Army vs Florida Atlantic Prediction College Football Picks 9/7/24

The Army Black Knights and the FAU Owls meet in week 2 college football action from Malone Stadium on Saturday afternoon. We will look at this from a betting perspective and determine the best bets for this game. Here’s an Army vs. FAU prediction.

Army Recap

The Army Black Knights come into this one fresh off of opening the year with a 42-7 beatdown win over Lehigh last time out. After this game, the Black Knights will head back home to welcome Rice to town.

Black Knights Run Over Lehigh

Bryson Daily threw for 35 yards and also rushed for 78 yards and two touchdowns while Noah Short had 83 rushing yards and a score and Kanye Udoh chipped in 75 rushing yards and 2 touchdowns on 15 carries. Andon Thomas had 35 rushing yards and Hayden Reed added 32 for Army’s option attack while Jake Rendina added a rushing TD as well. On defense, Kalib Fortner led the Black Knights with 8 total tackles including 5 solo tackles while Jaydan Mayes and Donavon Platt each had an interception as well in the win.

Why the Army Black Knights will win

• Army has won each of its last five games.
• Florida Atlantic has lost each of its last five games.
• Florida Atlantic has failed to cover the spread in each of its last four games against conference opponents.
• Army has covered the spread in six of its last seven games as an underdog against non-AP-ranked teams.

FAU Recap

The FAU Owls will go home and search for their first win of the season after narrowly falling to Michigan State in their opener by a final score of 16-10. After this matchup, FAU will welcome rival FIU to town.

Owls QB Play Costs Them Vs. Spartans

Cam Fancher threw for 116 yards, a touchdown, and 2 interceptions on just 12 of 25 passing while also rushing for 67 yards on 25 carries. Zuberi Mobley added 36 rushing yards and CJ Campbell Jr. chipped in 29 rushing yards as well in the loss. Omari Hayes added a team-high 5 receptions for 74 yards while Jayshon Platt added 2 grabs for 21 yards and a touchdown as well in the loss. On defense, Jackson Ambush had a team-high 10 total tackles including 5 solo tackles while Devonta Davis added a sack and Phillip Dunnam and Kahzir Brown each had an interception as well in the defeat.

Why the Florida Atlantic Owls will win

• Florida Atlantic has won each of its last seven home openers as a favorite.
• Army has lost six of its last seven road openers.
• Army has failed to cover the spread in three of its last four road openers.
• The favorite has covered the spread in three of Florida Atlantic’s last four games at FAU Stadium.

Army vs. FAU Prediction

I’m on Army here. I think that Fancher is more of a liability than an asset for FAU, especially against this tenacious defense that’s great at stopping the run because it’s mostly all they go up against in practice. Army on the other side is hard enough to prep for as an option team, but they also come out of the option in a bunch of different formations so it throws off opposing defenses. I think Army is live in this game for an outright win. Give me Army and the points.

Chris Ruffolo's Pick: Army +4