The TaxAct Texas Bowl is one of the NCAA postseason’s newest bowl games, starting in just 2006 as a replacement for the defunct Houston Bowl.

The game, played at NRG Stadium (home of the NFL’s Houston Texans), has hosted some big names over the years. Patrick Mahomes, Leonard Fournette and Ryan Tannehill are just some of the notable NFL players who have played in the Texas Bowl.

Once gambling on sports becomes legal in Texas, bettors are sure to make college football one of the favorites at Texas sportsbooks. The TaxAct Texas Bowl gives them another opportunity to enjoy a postseason game in the Lone Star State. Below is our guide to betting on the Texas Bowl, as well as some interesting facts and the current odds.

2023 Texas Bowl betting odds

The Texas Bowl odds below are direct from legal and regulated TX online sportsbook sites (once legal). Our feed is updated once the two teams playing in the next edition of the Texas Bowl have been announced.  If you see Texas Bowl lines that you’re interested in, simply click on them and you’ll be automatically taken to the corresponding sportsbook to make your wager.

How to bet on the Texas Bowl online in TX

Certain bet types are the most popular at online sportsbooks and betting apps. The three favorites include the moneyline, the point spread and the totals bet.

What is the Texas Bowl point spread? 

In some college football games, the favorites are expected to win by so much that the odds on the favorite just don’t make much sense. You’d have to wager absurd amounts for a small profit. That’s where the point spread comes in. Oddsmakers assign a predicted number of points by which they expect the favorite to win the game. If the favorite is able to exceed that margin, then bets on that side would pay out. If there is any other outcome, such as the underdog keeping the game closer than the spread, the underdog wins the bet.

College football point spreads almost always have a half point attached, such as -7.5 points for the favorite. That half-point ensures there are no ties (or “pushes” in betting lingo.)

Negative odds, like -120, show us the amount we need to wager in order to win $100. Of course, you can bet lower or higher than that amount, but your payout is determined by the odds at the time you submit your bet slip. At -120 odds, if you were to bet $280 and you won, your payout would be $513.33, which includes your original wager plus $233.33 in winnings.

What is the Texas Bowl moneyline? 

This is the easiest of all the bets to understand. A moneyline bet features two teams and you pick which one you believe will win the game. You’ve made bets like these with your friends and family, and this works exactly the same. You will get paid out if you’re right about which team will be victorious. If not, you lose your stake.

As with all bets, the sportsbook odds determine your payout. Negative odds, like -110, show you how much you would need to bet in order to win $100. Those negative numbers typically show you which team is the favorite to win the game. Meanwhile, positive odds, like +135, indicate the underdog in the game, as well as how much you could potentially win if you wagered $100.

What is the Texas Bowl over/under?  

Totals bets are also known as over/unders. Oddsmakers provide you with the total number of points they believe the two Texas Bowl teams will score (plus a half-point, like with the point spread above). You need to research and determine if the two teams can score over or under that total.

You don’t need to pick which team will win the game. Your only focus is on the total number of points the teams are capable of scoring. The odds work the same as in our other examples, though both sides will likely carry slightly negative odds, like -110.

Live betting on the Texas Bowl

Live betting allows you to bet on the game while the action unfolds on the field. Some of the bets will be prop bets, such as whether a team will kick a field goal to end the first half or which team will be leading at the end of three quarters. Others will be of the over/under variety, focused on individual or team stats.

No matter what kind of live bet you make, you’ll find that the action is quick and the odds always shift. It’s a different experience for bettors who haven’t participated in live betting before, but it is very popular across the United States in areas with legal sports betting.

You can use your betting app or online Texas sportsbook (once legalized) to get in on the action.

Opening a sportsbook account in Texas

When signing up for an account at a legal Texas online sportsbook, you’ll need to provide information such as your name, phone number, address and Social Security number. With that information provided, you’ll be asked to accept the sportsbook’s terms and conditions. We always recommend you read through them before accepting, but you will always be able to find them on the sportsbook website if you need to read over them in the future.

With the T&Cs accepted, you’ll be able to claim your sports betting bonus, download the betting app from your sportsbook and make your initial deposit. Now you’re ready to start betting. We suggest you find a couple of sportsbooks in order to shop for the best odds on any bet you’re going to make.

Every sportsbook has different college football lines, and shopping around at a few different sportsbooks guarantees you’ll get a chance to have the biggest return on your investment when you are betting on the TaxAct Texas Bowl.

Check out our reviews of recommended TX betting sites, including for BetMGM, Caesars, DraftKings, and FanDuel.

2023 Texas Bowl details

The Texas Bowl will be hosted at NRG Stadium in Houston, Texas, on Dec. 28, 2022. Let’s take a look at some key details for this bowl.

2022 TaxAct Texas Bowl

• Date: December 28, 2022
• Time: 8 p.m. ET
• Teams: TBA
• Stadium/capacity: NRG Stadium / 72,220
• Expected participating conferences: The Big 12 has been represented in 12 of the Texas Bowl’s 15 years. The SEC has participated seven times, the Big Ten four times and C-USA two times. The ACC, Big East, Mountain West, MAC and an independent team have all participated in the game once.
• Sponsorship history: Meineke Car Care (2011-2012), AdvoCare (2014-2016), Academy Sports + Outdoors (2017-2019), Mercari (2020) and TaxAct (2021-current)

How to watch the Texas Bowl

If you’re interested in watching the Texas Bowl, tune into ESPN on Wednesday, Dec. 28, 2022, at 8 p.m. ET. ESPN is typically available with most cable and satellite packages and many online streaming platforms.

Please be aware that streaming services can oftentimes suffer from a slight delay. This can be an issue for some bettors trying to live bet while tuning into the game. The delay can be between 30 seconds and a minute.

Texas Bowl trivia

Below, we’ve collected eight interesting tidbits about the TaxAct Texas Bowl to give you a picture of its still-brief history.

• As of the 2021 edition, Texas A&M and Kansas are tied for the most appearances with three apiece. Both teams also have 2-1 records in the game.
• The Big 12 has had the most appearances of any conference in the Texas Bowl with 12, while the SEC holds the second-most appearances with seven.
• The most combined points in the Texas Bowl is 83, which is shared by teams from two different games: LSU defeated Texas Tech 56-27 in 2015, and Baylor topped Vanderbilt 45-38 in 2018.
• As of the 2021 game, LSU’s Leonard Fournette holds three Texas Bowl records, all set in 2015: the most all-purpose yards with 256, most touchdowns with five and most rushing touchdowns with four.
• The first-ever Texas Bowl was played on Dec. 28, 2006, and featured No. 16 Rutgers against unranked Kansas State, a game Rutgers won 37-10 in front of a crowd of 52,210.
• Not every year has gone smoothly for the Texas Bowl. Sports Illustrated reported that Western Michigan University was required to purchase 11,000 tickets to accept the invitation to play in the 2008 edition but wasn’t able to recoup its money and ended up losing $462,535 before travel expenses.
• Even though it’s only been in existence since 2006, the Texas Bowl has had a fair number of sponsors over the years: Meineke Car Care (2011-2012), AdvoCare (2014-2016), Academy Sports + Outdoors (2017-2019), Mercari (2020) and TaxAct (2021-current)
• The Texas Bowl is the newest NCAA bowl game to be hosted in Houston. The first was the Bluebonnet Bowl, held from 1959 through 1987. The second was the Houston Bowl, held from 2000 to 2005.