The East Carolina Pirates (+12) are traveling north to battle the Temple Owls at Lincoln Financial Field. ESNN has the TV rights and this conference matchup is scheduled to get going at 12:00 p.m. ET.
East Carolina Pirates vs. Temple Owls Betting Preview
In this Saturday American Athletic Conference game, Temple is tabbed as the heavy favorite and is currently giving up 12 points. The Pirates are also receiving +340 moneyline odds while the Owls are -475. Vegas has placed the over/under (O/U) at 55 points, and if one school can get out in front early, it’ll likely create a reasonable live betting opportunity.
The line originally opened at -14 while the game’s O/U was initially set at 55.5, so it appears that the sharp action has been siding with the Pirates.
The Pirates are 2-2 against the spread (ATS) and have recorded 0.0 units so far. The team’s recorded an O/U mark of 2-2. The Owls are down 3.1 units for moneyline bettors this season. They’re 3-2 ATS and also have an even O/U record of 2-2.
The Pirates have gone 2-2 straight up (SU), including 0-1 SU against conference opponents. The Owls are 2-3 SU overall and 1-0 SU in conference play.
When these two teams faced each other a year ago, Temple knocked off East Carolina soundly 34-10.
The Pirates just got a 37-35 win over Old Dominion last week. Reid Herring completed 24-of-42 passes for 309 yards, three scores and two interceptions. Anthony Scott (62 rushing yards on 15 attempts, one TD) and Holton Ahlers (63 yards on eight carries, one TD) led the ground attack while Tahj Deans (five receptions, 48 yards, one TD) and Trevon Brown (four catches, 79 yards, one TD) handled the receiving duties in the win.
Temple just fell 45-35 to Boston College. Anthony Russo completed 20-of-45 passes for 255 yards and two interceptions. Ryquell Armstead (171 rushing yards on 24 attempts, four TDs) spearheaded the running attack while Isaiah Wright (seven receptions, 114 yards) and Branden Mack (four catches, 59 yards) led the pass-catching attack in the loss.
East Carolina has run the ball on 45.5 percent of its offensive possessions this year while Temple has an overall rush percentage of 50.9 percent. The Pirates have produced 156 rush yards/game and have seven touchdowns on the ground this year. The Owls are putting up 142 rush yards per game and have eight total rushing TDs.
The Pirates offense has averaged 293 yards in the air overall and has six passing scores so far. The Owls have recorded 216 pass yards per game and also have six total pass TDs.
Defensively, East Carolina has allowed 95 rush yards and 213 pass yards per game. The Temple D has allowed 187.0 yards per game to opposing passers and 183.6 yards per game on the ground. The Owls are allowing an adjusted net yards per pass attempt (ANY/A) of just 3.65 to opposing QBs, while the Pirates have given up a 5.64 ANY/A.
Offensively, Herring is up to 908 passing yards on the year, and has connected on 58 percent of his 139 attempts with six passing scores and four interceptions. Herring has a 5.79 adjusted net yards per pass attempt, including 5.26 over the last two outings.
Anthony Russo has completed 37-of-74 passes for 507 yards, one TD and three INTs for Temple. His ANY/A sits at 4.99 for the season and 2.60 over his past two games.
RELATED: Week 6 College Football Betting Odds and Predictions
NCAA Pick: East Carolina Pirates vs. Temple Owls
SU Winner – Temple, ATS Winner – Temple, O/U – Over
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Notes
Betting Trends
The Temple offense has lost two fumbles this season while East Carolina has lost one.
The Temple defense has sacked opposing QBs 17 times this season. East Carolina has registered 16 sacks.
East Carolina has averaged 4.17293233082707 yards per carry over its last three games and 4.0 over its last two.
Temple has averaged 4.5 yards per carry over its last three contests and 5.5 over its last two.
In its last three matches, Temple is 3-0 ATS and the under cashed in two of those three.
East Carolina was favored by 7 points in its previous game and the O/U was set at 61.5. The over cashed and East Carolina failed to cover in the 37-35 triumph over Old Dominion.
Over its last three contests, East Carolina is 2-1 ATS and the over cashed in two of those three.
Temple was favored by 14 points in its last match and the O/U was set at 54.5. The over cashed and Temple did not cover in the 45-35 defeat to Boston College.
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