The Arizona Wildcats take on the Oklahoma Sooners. Check out our Alamo Bowl odds for our Arizona Oklahoma prediction and pick. Find how to watch Arizona Oklahoma.

This might be the best non-playoff matchup in all of the bowl games. Oklahoma went 10-2 this season, Arizona 9-3. The Alamo Bowl historically has been one of the best December bowls. Teams which just missed the New Year's Six often get placed into this contest in San Antonio. A lot of the bowl matchups this year have left something to be desired, but this one is genuinely intriguing and a game a lot of college football junkies will be interested in.

However, as attractive as this game is, and as fascinating as it will be to see how well Arizona stands up to a national program such as Oklahoma, there is still the reality that one very important player will not be part of this event.

Dillon Gabriel, who did a fine job at quarterback for Oklahoma this season and nearly led the Sooners to the Big 12 Championship Game, will not play in this game. He entered the transfer portal and went to Oregon to join Dan Lanning's Ducks. Jackson Arnold, the promising youngster who received some playing time earlier this season when Gabriel got hurt, will be Oklahoma's quarterback for the 2024 season as the Sooners move into the SEC. He will start this game for the Sooners, a measuring-stick moment for a quarterback who has a lot to learn heading into the offseason and spring ball.

Here are the Arizona-Oklahoma Alamo Bowl odds, courtesy of FanDuel.

Alamo Bowl Odds: Arizona-Oklahoma Odds

Arizona Wildcats: -2.5 (-122)

Oklahoma Sooners: +2.5 (+100)

Over: 59.5 (-110)

Under: 59.5 (-110)

How To Watch Arizona vs Oklahoma

Time: 9:15 pm ET / 6:15 pm PT

TV: ESPN

Stream: fuboTV (click for a free trial)*

Why Arizona Could Cover the Spread

The best reason to think Arizona will cover the spread is the quarterback spot. Jackson Arnold might be really good, but he is young and inexperienced. He played in Oklahoma's win at BYU when Dillon Gabriel got hurt, so he's not a complete novice. Nevertheless, he does not yet have full command of the Oklahoma offense. He is going up against an Arizona defense which played well against Washington and quarterback Michael Penix this past season. Washington wasn't completely shut down by Arizona, but it also didn't run wild, either. Washington scored 31 on Arizona. That's a very respectable total for Arizona to give up. Oregon couldn't hold Washington to a number that small. Washington scored over 50 points against USC and Boise State, among others. Jackson Arnold might have a tough time scoring 20 against Arizona. Not having Dillon Gabriel could really hurt the Sooners here.

Meanwhile, Arizona quarterback Noah Fifita became one of the unexpected stars of the 2023 college football season. He relieved injured starter Jayden de Laura early in the season and became a leader for this team and this offense. Fifita has been very, very sharp for the past few months. He has a considerable advantage over Arnold. It's hard to overlook that component of this matchup.

Why Oklahoma Could Cover the Spread

The Sooners didn't make the Big 12 Championship Game. They didn't reach a New Year's Six bowl. They have a lot to prove and a lot of anger over the way their season unfolded after the big win over Texas. The Sooners beat the Longhorns but then watched their rivals make the College Football Playoff. Heading into the SEC, there's a lot of motivation for Oklahoma in this game. In San Antonio, OU should have a partisan home crowd on its side. The Sooner defense will play with energy and toughness and throw Noah Fifita off balance in a way that various Pac-12 teams were not able to do.

Final Arizona-Oklahoma Prediction & Pick

The quarterback matchup is too large to ignore here. Arizona has a proven signal-caller, while Oklahoma is experimenting with a youngster who is using this bowl game as a teaching tool for the future. Take Arizona.

Final Arizona-Oklahoma Prediction & Pick: Arizona -2.5