The UTEP Miners play the Rice Owls, and the Appalachian State Mountaineers face the Coastal Carolina Chanticleers on Thursday. In our continued college football odds coverage, it’s time to present our UTEP-Rice prediction and Appalachian State-Coastal Carolina pick.
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College Football Odds: UTEP-Rice Odds
Miners Can Take Advantage of Turnovers
UTEP (4-5, 2-3 Conference USA) ranks 117th in strength of schedule. It does not have a lethal offense, averaging just 21.3 points per game. Rice’s struggle defensively is in the run game, but UTEP averages just 140.4 yards per game on the ground at 3.9 yards per carry. There isn’t much reason to back the Miners, but the same can be said of Rice (4-4, 2-2).
The Owls are less impressive (and have a similar schedule in terms of strength), and although their offense can get on the board, they have been crushed by turnovers, giving up the ball 2.1 times per game. Quarterback TJ McMahon has 11 interceptions in eight games.
With Rice on the road and having a turnover-prone quarterback and a bad rush defense, it feels like a perfect setup to back UTEP to cover.
Final UTEP-Rice Prediction: UTEP -4.0 (-115) Unibet
College Football Odds: Appalachian State-Coastal Carolina Odds
Stopping the Other QB is Key
Appalachian State (5-3, 2-2 Sun Belt East) ranks 20th in points per game and 53rd in opponents points per game. The Mountaineers defeated the Texas A&M Aggies when they were a top-6 team. QB Chase Brice has 22 touchdowns to four interceptions and almost 2,000 passing yards in eight games.
Coastal Carolina (7-1, 4-1 Sun Belt East) may struggle against Brice but can counter with QB Grayson McCall. The team that covers is going to be the one that can stop the opposing team’s quarterback.
The Chanticleers’ strength of schedule ranks 110 of 131 teams, so that 7-1 record may be a bit inflated. And though Appalachian State has been sporadic with its performances this season, it has held opponents to 179.4 passing yards per game and one passing touchdown. Its opponents complete just 57.1% of their passes. Coastal Carolina’s numbers just do not add up in that department, and that should be the difference.
Final Appalachian State-Coastal Carolina Prediction: App State -3.0 (-107) PointsBet
