Bethune-Cookman vs USF Prediction College Football Picks 8/31/24

The Bethune-Cookman Wildcats and the USF Bulls meet in week 1 college football action from Raymond James Stadium on Saturday night. We will look at this from a betting perspective and determine the best bets for this game. Here’s a Bethune-Cookman vs. USF prediction.

Bethune-Cookman Team Preview

The Bethune-Cookman Wildcats come into the 2024 season hoping to take a step forward in 2024 after a disappointing 2023 campaign where the Wildcats finished with a 3-8 overall record and a 2-6 mark in SWAC play. Luke Sprague is back at QB for Bethune-Cookman after leading the Wildcats with 544 passing yards last season, completing 65.2% of his passes with 4 TDs and 2 interceptions.

Jaiden Bivens is back as the top returning rusher for the Wildcats after logging 137 rushing yards last year and the receiving corps for Bethune will be fairly green this season. Dearis Thomas is back for Bethune-Cookman’s defense after leading the Wildcats with 97 total tackles in addition to 12.5 TFLs last season. Bethune-Cookman will meet Mercer and Western Michigan after this game.

Why the Bethune-Cookman Wildcats will win

• South Florida has lost four of its last five season openers.
• South Florida has failed to cover the spread in six of its last seven season openers.

USF Team Preview

The USF Bulls will try to take another step forward in year two of the Alex Golesh era in Tampa, finishing the 2023 season with an overall record of 7-6 including 4-4 in AAC play. The Bulls got an invite to the Boca Raton Bowl, a game that they won against Syracuse by a final score of 45-0. Byrum Brown is back at QB after throwing for just under 3,300 yards and 26 touchdowns while rushing for another 800 yards and 11 TDs. Nay’Quan Wright is back after rushing for nearly 800 yards himself with 8 touchdowns of his own and Sean Atkins is back at receiver after leading the Bulls with 92 receptions last season. Rahmaan-Abdur Yaseen also comes over from Purdue to give the Bulls some depth at receiver.

On defense, Rashad Cheney leads the defensive line while DJ Harris and Tramel Logan provide a nasty pairing on the edge for USF. Aamaris Brown and Tavin Ward make up a formidable combo at corner and Jaelen Stokes and Logan Berryhill come back at safety while the Bulls added a ton of other pieces via the transfer portal.

Why the South Florida Bulls will win

• South Florida has won each of its last 10 games against non-FBS teams.
• South Florida has covered the spread in each of its last three games against non-conference opponents.

Bethune-Cookman vs. USF Prediction

I’m leaning towards USF here. It’s a big number for the Bulls in all honesty, but realistically, there’s no reason that USF shouldn’t cover this. USF was a solid team last year and with a lot of continuity within the team, there’s a lot to like about the Bulls this season. Bethune-Cookman just couldn’t really cut it last season and there’s nothing here for me suggesting that they’ll be able to do anything better in this one. Give me the Bulls in a beatdown.