Marshall -3 @ UAB
Marshall (4-5) will be looking to get one step closer to bowl eligibility when they take on UAB (2-7) this Saturday at Legion Field at Birmingham, Alabama. The Thundering Herd have had an up and down season, unable to string wins together in back to back games yet this year based in large part to a defense that is giving up over 453 yards per game. The Marshall offense has been keeping up its part of the deal, boasting the best offensive unit in Conference USA averaging just shy of 40 points and 531 yards per game.
UAB has struggled under first year head coach Garrick McGee. The Blazers won their first game over an FBS opponent a week ago, taking out Conference USA’s cellar dwellar, Southern Miss. UAB’s other victory came in week 5 against Southeastern Louisiana. UAB has put up some decent numbers offensively averaging just under 30 points per game. That average jumps to 38 points per game against teams not ranked in the top 25. The Blazers have not been held under 27 points by an unranked opponent this season.
What will happen: Marshall and UAB both sport terrible defenses with Marshall allowing 43 points per game and UAB giving up 36 points per game. It goes without saying that both teams should be able to move the ball at will in this game, but while UAB will be playing for pride in an all-but-empty “home” stadium, Marshall is still playing for a bowl bid – something that head coach Doc Holliday has admitted is a big deal to his program. This game will go back and forth for three quarters, but Marshall has the superior offense and will force UAB to come from behind in the second half making them one dimensional. I don’t expect the Blazers to play with a great deal of emotion in the face of adversity and that’s when the bowl hungry Thundering Herd will take over.
Prediction: Marshall 47 UAB 37
The Play: Marshall -3
* Bonus Play: Over 74.5 *
YTD Record: 10-8 (5-1 last two weeks)
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