Congratulations, SEC fans. The wait for your first bowl game is … still six days.

It’s hard to complain about postseason football during the holidays, though.

Especially on a Saturday when your alternative is to fight through maniacal crowds finishing up Christmas shopping at a local outlet. Or, you can plop down on the couch and watch six bowl games in the second-to-last real Saturday of this college football season.

  • 2015 regular-season picks record: 61-50-1 (ATS), 90-21 (straight up)
  • 2015 bowl picks record (through Tuesday): 4-4 (ATS), 6-2 (straight up)

We’ll get around to predicting the SEC games next installment, but here are our predictions for the next batch of eight bowl games.

St. Petersburg Bowl (Saturday, 11 a.m. ET) — Connecticut vs. Marshall (-4.5): The Huskies are a poor man’s Mizzou, to frame this game with an SEC reference point. UConn has given up just 19.8 points per game, but score just 17.8 points per contest. Missouri and Connecticut played early in the season, with the Tigers nudging to a 9-6 victory. That defense also held Tulane to 3 points and East Carolina to 13. This no longer is a Rakeem Cato-quarterbacked Marshall team. I don’t think the Thundering Herd, surprisingly mediocre on offense, have possesses the horses to outflank UConn’s defense.

Connecticut 21, Marshall 17

Hyundai Sun Bowl (Saturday, 2 p.m. ET) — Miami vs. Washington State (-2.5): Crafty coach Mike Leach will try to unleash an Air Raid on the pre-Mark Richt Miami Hurricanes. The Cougars had a heck of a season, improving from 2-7 in the Pac-12 to 6-3. Washington State went 1-3 against ranked opponents and played everyone else very well, with the exception of a perplexing opening loss to Portland State. But Miami is better than you think. The Hurricanes got embarrassed in a 58-0 loss to Clemson and demolished by North Carolina, but played Florida State tough and beat everyone else except Cincinnati. Sophomore quarterback Brad Kaaya may not throw for as many yards in this game, but he’s the better of the two in what could become a shootout.

Miami 42, Washington State 41

Zaxby’s Heart of Dallas Bowl (Saturday, 2:20 p.m. ET) — Washington (-8.5) vs. Southern Miss: The Golden Eagles already have spoiled one team’s postseason, preventing a Jeff Driskel-led Louisiana Tech from winning the C-USA’s West Division with a win in the regular-season finale. Washington coach Chris Petersen has won four of his last five bowl games, the only loss coming last year. He’s still looking for his first bowl victory with the Huskies, and his team has a big personnel advantage in this game.

Washington 31, Southern Miss 17

New Era Pinstripe Bowl (Saturday, 3:30 p.m. ET) — Indiana (-2) vs. Duke: The Hoosiers have averaged 41 points in the last 6 games. Duke safety Jeremy Cash (wrist), a likely NFL draft pick, will not play. Superb Indiana running back Jordan Howard is questionable as of Tuesday, but it will not matter here. The Blue Devils’ defense won’t be able to make enough stops, and Indiana should be able to break serve at least a few times.

Indiana 42, Duke 35

Camping World Independence Bowl (Saturday, 3:30 p.m. ET) — Tulsa vs. Virginia Tech (-14): No SEC team is playing in this game because Missouri, at 5-7, preemptively made it be known that they’d decline an invite. It’s probably for the best, as not many fans enjoy spending Christmas in Shreveport, La. Instead, this is coach Frank Beamer’s farewell game for the Hokies, who are even more excited to welcome a hot new coach in Justin Fuente. Virginia Tech likely will be the single-biggest gambling favorite in any of the 40 FBS bowl games. But Tulsa did put up 38 points against Oklahoma early in the season and scored 42 against a Memphis team that was rolling at the time. So don’t expect Virginia Tech’s defense to shut down the Golden Hurricane completely.

Virginia Tech 28, Tulsa 24

Foster Farms Bowl (Saturday, 9:15 p.m. ET) — UCLA (-6.5) vs. Nebraska: This will test the passion of the Cornhuskers’ great fans. Nebraska is 5-7, San Francisco is not a cheap place to stay and this game takes place the day after Christmas. UCLA also leveled out this year after a long ascent, finishing 8-4, third in the Pac-12 South. The Bruins feature freshman quarterback Josh Rosen, who had an outstanding season mixed with a few mistakes. But the freshman is more trustworthy than third-year starter Tommy Armstrong Jr., and coach Jim Mora has an edge on coach Mike Riley.

UCLA 31, Nebraska 21

Military Bowl presented by Northrop Grumman (Monday, 2:30 p.m. ET) — Pittsburgh vs. Navy (-3): As so many of these bowl games are, this one should be a celebration of Keenan Reynolds’ outstanding career for the Midshipmen. Reynolds needs three touchdowns to seize the NCAA career record back from Louisiana Tech running back Kenneth Dixon, who edged ahead with a four-touchdown bowl performance. But Pitt receiver Tyler Boyd is the best offensive NFL prospect in this game, and he’ll be tough to defend. The Panthers are a hard-nosed team and will be ready for Navy’s running game.

Pitt 27, Navy 24

Quick Lane Bowl (Monday, 5 p.m. ET) — Central Michigan vs. Minnesota (-6): The Golden Gophers are part of the proliferation of 5-win teams in bowl games. Minnesota features two strong starting cornerbacks, which will come in handy against the Chippewas. Quarterback Cooper Rush has a chance to reach 4,000 passing yards this season with a strong bowl performance. The bowl practices represent a great opportunity for coach Tracy Claey, previously the interim when Jerry Kill experienced health issues. He’ll start shaping this program in a positive way with a win here.

Minnesota 28, Central Michigan 21