Navy vs. Temple Total Pick
Can Navy go on the road and shut down Temple when the two teams collide on Thursday night at 8PM ET?
According to oddsmakers at Bovada.lv, Navy is favored on the road right now, as the Midshipmen are getting odds of -8 points against Temple. The over/under total for the contest has been set at 55 points. Navy has won five of the last seven meetings with Temple and the two have hit the under in four of their last six meetings. The public is currently putting 83 percent of the wagers on Navy on the road. Thursday’s game takes place from Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The game will air live on ESPN.
Navy has lost its last two games, falling to Memphis 30-27 and UCF 31-21 over the past few weeks. The Midshipmen are now 5-2 on the season and 3-2 in the AAC. Navy is 5-2 with the under, hitting it in all three road games. Navy is putting up 33.4 points and 470.7 yards per game on offense behind its option run game. The Midshipmen average 376.1 rushing yards per contest. Zach Abey has run for 1,142 yards and 13 touchdowns while throwing for 606 yards and six scores. Malcolm Perry and Chris High have combined for 833 rushing yards and four scores as well. Defensively, Navy is allowing 28.4 points and 410.3 yards per game on defense.
Temple is coming off a 31-28 OT loss at Army back on Oct. 21 to fall to 3-5 on the season. The Owls are 1-3 in conference play and 6-2 with the under. Temple has hit the under in all four home games. The Owls are averaging just 20.9 points and 372.6 yards per game on offense this season. Logan Marchi has thrown for 1,658 yards and nine touchdowns, but is doubtful to play in this game due to a lower body injury. Frank Nutile has thrown for 370 yards in limited action and will start for Marchi if he can’t play. Ryquell Armstead is the leading rusher with 428 yards and three touchdowns. Defensively, Temple is giving up 26.9 points and 397.8 yards per contest.
Both teams haven’t been great stopping the run this year. That should benefit the Midshipmen more. Navy will continue to have success on offense against this Temple team, but I don’t see the Owls having much improvement on offense against Navy. Temple is likely to be without its quarterback, which doesn’t help if the run game is unable to get established. The Owls have hit the under in 13 of their last 16 conference games and 20 of their last 28 home games.
COLLEGE FOOTBALL PREDICTION: NAVY/TEMPLE UNDER 55