Ohio (0-1) vs South Alabama (0-0)
September 7, 2024 at 06:00 PM EDT
The Line: Betting Odds: Ohio +1 / South Alabama -1 — Over/Under:
The South Alabama Jaguars and the Ohio Bobcats meet Saturday in college football action from Peden Stadium. Here’s a South Alabama vs Ohio prediction. We will look at this from a betting perspective and determine the best South Alabama vs Ohio pick. We will examine:
The South Alabama Jaguars’ recent form and player performance
The Ohio Bobcats’ recent form and player performance
Recent betting trends and streaks involving the South Alabama Jaguars
Recent betting trends and streaks involving the Ohio Bobcats
Recent betting trends in games played between South Alabama and Ohio
A summary that ties it all together and produces a favorable betting outcome for the South Alabama vs Ohio game
South Alabama Jaguars Betting Preview
In their 2023 campaign, the Jaguars managed to get into a bowl game with a 7-6 overall record. South Alabama went 4-4 in conference play, landing in fourth place in the West Division. The Jaguars won their 68 Ventures Bowl appearance versus Eastern Michigan 59-10.
In their Saturday matchup versus North Texas, the Jaguars coughed up 28 points in the third quarter along the way to a 52-38 loss. Gio Lopez notched 432 pass yards and three scores while also leading the rushing attack on 62 yards with another TD.
Ohio Bobcats Betting Preview
Over on the Bobcats’ side, they had a pretty solid season last year with a 10-3 overall run and a 6-2 record in the MAC games. Ohio finished behind Miami-OH in the East Division but did win their Myrtle Beach Bowl outing versus Georgia Southern 41-21.
Matched up against Syracuse back on Saturday, the Bobcats were down 17-9 by halftime and ended up falling 38-22. Parker Navarro notched 181 yards with one interception but Anthony Tyus had 203 rush yards and a pair of scores.
Why the Ohio Bobcats will win
- Ohio has won 11 of its last 12 games against non-AP-ranked teams at Peden Stadium.
- Ohio has covered the spread in each of its last four games against non-conference opponents.
Why the South Alabama Jaguars will win
- South Alabama has won eight of its last nine September games as a favorite against non-AP-ranked teams.
- Ohio has failed to cover the spread in six of its last eight games against non-conference opponents at Peden Stadium.
Total Points Facts
- Four of Ohio’s last five home openers have gone UNDER the total points line.
- Four of South Alabama’s last five road games in September have gone OVER the total points line.
Matchup/League Facts
- Ohio has won the MAC East Division in two of the last eight seasons.
- South Alabama rank T1st among FBS teams for H1 win percentage this season (1.000).
- South Alabama rank T27th among FBS teams for Q2 points per game this season (16.0).
South Alabama vs Ohio Prediction
I’m leaning toward Ohio. You could certainly make a case either way here, though. The Bobcats had a couple of big individual efforts on offense in their Week 1 loss, helping the team to 436 total yards (255 rushing) against a superior opponent. Ohio went just 2-of-11 on third downs and gave up 480 yards on the other side (354 passing), however.
As for South Alabama, they had a ton of offense themselves with 582 yards (432 passing). The Jags gave up 550 yards (446 passing) and 28 first downs on defense though, which kept them from holding pace. It’ll be interesting to see how these teams react to each other this weekend, especially on defense.