South Alabama vs. Troy Prediction, Odds, Trends and Key Players for College Football Week 10
By Reed Wallach
Two preseason contenders for the Sun Belt crown meet on Thursday night in hopes of scoring a massive win against one another.
Last season, Troy took home the Sun Belt title, and it was a late season win at South Alabama that was the catalyst for the division title and eventual conference crown. This season, could the roles flip with the Jaguars a game behind the Trojans in the Sun Belt West?
Here are the odds for this massive matchup in the best Group of Five league this season on Thursday night.
South Alabama vs. Troy Odds, Spread and Total
Troy vs. South Alabama Betting Trends
- South Alabama is 3-5 against the spread (ATS) this season
- South Alabama has gone OVER in five of eight games this season
- Troy has gone UNDER in six of eight games this season
- Troy has gone UNDER in five of six games as a favorite this season
South Alabama vs. Troy How to Watch
- Date: Thursday, Nov. 2
- Game Time: 7:30 PM EST
- Venue: Veterans Memorial Stadium
- How to Watch (TV): ESPN2
- South Alabama Record: 4-4
- Troy Record: 6-2
South Alabama vs. Troy Key Players to Watch
South Alabama
Carter Bradley: Bradley has had a lingering knee injury, but he practiced Monday and head coach Kane Womack is optimsitic he can play. South Alabama's offense has been one of the most potent in the Sun Belt this season, and Bradley is a big reason why, he has completed 66% of his passes for 2,155 yards.
Troy
Kimani Vidal: The Trojans running back has already cleared 1,000 yards (1,007) and is averaging north of six yards per carry on the year. While the Trojans are a defensive-minded team, Vidal has been the stalwart of this offense that has scored 28 or more in three of its last four games.
South Alabama vs. Troy Prediction and Pick
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The Jaguars have been a tough team to peg all season long, blowing out the likes of Oklahoma State on the road, but losing to Central Michigan at home and Louisiana-Lafayette at home. There's a chance that some of its overall offensive metrics are inflated by beating up on Sun Belt bottom dwellers in Louisiana-Monroe and Southern Mississippi in October, but this is still a formidable group with Bradley under center and La'Damian Webb, who has 13 touchdowns carries this season.
The team has faced stout defenses already this season, including James Madison, but Troy is starting to look like the group that won the Sun Belt last season, inside the top 10 nationally in EPA/Play.
While Troy has been on a tear of late, I believe South Alabama can remain within striking distance. The defense is comparable to Troy's, the two teams are next to each other in terms of net yards per play (Troy is 17th and South Alabama is 18th). Further, the Jaguars have shown to be more explosive all season, top five in explosive rush rate.
Bradley's knee injury gives me pause from calling for an outright upset, but in a rematch of a 10-6 defensive minded affair a year ago, I think we see another barnburner on Thursday night. I'll take the Jags to cover the spread over a field goal with a low total.
Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.
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