Here’s the list of significant players that West Virginia won’t have for this NCAAF game.
- WR Jeremiah Aaron
- WR Cortez Brahm
- S Lance Dixon
- RB Justin Johnson Jr.
- DL Mike Lockhart
- S Hershey McLaurin
- WR Ja’Shaun Poke
- S Christion Stokes
- CB Andrew Wilson-Lamp
While these are significant losses, the Mountaineers will still have starters on offense like QB Connor Greene, RB CJ Donaldson Jr., RB Jaheim White, WR Devin Carter, and WR Kole Taylor.
However, C Zach Frazier, one of the top centers in college football this season, is undergoing surgery and will miss the bowl game.
West Virginia’s Recent Success Should Carry Over
It stings when losing depth in a playoff bowl game. Both teams have had to deal with it this time around. However, North Carolina was hit much harder.
But let’s take a step back for a second. North Carolina, with their full roster, lost three of its last five games. The Tar Heels allowed 46 points to Georgia Tech, gave up 45 in double overtime to Duke, allowed Clemson to score 31 points, and gave up 39 to North Carolina State.
None of these teams had major offenses this season. The defense didn’t help North Carolina. Now, with Drake Maye and Tez Walker out of the picture on offense, you can’t expect the Tar Heels to help out anymore on offense.
Conner Harrell is a freshman quarterback who has only made four completions this season. Those four completions came against Campbell. Meanwhile, he was 0-for-2 against Syracuse in garbage time earlier in the season.
Harrell can run the football. He’s very mobile. However, Harrell is a freshman with almost no leadership around him.
He’s not going to play with starting center Corey Gaynor. He’s off to the NFL. Therefore, the chemistry under the center could be weak.
On the other hand, West Virginia earned 34 points against Baylor and stacked up 42 points against Cincinnati. The Mountaineers lost to Oklahoma but scored 37 against Baylor and added 41 against UCF in their last five games.
The offense isn’t losing any starting players. They’ve lost guys who played a significant portion of the season. But the offense hasn’t lost anyone with major production.
Therefore, West Virginia shouldn’t have any problems putting up a crooked number on North Carolina in this game.
Lately, the CFB results have been brutal for North Carolina. The NCAA Football scores and odds simply haven’t been kind to the Tar Heels over their last five games. Let’s ride with West Virginia at -6.5 and -225. We also like the Over 54, believing West Virginia will dominate offensively in the 2023 Duke’s Mayo Bowl.
For NCAAF betting news, NCAA football game, and more, visit Point Spreads Sports Magazine.
