2011 Beef ‘O’ Brady’s Bowl St. Petersburg Odds

Written by Jack Jones

The Florida International Golden Panthers square off with the Marshall Thundering Herd in the 2011 Beef ‘O’ Brady’s Bowl St. Petersburg. FIU is coming off a very productive 8-4 campaign in the Sun Belt, while Marshall went 6-6 out of Conference USA. Kickoff is set for 8:00 EST on Tuesday, December 20th. This game will be nationally televised on ESPN that night.

Taking a look at the college football odds, I find a line of Florida International -4.5 over Marshall with a total set of 49 points.

Florida International

The Panthers will be making their second straight trip to a bowl game. Florida International (8-4, 5-3 Sun Belt) finished in sole possession of fourth place in their conference. This team was arguably as good as any in the Sun Belt, but they just couldn’t win many close games this season. They had two conference losses by a combined six points, while also falling at eventual champion Arkansas State 34-16.

FIU finished hot, winning three straight to close out the season. That includes a 31-18 victory at Middle Tennessee State in their season-finale. Wes Carroll threw two touchdown passes, and Kendrick Rhodes rushed for 117 yards and a score to lead the way for the Panthers. The win helped FIU set a single-season program record for victories. They played in their first-ever bowl game last year, winning 34-32 over Toledo in the Little Caesers Bowl. This program is certainly on the rise under 5th year head coach Mario Cristobal.

The Panthers rank just 76th in the country in total offense (369.7 yards/game). However, they are a very impressive 32nd in total defense (347.6 yards/game). Their strength is a run defense that ranks 22nd in the land, yielding 120.9 yards/game on the ground. Carroll is completing 59.7 percent of his passes for 2,224 yards with 14 touchdowns and four interceptions. He has a star receiver in T.Y. Hilton, who has 64 receptions for 950 yards and seven scores. Hilton also returns kicks and punts and he’s one of the fastest players in the country. Rhodes has rushed for 1,131 yards and eight touchdowns on the year.

Marshall

The Thundering Herd will be making their 9th bowl appearance in program history. They are 6-2 all-time, with their last appearance coming in the 2009 Little Caesars Bowl in a 21-17 victory over Ohio. Doc Holliday has done an excellent job with this team in his just second year on the job. Marshall (6-6, 5-3 C-USA) was in contention to play in the conference title game, but they would finish one game behind Southern Miss in Conference USA’s East division.

The Herd closed out the season with two straight wins over Memphis and East Carolina. The beat the Pirates 34-27 in overtime on Senior Day in their finale. Tron Martinez’s 1-yard run in the extra session proved to be the game-winner. Quarterback Rakeem Cato had a monster day, completing 23 of 29 passes for 341 yards with two touchdowns. It was his second straight start in place of the injured A.J. Graham, who is out for the season with a shoulder injury.

Marshall comes in ranked 97th in the country in total offense (335.4 yards/game) and 84th in total defense (418.2 yards/game). They rank just 90th in rushing offense (123.1 yards/game) and 99th in pass defense (262.3 yards/game). Clearly, these are their two weaknesses. Cato has played pretty well, completing 58.6 percent of his passes for 1,844 yards with 13 touchdowns and 10 interceptions on the season. They have a 1-2 punch in the backfield with Martinez (591 yards, three TD) and Travon Van (529 yards, three TD). Aaron Dobson is their go-to receiver with 42 catches for 587 yards and a whopping 10 touchdowns.

Betting Trends

The Golden Panthers are 4-1 ATS in their last 5 games following a ATS win, but just 2-5 ATS in their last 7 games as a favorite.

The Thundering Herd are an impressive 6-1 ATS in their last 7 bowl games.

Projected Score: Florida International 27 – Marshall 22

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