East Carolina at UCF: 10/9/21 College Football Picks and Prediction
Photo by James Guillory-USA TODAY Sports
UCF Knights (2-2) vs East Carolina Pirates (3-2)
Game Info: Saturday, October 9, 2021 at 6:00 pm (Bounce House)
Betting Odds: UCF Knights -10 -- Over/Under: 67 Click Here for the Latest Odds
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The East Carolina Pirates will travel to the Bounce House to take on the UCF Knights this Saturday night in College Football action.
The East Carolina Pirates won their 3rd straight game and improved to 3-2 on the season after defeating the Tulane Green Wave, 52-29, this past Saturday. East Carolina had no trouble generating offense against the struggling Tulane defense and had no trouble securing the victory after going into halftime with a 31-7 lead. East Carolina outgained Tulane by a 612-404 margin and won the turnover battle by a 4-0 margin in the victory. Leading the way for the Pirates was Keaton Mitchell who had 222 rushing yards & 2 TD’s on 15 carries.
On the season, East Carolina is averaging 32.2 ppg on 442.0 total yards per game (276.4 passing yds/g; 165.6 rushing yds/g). Offensively, East Carolina has been led by RB duo of Keaton Mitchell (60 att, 574 yards, 4 TD) & Rahjai Harris (63 att, 219 yards, 2 TD). QB Holton Ahlers has completed 59.4% of his passes for 1266 yards, 7 TD, & 5 INT while also rushing for 3 TD’s. The top receiving threats for Ahlers and the Pirates have been Tyler Sneed (22 rec, 280 yards, 2 TD), C.J. Johnson (16 rec, 217 yards, TD), & Jsi Hatfield (8 rec, 184 yards, TD).
Defensively, East Carolina is allowing their opponents to average 29.6 ppg on 481.2 total yards per game (320.4 passing yds/g; 160.8 rushing yds/g).
The UCF Knights lost their 2nd straight game and dropped to 2-2 on the season after being defeated by the Navy Midshipmen, 34-30, this past Saturday. UCF looked like they were going to pick up the victory after going into the 4th quarter with a 30-17 lead, however, the Midshipmen dominated the Knights on both ends of the field for the remainder of the game and could not fight back after a 4-yard TD run by Navy’s Isaac Ruoss gave the Midshipmen the lead for good with 3:09 left in the game. UCF was outgained by Navy by a 406-326 margin and committed 2 turnovers in the loss. Leading the way for the Knights was WR Brandon Johnson who had 4 receptions for 79 yards & 2 TD’s.
On the season, UCF is averaging 41.0 ppg on 496.5 total yards per game (270.3 passing yds/s; 226.3 rushing yds/g). Offensively, UCF has been using two QB’s in Dillon Gabriel (68.6 Comp %, 814 yards, 9 TD, 3 INT) & Mikey Keene (60.6 Comp %, 233 yards, 3 TD, 1 INT). The top receiving threats for the Knights have been Ryan O’Keefe (18 rec, 242 yards, TD), Jaylon Robinson (12 rec, 234 yards, 2 TD), & Brandon Johnson (19 rec, 223 yards, 5 TD). Leading the way for the Knights backfield has been the trio of Isaiah Bowser (51 att, 268 yards, 5 TD), Johnny Richardson (26 att, 193 yards), & Trillion Coles (26 att, 151 yards, TD).
Defensively, UCF is allowing their opponents to average 30.3 ppg on 367.3 total yards per game (221.5 passing yds/g; 145.8 rushing yds/g).
The Pirates are 3-1-1 ATS in their last 5 games as an underdog and 4-0-1 ATS in their last 5 games after accumulating more than 450 total yards in their previous game. The Knights are 4-1 ATS vs. a team with a winning record, however, are just 3-7 ATS in their last 10 home games.
UCF is known for their high-scoring offense, however, their has been some major concerns after allowing Navy, who was averaging just 10.0 ppg coming into their matchup, to put up 34 points against their defense in a stunning loss. East Carolina is a solid football team that is led by their offense that ranks 52nd in scoring offense & 34th in total offense and as I think the Pirates will have plenty of success putting up points in this one, I think the play here is to take East Carolina and the double-digit points. Good Luck!
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Brett’s Pick East Carolina Pirates +10
AUTHOR: Brett Nault

Follow Brett Nault on Twitter @BrettCU05