The Appalachian State Mountaineers and the Old Dominion Monarchs meet Saturday in college football action from Foreman Field. Appalachian State is coming off a Tuesday game last week, falling in a close one to Coastal Carolina to drop to 3-3 overall. As for Old Dominion, they had an open week to remain at 3-3 this year as well. The Monarchs last appeared in a win over Southern Miss. Check back all season long for free college football picks at Sports Chat Place.

Appalachian State Mountaineers 

The Mountaineers have alternated wins and losses this year so far. The victories have come versus Gardner-Webb 45-24, East Carolina 43-28 and Louisiana-Monroe 41-40. In between those were losses to North Carolina 40-34 (OT), Wyoming 22-19 and Coastal Carolina 27-24 to leave the team at 3-3 overall. 

In last Tuesday’s matchup versus Coastal Carolina, Appalachian State gave up points in all four quarters on the way to the close loss. QB Joey Aguilar finished with 305 yards and two scores. Kanye Roberts led the rush on 48 yards from 11 carries, and Milan Tucker was tops in receiving with 78 yards off two catches. 

Appalachian State Mountaineers Team Facts

• Appalachian State has lost five of its last six games as a road favorite.
• Appalachian State has failed to cover the spread in each of its last six games as a road favorite.
• Four of Appalachian State’s last five games as a favorite have gone OVER the total points line.

Old Dominion Monarchs 

Over on the Monarchs’ side, they’ve been in much the same boat this season with alternating wins and losses. Old Dominion has fallen to Virginia Tech 36-17, Wake Forest 27-24 and Marshall 41-35. Otherwise, the Monarchs’ victories have come versus Louisiana 38-31, Texas A&M-Commerce 10-9 and Southern Miss 17-13. 

Matched up against Southern Miss back on October 7, the Monarchs faced a three-point deficit going into the final quarter but were able to power out a win 17-13. QB Grant Wilson finished with 194 yards on 8-of-18 passing, but the run game did most of the work. Kadarius Calloway (93 yards; 12 carries) and Keshawn Wicks (54 yards; TD; 10 carries) really paced the offense. 

Old Dominion Monarchs Team Facts

• Old Dominion has lost nine of its last 10 home games in October.
• Old Dominion has failed to cover the spread in seven of its last eight October home games against non-AP-ranked teams.
• Old Dominion has lost the first half in four of its last five home games against conference opponents.
• Five of Old Dominion’s last six home games against non-AP-ranked teams have gone UNDER the total points line.

Matchup/League Facts

• Appalachian State rank 20th among FBS teams for points per game this season (36.4).
• Appalachian State has suffered the equal-most road losses by a margin of 10 points or less of any FBS team this season (2).

ANDREW’S FREE PICK 

I’m leaning toward Appalachian State. This should be a pretty fun matchup between two fairly equal teams, though. The Mountaineers have been very competitive this year; none of their losses has come by more than six points. The team was a bit out of sorts in the Coastal Carolina loss however, posting just 24:21 in time of possession and 3-of-11 on third-down tries while allowing 569 yards (373 passing) and zero takeaways on the other side. 

As for Old Dominion, they haven’t won a game by more than seven points yet this year but to be fair only one of their three losses has come by more than six points. The Monarchs have plenty to clean up after their last game as well; they managed just 13 first downs and a 5-of-14 rate on third-down tries against Southern Miss. Overall I like both teams to play well in an eventual App State cover. Should be a fun one.