Southern Miss at UAB Spread
Written by Jack Jones - Google +
The No. 22 Southern Miss Golden Eagles have a chance to clinch Conference USA’s East division Thursday when they travel to face the UAB Blazers. After winning nine in a row over the Blazers from 2000 to ‘08, the Golden Eagles have lost each of their last two meetings to UAB. That includes a thrilling 49-50 home loss to them last season in which the Blazers successfully converted a 2-point conversion in double overtime for the win. Austin Davis threw for 388 yards and two touchdowns for USM, while Pat Shed rushed for 176 yards and two scores for UAB.
Odds makers in Las Vegas have set a line of Southern Miss -23 over UAB for Thursday night’s rematch.
Southern Miss
There’s no question that the Golden Eagles were blessed with an easy schedule this season, but they have been taking advantage. Southern Miss (9-1, 5-1 C-USA) has a two-game lead over both East Carolina and Marshall in the East division. Their lone loss this season came at Marshall by a final of 26-20. They were fortunate to avoid both Tulsa and Houston from the West division this season, who are each currently at 6-0 in Conference USA play.
Southern Miss is coming off a very exciting 30-29 home victory over the UCF Knights. USM took a 30-23 lead after a 4-yard touchdown pass from Austin Davis to Chris Briggs with only 5:52 remaining. UCF would answer, scoring on the final play of regulation with a 25-yard touchdown strike from Blake Bortles to J.J. Worton. But their 2-point conversion attempt failed, and the Eagles escaped with a much-needed victory. Davis threw for 364 yards and two touchdowns for USM as they outgained the Knights 519-364 for the game.
The Eagles rank 23rd in the country in total offense (457.4 yards/game) and 33rd in total defense (345.7 yards/game). Davis is having a stellar season in a conference loaded with top-tier quarterbacks. He has completed 62.7 percent of his passes for 2,511 yards with 20 touchdowns and eight interceptions. Jamal Woodyard (545 yards, 6.6/carry, three TD) and Kendrick Hardy (426 yards, 5.9/carry, two TD) are USM’s top two rushers. Ryan Balentine (42 receptions, 618 yards, five TD) and Kelvin Bolden (46, 544, five TD) are Davis’ two favorite targets at receiver.
UAB
The Blazers just haven’t had a whole lot go their way this season. UAB (2-8, 2-5 C-USA) has been eliminated from bowl contention and they appeared to have packed it in last Saturday. But like USM, they came away with a thrilling victory of their own. Trailing 35-17 at the end of three quarters to lowly Memphis, the Blazers woke up in the final period and scored 24 unanswered points to come away with a 41-35 road victory.
Greg Franklin scored on a 10-yard run with 1:36 to play to cap off the improbable comeback. UAB managed 601 total yards while allowing Memphis 384 yards of offense. Quarterback Jonathan Perry, who has taken over for injured starter Bryan Ellis, had a career day. Perry threw for 410 yards and four touchdowns with no interceptions to lead the Blazers to victory. Jamarcus Nelson caught six balls for 133 yards and two touchdowns, including a 42-yard scoring strike from Perry with 7:08 remaining.
UAB ranks 88th in the FBS in total offense (356.1 yards/game) and 111th in total defense (488.8 yards/game). Perry is completing 56.5 percent of his passes for 1,616 yards with seven touchdowns and seven interceptions. A big problem for this team is a rushing offense (117.2 yards/game) that ranks 95th in the land. Greg Franklin is their leading rusher with only 319 yards and one touchdown. Pat Shed was their top running back last year, but he has missed the last three games with a knee injury and his return is questionable Thursday. Jackie Williams leads all receivers with 49 grabs for 467 yards, but he has yet to find the end zone. Nelson has a team-high four touchdowns on only 15 receptions.
Betting Trends
Southern Miss is 8-1 ATS in their last 8 games overall, and 20-8 ATS in their last 28 games as a road favorite.
UAB is 5-1 ATS in their last 6 games as an underdog of 10.5 or more points, but the Blazers are just 2-5 ATS in their last 7 home games.
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