The Southern Miss Golden Eagles (+12) will meet their conference foe UAB Blazers (-12) at Legion Field. The game is scheduled to kick off at 7:30 p.m. ET and interested parties can watch the action on beIN Sports.
Southern Miss Golden Eagles at UAB Blazers Betting Preview
Southern Miss is a big road underdog in this CUSA game and is currently being given 12 points. If they are wanting to play the moneyline, gamblers would currently have to lay down $500 in order to win $100 back on the Blazers (-500). The Golden Eagles are getting +350 moneyline odds. Vegas has set the over/under (O/U) at 44 points. Some solid live betting opportunities could present themselves during the game.
This game’s line opened at -12. The over/under hasn’t moved since it opened at 44.
The Golden Eagles are down 2.5 units so far in 2018 and 4-4 against the spread (ATS). The team’s posted an O/U mark of 3-4. The Blazers have been a pleasant surprise for moneyline bettors this season, gaining 4.3 units. The team is 8-1 ATS and has an O/U record of 2-6.
The Golden Eagles have gone 4-4 straight up (SU), including 3-2 SU against conference opponents. The Blazers are 8-1 SU overall and 6-0 SU in conference play.
The Golden Eagles just got a 26-24 victory over Marshall last week. Tate Whatley completed 16 passes for only 134 yards and one touchdown. Whatley (40 yards on 25 rush attempts, one TD) also led the running attack. Quez Watkins (five receptions, 79 yards, one TD) and Trivenskey Mosley (three catches, 10 yards) handled the receiving duties in the win.
UAB just put together a 52-3 win over UTSA. Tyler Johnston III completed 10-of-17 passes for 249 yards, three touchdowns and one interception. Spencer Brown (147 yards on 20 rush attempts, two TDs) and James Noble III (92 yards on 11 carries) handled the running game as Xavier Ubosi (three receptions, 72 yards, two TDs) and Kendall Parham (three catches, 47 yards) led the receiving corps in the win.
Southern Miss has run the ball on 48.8 percent of its offensive possessions this year while UAB has a rush percentage of 67.2 percent. The Golden Eagles have rushed for 116 yards/game (including 125 per game against Conference USA opponents) and have five scores on the ground this year. The Blazers are averaging 253 rushing yards per game (240 in conference) and have 27 total rush TDs.
It appears that the Blazers should hold an edge in terms of effectiveness in the ground game, as their running backs has logged 5.4 yards per carry while their defense has allowed a YPC of 3.4 to opponents. The Golden Eagles have rushed for 3.3 yards per carry while allowing a YPC of 3.8 to opponents.
The Golden Eagles offensive scheme has logged 287 yards/contest in the air overall (289 per game versus conference opposition) and has 16 passing TDs so far. The Blazers have produced 194 pass yards per outing (192.3 in the CUSA) and have 10 total pass scores.
Defensively, Southern Miss has allowed opponents to rush for an average of 112 yards and pass for 171 yards per game. The UAB defense has allowed 153.6 yards per game to opposing passers and 117.9 yards per game on the ground. Both teams allow similar adjusted net yards per pass attempt (ANY/A) to the opposition, as the Golden Eagles have given up an ANY/A of 4.29 to opposing QBs, while the Blazers are allowing an ANY/A of 4.16.
Offensively, Whatley has amassed 139 passing yards on the year. He’s completed 65 percent of his 26 attempts with one passing scores and has yet to throw an interception. Whatley’s got a 5.18 adjusted net yards per pass attempt overall, although that number is 7.63 over the past two outings.
Look for Whatley to attack all areas of the UAB secondary. Quez Watkins (0 receiving yards and eight touchdowns), Tim Jones (346 yards, one TD) and Tate Whatley (0 yards) have all been heavily involved recently.
Tyler Johnston III has completed 12-of-21 passes for 284 yards, three TDs and two INTs for UAB. His ANY/A stands at 12.10 for the season and 12.59 over his past two games.
Look for a balanced offensive approach from UAB in this one. Spencer Brown, Andre Wilson and Tyler Johnston III have combined to account for 506 yards from scrimmage and six touchdowns as a trio over the last two outings.
When these two teams faced one another last year, UAB emerged victorious by a score of 30-12.
NCAA Tip: Southern Miss Golden Eagles vs. UAB Blazers
SU Winner – Southern Miss, ATS Winner – Southern Miss, O/U – Under
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Notes
Team Betting Trends
The O/U for Southern Miss’ previous game was set at 47.5. The over cashed in the team’s 26-24 win over Marshall.
As a team, Southern Miss has averaged 3.5 yards per carry over its last three games and 2.7 over its last two.
UAB has averaged 6.0 yards per carry over its last three contests and 6.8 over its past two.
The UAB offense has lost three fumbles this season while Southern Miss has lost nine.
Over its last three matches, Southern Miss is 1-2 ATS and the over cashed in two of those three.
The O/U for UAB’s last game was set at 42.5. The over cashed in that 52-3 victory over UTSA.
In its last three matches, UAB is 3-0 ATS and the under cashed in two of those three.
The Golden Eagles offense has tallied 10 pass plays of 40 or more yards, while the Blazers have accounted for six such plays.
The Southern Miss defense has allowed five pass plays of 40 yards or more, while UAB has given up four such plays.
The Southern Miss offense has created five rushing plays of 20 or more yards, while UAB has created 20 such runs.
The Golden Eagles defense has allowed six rushing plays of 20+ yards, while the Blazers have given up 11 such runs.
The UAB defense has sacked opposing quarterbacks 28 times this season. Southern Miss has produced just 16 sacks.
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