South Alabama vs Tulane Prediction - College Football Picks 9/2/23

Tulane Green Wave (0-0) vs South Alabama Jaguars (0-0)

Game Info: Saturday, September 2, 2023 at 8:00 pm (Benson Field at Yulman Stadium)

Betting Odds: Tulane Green Wave -6.5 -- Over/Under: 55 Click Here for the Latest Odds

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The South Alabama Jaguars will play the Tulane Green Wave in a non-conference game on Saturday afternoon at Yulman Stadium in New Orleans, Louisiana. South Alabama had a very good season in 2022, but ended with a sour note in the bowl game, while Tulane had one of their best seasons ever. 

South Alabama Preview

The South Alabama Jaguars went 10-3 in 2022 and they went 7-1 in the Sun Belt. South Alabama lost to UCLA by one point and Troy by a score of 10-6, but that was their only two losses in the regular season. The Jaguars did go to the New Orleans Bowl, but they lost to Western Kentucky by a score of 44-23 to end the season. South Alabama returns a ton of production on offense, which is great news for a team that scored 27+ points in five straight games to end the regular season. Carter Bradley is back at quarterback after throwing for 3,336 yards, 28 touchdowns, and 12 interceptions last year. The Jaguars also return their top three leading rushers, including La’Damian Webb, who rushed for 1,062 yards last season. Defensively, South Alabama was pretty solid for most of the year, but did struggle against UCLA and Western Kentucky. Overall, the Jaguars are poised for another very good season, but they have a tall task ahead of them in this game. 

Tulane Preview

The Tulane Green Wave went 12-2 last season and they were 8-1 in the AAC. Tulane defeated UCF in the AAC Title game by a score of 45-28 and their only losses in the regular season came against Southern Miss (27-24) and UCF (38-31). The Green Wave played in the Cotton Bowl, where they had an amazing comeback to win 46-45 over USC. Michael Pratt returns as the quarterback for the Green Wave after throwing for 3,010 yards, 27 touchdowns, and only five picks. Pratt also added 478 rushing yards and 10 rushing touchdowns. Tulane did lose their leading rusher from last year, but the offensive line should be one of the best in the conference. Tulane also lost a lot of production in the passing game and even though they were able to bring in some players from the portal, they may need some time to get on the same page as Pratt. Tulane’s defense was very average last season and their offense was able to bail them out, but they need to make a jump this year to have the same success. 

Tulane Green Wave Team Facts

  • Tulane has won 10 of its last 11 games against non-AP-ranked teams.
  • Tulane has covered the spread in 12 of its last 13 games against non-AP-ranked teams.
  • Tulane has won the first half in each of its last three home games against non-conference opponents.
  • Tulane has won the first quarter in four of its last five games against non-conference opponents.
  • Each of Tulane's last five games have gone OVER the total points line.

South Alabama Jaguars Team Facts

  • South Alabama has won each of its last four road games.
  • South Alabama has covered the spread in eight of its last nine season openers.
  • Each of South Alabama's last five games as an underdog against AP-ranked teams have gone UNDER the total points line.

Matchup/League Facts

  • Tulane ranked T10th among FBS teams for Q3 win percentage last season (.643).
  • Tulane ranked T10th among FBS teams for H2 win percentage last season (.714).
  • South Alabama ranked T12th among FBS teams for Q3 win percentage last season (.615).
  • South Alabama ranked T13th among FBS teams for H2 win percentage last season (.692).

Pick

Tulane comes into the season ranked in the top-25 and they will be at home for this game, but they are facing a South Alabama team that should be pretty good once again. Tulane returning Pratt at quarterback is huge, but they lost a lot of production at the skill positions. On the other side, South Alabama has a lot of returning starters and should be able to take advantage of a Tulane defense that wasn’t very sharp last year. I like South Alabama to keep this one close. 

David’s Pick South Alabama +6.5

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The pick in this article is the opinion of the writer, not a PickDawgz site consensus.
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