Two teams that prefer to run the football, Trojans (-17) are preparing to welcome their in-conference rival Georgia State Panthers to Troy. The matchup is scheduled to start at 7:30 p.m. ET and fans can catch it live by tuning in to ESPNU.
Georgia State Panthers at Troy Trojans Betting Preview
In this Thursday Sun Belt game, Troy is projected as the big favorite and the team’s currently giving up 17 points. If they want to take the moneyline, gamblers would currently need to wager $1,200 in order to win $100 back on the Trojans (-1200). The Panthers are getting +710 moneyline odds. There could be some solid in-game betting possibilities for this match.
Each team has posted a positive return this year as the Panthers have recorded 1.9 units and the Trojans are up 4.2 units.
The Panthers have gone 2-3 straight up (SU), including 1-0 SU against conference opponents. The Trojans are 4-1 SU overall and 2-0 SU in conference play.
The Panthers hope to make it two in a row 46-14 win over Louisiana-Monroe last week. The Panthers defense allowed the Warhawks to run for 125 yards on 20 rush attempts, including two rush TDs. On the offensive side, Dan Ellington completed 15 passes on 18 attempts for just 179 yards and one touchdown. Ellington (64 rushing yards on 16 attempts, one TD) also led the ground attack and was complemented by Tra Barnett (62 yards on 14 carries, one TD). Penny Hart (seven receptions, 42 yards) and Sam Pinckney (two catches, 74 yards) shared the receiving duties in the win.
Troy enters this one after just getting a 45-21 win over Coastal Carolina. Kaleb Barker completed 12-of-15 passes for 143 yards and one touchdown. B.J. Smith (103 yards on 10 rush attempts, two TDs) mounted the running attack while Damion Willis (four receptions, 59 yards) and Deondre Douglas (four catches, 62 yards, one TD) led the pass-catching attack in the win.
Each of these teams sports a similar run-pass ratio on the season. Georgia State has run the ball on 58.1 percent of its offensive possessions while Troy has an overall rush percentage of 56.2. The Panthers have produced 155 rush yards/game and have nine touchdowns on the ground this year. The Trojans are averaging 196 rushing yards per game (211 in conference) and have 11 total rush TDs.
It seems like the Trojans may hold an edge when it comes to effectiveness in the ground game, as their running backs has generated 5.3 yards per carry while their defense has allowed a YPC of 3.6 to opponents. The Panthers have tallied 3.9 yards per carry while allowing 6.2 YPC to opponents.
The Panthers offensive scheme has tallied 206 yards/contest through the air overall and has four passing scores so far. The Trojans have put up 213 pass yards per game (257.0 in the SBC) and have 11 total pass TDs.
Georgia State has let opponents rush for an average of 225 yards and pass for 253 yards per game. The Troy defense has given up 232.6 yards per game to opposing passers and 142.2 yards per game on the ground. The Trojans are allowing an adjusted net yards per pass attempt (ANY/A) of just 5.43 to opponents, while the Panthers have given up an 8.50 ANY/A.
Offensively, Ellington has amassed 667 passing yards on the year. He’s connected on 65-of-100 attempts with four passing scores and one interception. He has a 5.68 adjusted net yards per pass attempt overall, although that number sits at 7.42 over the past two games.
Kaleb Barker has connected on 60-of-88 passes for 604 yards, six TDs and two INTs for Troy. His ANY/A sits at 5.54 for the season and 9.57 over his last two games.
When these two teams met last year, Troy knocked off Georgia State soundly 34-10.
RELATED: Week 6 College Football Betting Odds and Predictions
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Notes
Team Betting Trends
The Panthers offense has registered three pass plays of 40 or more yards, while the Trojans have put up one such play.
The Georgia State defense has allowed four pass plays of 40 or more yards, while Troy has given up five such plays.
The Georgia State offense has created seven rushing plays of 20+ yards, while Troy has created 14 such runs.
The Panthers defense has allowed nine rushing plays of 20 yards or more, while the Trojans have given up eight such runs.
The Troy D has sacked opposing QBs 18 times this year. Georgia State has recorded just three sacks.
As a team, Georgia State has produced 4.17829457364341 yards per carry across its last three games and 4.3 over its last two.
Troy has averaged 5.7 yards per carry over its last three outings and 6.4 over its past two.
Over its last three matches, Troy is 3-0 ATS and the over cashed in two of those three.
Georgia State was getting 6 points in its previous game and the O/U was set at 65. The under cashed and Georgia State covered in the 46-14 triumph over Louisiana-Monroe.
Over its last three matchups, Georgia State is 1-2 ATS and the under cashed in two of those three.
Troy was favored by 14 points in its last matchup and the O/U was set at 56. The over cashed and Troy covered in that 45-21 win over Coastal Carolina.
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