The UTSA Roadrunners and UAB Blazers are set to do battle on the turf at Legion Field. beIN Sports has the TV rights and kickoff is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. ET.
UTSA Roadrunners at UAB Blazers Betting Preview
UAB has been tabbed as the heavy favorite and is currently giving up 22 points to UTSA. Oddsmakers have placed the over/under (O/U) at 42.5 points, and it appears that there could be some good live betting opportunities in this game.
The total hasn’t moved after being set initially at 42.5. Having said that, the line opened at -20 so has recently moved down to -22.
The Roadrunners are down 2.0 units so far and 2-6 against the spread (ATS). The team has posted an O/U record of 5-3. The surprising Blazers have gained 4.3 units this season. The team is 7-1 ATS and has an O/U record of 1-6.
The Roadrunners have gone just 3-5 straight up (SU), including 2-2 SU against conference opponents. The Blazers are 7-1 SU overall and 5-0 SU in conference play.
UAB enters this matchup on a two-game losing streak while UTSA has won its last six in a row. The Roadrunners are most-recently on the rebound after a 27-17 defeat to Southern Miss on October 20. The passing game the big culprit Jordan Weeks completed only 12 passes on 27 attempts for 117 yards and one touchdown. Brenden Brady (36 rushing yards on eight attempts) mounted the ground attack in the loss. Greg Campbell Jr. (five receptions, 44 yards, one TD) and Marquez McNair (two catches, 32 yards) handled the receiving duties.
UAB enters this one having just earned a blowout 19-0 win over UTEP. The team’s defensive unit held its ground in the victory, keeping the Miners to only 101 passing yards and 19 rushing yards. Terry Juniel had a good outing in the loss for UTEP, posting 23 yards on two catches. As a group, the Blazers collectively completed 13-of-23 passes for 92 yards and one interception. A.J. Erdely went 10-for-18 for 79 yards and one interception while Tyler Johnston III was three-of-five for 13 yards. Spencer Brown (103 rushing yards on 21 attempts, one TD) and Jarrion Street (65 yards on 10 carries) mounted the ground game in the win while Donnie Lee (four receptions, 22 yards) and Brown (three catches, 14 yards) led the pass-catching corps.
UTSA has run the ball on 48.2 percent of its offensive possessions this year while UAB has a rush percentage of 66.1 percent. The Roadrunners have run for 95 yards/game (including 93 per game against Conference USA opponents) and have five scores via handoffs this year. The Blazers are totaling 233 rush yards per game (204 in conference) and have 23 total rushing TDs.
If the numbers so far this season are any indication, then it seems like the Blazers might be the more disruptive team in the trenches. Their offensive line has yielded only nine sacks while the D-line has logged 28 sacks. The Roadrunners O-line has allowed 25 sacks and their defense has sacked opposing signal-callerss just 20 times.
The Roadrunners offense has averaged 151 yards through the air overall (137 per game versus conference opposition) and has seven passing scores so far. The Blazers have put up 187 pass yards per contest (181.0 against CUSA competition) and also have seven total pass TDs.
UTSA has allowed opponents to rush for an average of 130 yards and pass for 255 yards per game. The UAB defense has given up 155.8 yards per game to opposing passers and 122.1 yards per game to opposing runners. The Blazers are allowing an adjusted net yards per pass attempt (ANY/A) of just 4.41 to opponents, while the Roadrunners have given up a 7.62 ANY/A.
Offensively, Grundy is up to 799 passing yards this season, and has completed 52 percent of his 178 attempts with five scores through the air and two interceptions. Grundy has a 3.70 adjusted net yards per pass attempt, including 3.32 over the last two games.
In the hosts’ locker room, A.J. Erdely has managed to complete 88-of-156 passes for 1,260 yards, seven TDs and six INTs. Erdely’s ANY/A sits at 6.80 for the season and 4.48 across his past two outings.
When these two teams met a year ago, UAB got the victory 24-19.
RELATED: Week 10 College Football Betting Odds and Predictions
Free NCAA Betting Tip: UTSA Roadrunners vs. UAB Blazers
SU Winner – UAB, ATS Winner – UTSA, O/U – Under
Click Here to Start Betting Today!
Notes
Betting Notes
The UAB defense has sacked opposing quarterbacks 28 times this year. UTSA has produced just 20 sacks.
UAB has lost three fumbles in 2018 while UTSA has lost six.
The Roadrunners offense has registered one pass play of 40 or more yards, while the Blazers have accounted for five such plays.
The UTSA defense has allowed five pass plays of 40+ yards, while UAB has given up four such plays.
The UTSA offense has created six rushing plays of 20 or more yards, while UAB has created 14 such runs.
The Roadrunners defense has allowed six rushing plays of 20 or more yards, while the Blazers have given up 10 such runs.
The O/U for UAB’s last matchup was set at 50. The under cashed in the team’s 19-0 triumph over UTEP.
In its last three contests, UAB is 3-0 ATS and the under cashed in each of those three.
In its last three contests, UTSA is 2-1 ATS and the under cashed in two of those three.
The O/U for UTSA’s last game was 43. The over cashed in the team’s 27-17 loss to Southern Miss.
UTSA has averaged 3.2 yards per carry across its past three games and 3.0 over its last two.
UAB has averaged 4.8 yards per carry over its last three contests and 4.9 over its past two.
*****
