Marshall Thundering Herd (8-3) vs. James Madison Dukes (8-3)
November 30, 2024 8:00 pm EDT
The Line: James Madison Dukes -3.5 / Marshall Thundering Herd +3.5; Over/Under: +54.5
(Get latest betting odds)
The Marshall Thundering Herd and the James Madison Dukes battle in week 14 college football action from Bridgeforth Stadium on Saturday. We will look at this from a betting perspective and determine the best bets for this game. Here’s a Marshall vs. James Madison prediction.
Marshall Recap
The Marshall Thundering Herd come into this one looking to build on their 42-35 win over Old Dominion last time out to improve to 8-3 on the year.
Herd Rolling Towards Title Game
Braylon Braxton has thrown for 1,311 yards, 16 touchdowns and 2 interceptions on 59.6% passing while Stone Earle has 673 passing yards, 7 touchdowns and 2 interceptions on 54.6% passing. A.J. Turner has 846 rushing yards with 6 touchdowns while Jordan Houston has 425 rushing yards as well on the year. Christian Fitzpatrick has 31 receptions with 556 receiving yards and 6 touchdowns while Chuck Montgomery and Carl Chester each have 300+ receiving yards and another four Marshall receivers have 100+ receiving yards on the year. On defense, Jaden Yates has a team-high 100 total tackles while Mike Green has a team-high 15 sacks. As a unit, Marshall has combined for 32 sacks and 11 interceptions this season.
Why the Marshall Thundering Herd will win
- Marshall has won seven of its last eight games.
- Marshall has covered the spread in nine of its last 11 games.
James Madison Recap
The James Madison Dukes come into this game looking to bounce back from a 34-20 loss to App State to drop to 8-3 on the year.
Dukes Trying To Play Spoiler
Alonza Barnett III has thrown for 2,458 yards, 24 touchdowns and 3 interceptions on 59.1% passing while also rushing for 418 yards and 7 touchdowns to lead JMU. George Pettaway has 828 rushing yards and 4 touchdowns while Yamir Knight leads JMU’s receiving group with 559 receiving yards on 46 grabs with 4 touchdowns. Omarion Dollison has 505 receiving yards with 5 touchdowns while Cam Ross has 423 receiving yards and 3 scores. Taylor Thompson also has 391 receiving yards as well on the year. On defense, Jacob Dobbs has a team-high 69 total tackles. Eric O’Neill has a team-high 9 sacks and Khairi Manns has 8 sacks while Terrence Spence has a team-high 5 interceptions so far this year. As a unit, James Madison has put together 34 sacks and 17 interceptions as well on the year.
Why the James Madison Dukes will win
- James Madison has won 12 of its last 13 games at Bridgeforth Stadium.
- Marshall has lost eight of its last 10 road games.
- The home team has covered the spread in six of James Madison’s last eight games.
Marshall vs. James Madison Prediction
I’m on Marshall here. The Herd control their own destiny, with a win they’ll book a spot in the Sun Belt title game. I have to wonder JMU’s level of motivation here after blowing it last week in a winnable game against App State. I think Bob Chesney will have his guys good to go for Senior day, but I think in the end, Marshall does enough for the cover here.
