The Utah State Aggies (+3) aren’t traveling far to face the BYU Cougars at LaVell Edwards Stadium. ESPN2 is scheduled to have the TV rights and this Friday showdown starts at 9:00 p.m. ET. When these two teams met last year, Utah State got the victory 40-24.
Betting Preview: Utah State Aggies vs. BYU Cougars
In this Friday game, BYU has been labeled as the favorite and the team’s currently giving up 3 points. The Aggies are also receiving +120 moneyline odds while the Cougars are -140. If one team can create a bunch of points in the early stages, it would likely create a solid live betting opportunity.
The game’s opening line was originally set at -3, but has recently shifted.
The Aggies are 4-0 against the spread (ATS) and have gained 1.0 unit so far. The team has posted an O/U record of 4-0.
The Cougars are up 1.1 units this season. The team is 3-2 ATS and has an O/U record of 0-5.
The Aggies have gone 3-1 straight up (SU) in 2018 while the Cougars are 3-2 SU.
The Aggies hope to keep it rolling after a 42-32 victory over Air Force on September 22Their defense allowed the Falcons to rush for 323 yards on 86 attempts, including three rush TDs. Kadin Remsberg had a productive day for the Falcons in that one with 94 rushing yards and a score on 17 attempts. On the offensive side of the ball, Jordan Love completed 26-of-38 passes for 356 yards and two touchdowns. Gerold Bright (101 yards on 11 rushes, two TDs) led the ground attack while Ron’Quavion Tarver (nine receptions, 128 yards) and Dax Raymond (four catches, 68 yards, one TD) handled the receiving duties in the win.
BYU just dropped a 35-7 game to Washington. The team’s defense allowed the Huskies to eat up the clock by running for 187 yards on 37 rush attempts, including four rush TDs. Aaron Fuller put up a good outing in the win for Washington, recording 107 yards and a score on eight catches. For BYU, Tanner Mangum completed 18-of-21 passes for 160 yards. Lopini Katoa carved up the opposing defense in the loss. In addition to 27 rushing yards on eight attempts (and one TD), Katoa also reeled in seven receptions for 66 yards.
Utah State’s run the ball on 48.1 percent of its offensive possessions this year while BYU has a rush percentage of 55.4 percent. The Aggies have produced 187.0 rush yards per game and have 17 touchdowns on the ground this year. The Cougars are logging 132.0 rush yards per game and have eight total rushing TDs.
It appears that the Aggies should have the advantage when it comes to efficiency in the ground game, since their backfield has logged 5.5 yards per carry while the defense is allowing a YPC of 3.5 to opponents. The Cougars have recorded 3.8 yards per carry and allowed 4.2 YPC to opponents.
The Aggies offensive scheme has tallied 284.5 yards per game through the air overall and has five passing TDs so far. The Cougars have produced 163.0 pass yards per contest and have four total pass scores.
Defensively, Utah State should have the upper hand when it comes to limiting the pass. The team has allowed 187.3 rush yards and 170.3 pass yards per game. The BYU D has allowed 203.4 yards per game to opposing passers and 152.0 yards per game on the ground. The Aggies are giving up an adjusted net yards per pass attempt (ANY/A) of only 3.50 to opposing QBs, while the Cougars have allowed a 5.55 ANY/A.
Love likely has the edge over Mangum in this matchup, as his adjusted net yards per pass attempt sits at 6.32for the season and 10.29 over the last two outings. Mangum’s ANY/A is 4.82 for the year and 5.77 over his last two games.
