Christmas Eve gives us a light slate, but it also gives us one of the most unique bowl settings of the year. The Hawaii Bowl checks every box — island atmosphere, tricky weather, real motivation on both sidelines, and just enough storyline to matter. With strong winds expected, minimal opt-outs, and familiar faces on both sides, this matchup deserves a closer look even with only one game on the board.

MATT’S CORNER

Hawaii Bowl

Hawaii (-1) vs. California O/U 52.5

Weather: Very windy and warm

Opt-Outs/Transfers: Hawaii WR Jackson Harris has entered the portal. Other than that, it's pretty good roster-wise.

Motivation: Hawaii is home and Cal's current head coach Nick Rolovich used to coach there. This one should be played at a high level.

Edges: The Golden Bears can be run on so the home team should find some success there. Problem is they skew heavily towards the pass. 

Verdict: I know I said Monday on the podcast that I liked Hawaii a lot, but there are some interesting aspects of this contest. Rolovich coming back home and Cal's QB being a Hawaiian are added angles that help the underdog. I'm still leaning towards the home team, but not as confident as I was Monday.