MWC Championship Game Total Pick
The Fresno State Bulldogs and Boise State Broncos will meet again in the MWC Championship Game on Saturday night at 7:45 p.m. ET. Will the game turn into another defensive struggle between the conference foes?
Game Snapshot
317 Fresno State Bulldogs at 318 Boise State Broncos
7:45 p.m. ET, Saturday, December 1, 2018
Albertsons Stadium, Boise, Idaho
Public Betting Trends
According to oddsmakers from online sports book BetNow.eu, the Broncos are 2.5-point favorites to beat the Bulldogs. The total, meanwhile, sits at 52.5 points. As of this writing, 64% of the public betting tickets wagered on this matchup are on the Broncos.
Fresno State Bulldogs
Fresno State senior QB Marcus McMaryion completed 20-of-29 passes for 317 yards and two touchdowns in a 31-13 victory over San Jose State on Saturday. McMaryion really struggled in the first half, and the Bulldogs lead lowly San Jose State by just a 3-0 score. The second half was much better, as he was able to find unheralded star KeeSean Johnson often, and he found Johnson and Ronnie Rivers for touchdowns. McMaryion frustrates, but the former Oregon State quarterback has been a steady factor in helping Fresno State resurgence. We’ll see him again in the MWC championship next Saturday.
Boise State Broncos
Boise State senior QB Brett Rypien completed 23-of-32 passes for 310 yards and one touchdown in Saturday’s 33-24 win over Utah State. Rypien (6’2/202) now has 21 300-yard passing games in his career, which is a new Mountain West record, but this was a huge team win to get to the Mountain West Championship Game highlighted by running back Alexander Mattison’s 37-carry, 200-yard and three-touchdown performance. For Rypien, it’s another solid effort ahead of the 2019 NFL Draft, and this one was against a quality Utah State defense. On the season, the senior quarterback has 29 passing touchdowns and only seven interceptions with a solid 8.6 yards per attempt average. NFL scouts will be watching him against Fresno State and in Boise State’s bowl game.
Betting Trends
Fresno State
The under is 12-3 in the Bulldogs’ last 15 games after allowing less than 20 points in their previous game.
Boise State
The under is 4-0 in the Broncos’ last four games after accumulating more than 450 total yards in their previous game.
Prediction
The under has been profitable in this series, cashing in four straight games between the two teams and in five of the last six meetings in Boise. The under is also 4-0 in the Bulldogs’ last four road games, is 5-1-1 in their last seven games in December and 20-6 in their last 26 conference games. On the other side, the under is 4-0 in the Broncos’ last four games overall, is 4-0 in their last four games versus an opponent with a winning record and is 19-7 in their last 26 home games.
MWC Championship Game Prediction: Fresno State/Boise State under 52.5