The South Florida Bulls (-13.5) are heading north to face the Massachusetts Minutemen at Warren P. McGuirk Alumni Stadium. This afternoon game will begin at 3:30 p.m. ET and fans can catch it live by tuning in to ELEV.
South Florida Bulls at Massachusetts Minutemen Betting Preview
Massachusetts is a big home underdog in this matchup and is currently receiving 13.5 points. If they want to play the moneyline, bettors would currently need to put up $600 in order to win $100 back on the Bulls (-600). The Minutemen are getting +425 moneyline odds. Should one program can create a bunch of points early on it will create a reasonable live betting opportunity. Vegas has placed the over/under (O/U) sky-high at 70.5 points.
The game’s O/U has swung higher after opening at 69.5. The original spread has yet to change.
The profitable Bulls have gained 3.5 units this season and are 1-3 against the spread (ATS). The team’s posted an Over-Under record of 1-2. The Minutemen have lost 2.0 units so far. The team is 2-4 ATS and the over has hit in five of its games.
The Bulls are 4-0 straight up (SU) in 2018 while the Minutemen are 2-4 SU.
The Bulls are looking to remain undefeated following a 20-13 victory over East Carolina on September 22Their defense allowed the Pirates to run for 156 yards on 46 rush attempts, along with one rushing TD. Trevon Brown had a productive day for the Pirates in that one with 99 yards on six catches. Offensively, Blake Barnett completed 12 passes for only 181 yards and one touchdown. Jordan Cronkrite (129 yards on 15 rush attempts, one TD) led the ground attack in the win. Cronkrite (three receptions, 13 yards) and Tyre McCants (three catches, 12 yards) handled the receiving duties.
One week ago, Ohio knocked off this Massachusetts team by a score of 58-42. The Minutemen defense allowed the Bobcats to eat up the clock by running for 394 yards on 44 rush attempts, including four rush TDs. Nathan Rourke shredded the defense, putting up 189 rushing yards and a score on 16 attempts for Ohio. As a group, the Minutemen collectively completed 30-of-43 passes for 410 yards, five touchdowns and one interception. Andrew Ford went 27-for-38 for 355 yards, four touchdowns and one interception while Ross Comis was three-of-five for 55 yards and one touchdown. Marquis Young (45 yards on 13 rush attempts) spearheaded the ground game in the defeat as Andy Isabella (12 receptions, 198 yards, three TDs) and Sadiq Palmer (eight catches, 96 yards, one TD) led the pass-catching corps.
South Florida has run the ball on 53.4 percent of its offensive possessions this year while Massachusetts has an overall rush percentage of 49.6 percent. The Bulls have produced 174 rush yards per game and have seven scores via handoffs this year. The Minutemen are averaging 140 rush yards per game and have 13 total rushing TDs.
The Bulls offense has averaged 292 yards in the air overall and has eight passing TDs so far. The Minutemen have put up 263 pass yards per outing and have 13 total pass scores.
South Florida seems to hold an edge in both defensive facets. The team’s allowed opponents to run for an average of 245 yards and pass for 162 yards per game. The Massachusetts defense has given up 227.2 yards per game to opposing passers and 256.7 yards per game to opposing runners. The Bulls are allowing an adjusted net yards per pass attempt (ANY/A) of only 3.09 to opponents, while the Minutemen have given up a whopping 8.68 ANY/A.
Offensively, Barnett is up to 693 passing yards this season. The signal-caller has completed 57-of-85 attempts with six scores through the air and only one interception. Barnett has a 7.70 adjusted net yards per pass attempt, including 7.82 over the last two games.
For the home team, Andrew Ford has completed 76-of-116 passes for 841 yards, six TDs and four INTs. Ford’s ANY/A sits at 5.98 for the year and 9.45 over his past two games.
RELATED: Week 6 College Football Betting Odds and Predictions
NCAA Tip: South Florida Bulls at Massachusetts Minutemen
SU Winner – Massachusetts, ATS Winner – Massachusetts, O/U – Over
Click Here to Start Betting Today!
Notes
Team Betting Notes
The Bulls offense has produced five pass plays of 40 or more yards, while the Minutemen have accounted for four such plays.
Both teams have allowed three pass plays of 40 yards or more. The South Florida defense has given up seven pass plays of 30+ yards while Massachusetts has given up 10 such plays.
The South Florida offense has created four rushing plays of 20 or more yards, while Massachusetts has created five such runs.
The Bulls defense has allowed 10 rushing plays of 20+ yards, while the Minutemen have given up 20 such runs.
The South Florida defensive unit has sacked opposing QBs 11 times this season. Massachusetts has registered just four sacks.
South Florida has averaged 4.61344537815126 yards per rush attempt over its past three contests and 4.3 over its last two.
Massachusetts has averaged 4.2 yards per carry over its last three games and 3.2 over its past two.
*****
