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Cincinnati vs. Louisville picks, predictions: Fenway Bowl odds, spread, lines

Picks and predictions for the 2022 Fenway Bowl between Louisville and Cincinnati as the college football bowl season kicks off
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Two former Big East rivals reunite on Saturday to help kick off the college football bowl season as Cincinnati and Louisville meet up in the 2022 Fenway Bowl.

The game pits Scott Satterfield's former team, Louisville, against his future team, Cincinnati, but he won't be on the field for the matchup on either side.

Neither will Luke Fickell, who left the UC position for Wisconsin, meaning we'll see Deion Branch on the UL sideline and Kerry Coombs for the Bearcats in a battle of interim head coaches in Boston.

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Louisville comes in at 7-5 overall and without several key playmakers, including record-breaking quarterback Malik Cunningham, the gifted dual threat piece who will opt out of the game to prepare for his professional career.

Same for Cincinnati, the 9-3 team that missed out on the AAC title this year, and which won't have receiver Tre Tucker or tight end Josh Whyle, while starting quarterback Ben Bryant is out with a foot injury sustained last month.

What do the experts think of the matchup? Let's see how the College Football Power Index computer prediction model projects the game.

Cincinnati vs. Louisville: Fenway Bowl picks, predictions

Cincinnati Bearcats football

Fenway Bowl: Louisville vs. Cincinnati predictions

Louisville prediction: The Cardinals have a projected 55.4 percent likelihood to win the game outright, according to the index computers.

Cincinnati prediction: That leaves the Bearcats with a narrowly contested 44.6 percent shot to take down Louisville, by the latest computer projections.

Point spread: Louisville comes into the game as narrow 2 point favorites against Cincinnati, according to the lines at SI Sportsbook.

Total: 39 points

Moneyline: Louisville -133 | Cincinnati +105

Spread consensus pick: Louisville -2

Pick 'em: College football bowl picks against the spread

Score prediction: Team Rankings projects that Louisville will defeat Cincinnati by a predicted score of 21.0 to 19.1 and win the Fenway Bowl.

How to watch: The game is set for Sat., Dec. 17 at 11 a.m. Eastern time on the main ESPN network and streams live on fuboTV (Try for free).

More: College football bowl game schedule for 2022

College Football Power Index

Football Power Index (FPI) college football rankings and computer prediction model are a measure of team strength that predicts a team’s future performance.

Rankings and scores predictions are based on 20,000 simulations of a team’s season, using a combination of analytics, including scores to date, quality of opponents, and a team’s schedule.

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College Football Playoff rankings

  1. Georgia
  2. Michigan
  3. TCU
  4. Ohio State
  5. Alabama
  6. Tennessee
  7. Clemson
  8. Utah
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  20. Texas
  21. Notre Dame
  22. Mississippi State
  23. NC State
  24. Troy
  25. UTSA

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