Wolfpack Will Howl At The Tigers In Gasparilla Bowl

Memphis vs. North Carolina State, 2:30 ET

The middle game of the three that take place on December 19th is our appetizer for the main course that comes up after this. While you probably aren’t familiar with the Union Home Mortgage Gasparilla Bowl, you should at least know both of the teams that are in this game. In this matchup, we get two teams that are relatively evenly matched both in record and in terms of talent. Let’s break down how you should bet the Bowl Game between Memphis and North Carolina State.

Memphis put together an 8-4 season, and there are hopes that they can finish this one out with another victory to end on a high note. The problem is this has been the tale of two halves for the Tigers season. They started the year 6-0, beating the likes of Troy, Arkansas, and Tulsa. They dropped a game to UAB on the road, and rebounded the following week with a nice win over South Florida. It seemed like everything would be fine, but they lost their last three games of the season, falling to Tulane, clearly a good team as they are in the College Football Playoffs, East Carolina, and Navy. None of these games were blowouts, as three of the four losses came by one score. Navy did win 28-17, but that was the one time it was higher than seven points. Overall, they are a fairly balanced team, but if they are going to score, it will most likely be on the ground as about two-thirds of their touchdowns came from rushing.

Nov 27, 2025; Memphis, Tennessee, USA; Memphis Tigers quarterback Brendon Lewis (2) throws the ball against the Navy Midshipmen during the second half at Simmons Bank Liberty Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Wesley Hale-Imagn Images

North Carolina State had a significantly tougher schedule and came out with a 7-5 record. I’m not trying to discount who Memphis played, but they only faced one ranked team, and the Wolfpack faced three ranked teams in a four week stretch. They won one of those three games against the ranked opponents, but it was a nice win over Georgia Tech who was ranked eighth at the time. Their losses this season came at the hands of Duke, who won the ACC Championship, but also isn’t a very good team, Virginia Tech, Notre Dame, Pittsburgh, and Miami. Of those losses, only the Virginia Tech game was at home. It also was the only one-score loss that they had. They did close out their season on a high note, beating both Florida State and North Carolina with relative ease. North Carolina State runs a pretty balanced offense and I think their quarterback, CJ Bailey, will be the best player in the game.

Memphis might’ve had a better chance in this one had they not lost their head coach. He is headed to Arkansas and their defensive backs coach, Reggie Howard, will call plays. There are some potential opt-outs to be aware of from the Wolfpack, and most of those come on defense. I think the best advice here is to avoid the total altogether – if key defenders are out for North Carolina State, Memphis might score more. However, with a defensive coach, they also might not have great offensive planning for this game. I think the right look is to take the Wolfpack -4.5. They have faced much tougher competition than Memphis and they have the more intact team even if a few guys choose to sit out for the game.

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