The SMU Mustangs and the Temple Owls meet Friday in college football action from Lincoln Financial Field. SMU is coming off a matchup versus East Carolina last Thursday. In that one the Mustangs cruised to a 21-point victory to move to 4-2 on the year. As for Temple, they played North Texas back on Saturday. The Owls went on to suffer a blowout loss and fall to 2-5 overall. Check back all season long for free college football picks at Sports Chat Place.

SMU Mustangs 

The Mustangs alternated wins with losses to open up the season. First came a 38-14 win over Louisiana Tech in the opener, then a 28-11 loss to a great Oklahoma team. Game three was a 69-0 blowout win over Prairie View, then came another loss 34-17 versus TCU. SMU once again bounced back in game five with a 34-16 win over Charlotte. 

In last Thursday’s matchup versus East Carolina, the Mustangs jumped out to a 14-0 lead after the first quarter but didn’t score again until the fourth in a 31-10 win. QB Preston Stone finished with 276 yards and three scores. Jordan Kerley put up three catches for 69 yards and Jaylan Knighton led the rush with a tepid 26 yards on 11 carries. 

SMU Mustangs Team Facts

• The favorite has won 18 of SMU’s last 19 games.
• SMU has failed to cover the spread in six of its last seven away matches when playing with a rest advantage.
• SMU has won the first quarter in four of its last five road games against conference opponents.
• Seven of SMU’s last eight games against non-AP-ranked teams have gone UNDER the total points line.

Temple Owls

Over on the Temple side, they went 2-2 over their first four games. The wins came versus Akron 24-21 and Norfolk State 41-9. The losses otherwise were against Rutgers 36-7 and Miami-FL 41-7. Temple’s losing streak continued in the next pair with losses to Tulsa 48-26 and UTSA 49-34. Owls QB EJ Warner there for 472 yards and five scores in the losing effort. 

Matched up against North Texas over the weekend, Temple was blasted 24-14 in the first half and couldn’t score after the break. The result was a rough 45-14 loss. Warner was out due to an injury, so Quincy Patterson filled in on 105 yards and three interceptions while leading the rush from 113 yards and a TD. Amad Anderson added 22 yards from two catches. 

Temple Owls Team Facts

• Temple has lost each of its last nine games in October.
• The favorite has covered the spread in each of Temple’s last six games.
• Temple has lost the first half in seven of its last eight home games against conference opponents.
• Six of Temple’s last seven October home games against non-AP-ranked teams have gone OVER the total points line.

Matchup/League Facts

• SMU rank T27th among FBS teams for points allowed per game this season (18.4).
• SMU rank T36th among FBS teams for points per game this season (33.8).

ANDREW’S FREE PICK 

I’ll stick with SMU in this one, but I’m not touching it. The Mustangs posted a win by a margin of three touchdowns in their last outing but you wouldn’t know it by looking at some of the stats. SMU mustered just 58 rushing yards and 334 yards total alongside 14 first downs and a rough 4-of-15 on third-down conversions. The defense really kept the team in the game, generating two turnovers and holding the Pirates to just 3.8 yards per play. 

As for Temple, they suffered bad luck with the Warner injury and couldn’t get anything going with the three picks and 527 yards allowed (307 rushing). SMU’s offense is good enough to take advantage of the Owls defense so I like the Mustangs on a cover. That said, I can see Temple sneaking in there as well.