The Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders meet the Old Dominion Monarchs on Saturday in week 12 Conference USA college football action from Floyd Stadium. Old Dominion is coming off a matchup versus Florida Atlantic. In that game the Monarchs won by two touchdowns. As for Middle Tennessee, they just finished up against FIU. The Blue Raiders won that one in a 40-point blowout. Check back all season long for free college football picks at Sports Chat Place.
Old Dominion skidded to a 1-6 start this year, beating Hampton while otherwise falling to Wake Forest, Liberty, Buffalo, UTEP, Marshall and Western Kentucky. The Monarchs would win their next two games versus Louisiana Tech and FIU.
Last weekend versus Florida Atlantic, Old Dominion scored in every quarter en route to a 30-16 victory. QB Hayden Wolff posted 289 yards with one TD, and Blake Watson had 163 yards and a score off 23 carries.
Over on the Middle Tennessee side, they went 1-3 in their first four games this year, losing to Virginia Tech, UTSA and Charlotte. The Raiders would go 3-2 in their next five, beating Marshall, UConn and Southern Miss alongside losses to Liberty and Western Kentucky.
In the FIU matchup on Saturday, the Raiders didn’t have much trouble. MTSU scored 27 points in the second quarter alone on the way to a 50-10 blowout win. QB Nicholas Vattiato put up 147 yards with two TDs, and Martell Pettaway added 94 rush yards with a score.
The Monarchs are 4-1 ATS in their last five overall and 4-1 ATS in their last five conference games. ODU is 0-4-1 ATS in their last five on turf.
Meanwhile, the Raiders are 4-0 ATS in their last four home games and 5-1 ATS in their last six on turf. MTSU is 6-1 ATS versus a team with a losing record.
PICK: I’m going to take Middle Tennessee. The Raiders had a great offensive outing against FIU with 415 yards and 23 first downs. The big performance was on defense, though; MTSU gave up just 153 yards, 10 first downs and forced four turnovers.
As for Old Dominion, they did a solid job on offense in the FAU game. The Monarchs came up with 447 total yards, however the two turnovers and sketchy 3-of-13 mark on third downs weren’t great. I like ODU to hang around here most of the game before the Raiders cover.