The Massachusetts Minutemen (+27) are heading south to take on the FIU Panthers at Riccardo Silva Stadium. The game is scheduled to kick off at 7:00 p.m. ET and fans can view the action live on ESPN 3.
Betting Preview: Massachusetts Minutemen at FIU Panthers
Massachusetts is a heavy road dog here and is currently getting 27 points by oddsmakers. Vegas has set the over/under (O/U) at 67 points. Some good in-game betting opportunities should exist during this showdown.
Odds have moved from when they were first posted. The line opened at -26 and the game’s total has not changed after being initially established at 67.
The Minutemen have lost 1.4 units so far and are 1-4 against the spread (ATS). The team’s posted an O/U record of 4-1.
The disappointing Panthers have lost 4.5 units this season. They’re 0-4 ATS and have an even O/U record of 2-2.
The Minutemen are 1-4 straight up (SU) in 2019 while the Panthers are 1-3 SU.
The Minutemen are coming off a 37-29 victory over Akron last week where Michael Curtis completed just 17-of-31 passes for 173 yards, two scores and one interception. Bilal Ally (97 rushing yards on 15 attempts) and the signal-caller Curtis (69 yards on 10 carries, one TD) led the ground attack in the win. Samuel Emilus (six receptions, 70 yards, one TD) and Sadiq Palmer (three catches, 20 yards, one TD) handled the receiving duties.
A couple of weeks ago, Louisiana Tech took care of this FIU crew by a score of 43-31. The Panthers defense allowed the Bulldogs to eat up the clock by running for 275 yards on 43 rush attempts, including three rush TDs. Justin Henderson had a solid showing for Louisiana Tech, recording 141 rushing yards and three touchdowns on 15 attempts. For FIU, James Morgan completed 29-of-41 passes for 394 yards, two touchdowns and one interception. Anthony Jones (35 rushing yards on nine attempts, one TD) and Napoleon Maxwell (78 yards on eight carries) mounted the ground game in the defeat as Shemar Thornton (seven receptions, 97 yards, one TD) and Tony Gaiter IV (seven catches, 87 yards) led the pass-catching corps.
Massachusetts has run the ball on 54.9 percent of its offensive possessions this year while FIU has a rush percentage of 57.3 percent. The Minutemen have run for 154.6 yards per game and have seven touchdowns via handoffs this year. The Panthers are logging 163 rushing yards per game and have seven total rush TDs.
The Minutemen offense has tallied 175.8 yards/game through the air overall and has seven passing scores so far. The Panthers have put up 205 pass yards per contest and have three total pass TDs.
On the defensive side of the ball, Massachusetts has allowed 237.2 rush yards and 289 pass yards per game. The FIU defense has given up 237.5 yards per game to opposing passers and 217.3 yards per game on the ground. The Panthers are allowing an adjusted net yards per pass attempt (ANY/A) of only 6.29 to opponents, while the Minutemen have given up a staggering 9.72 ANY/A.
Morgan likely has the advantage over Curtis in this matchup. His adjusted net yards per pass attempt sits at 6.54 for the year and 8.84 over his last two outings while Curtis’ ANY/A is 5.42.
When these two squads faced each other last year, FIU won handily 63-24.
Massachusetts Minutemen vs. FIU Panthers Free Prediction
SU Winner: FIU, ATS Winner: Massachusetts, O/U: Under
Betting Notes
- The Massachusetts D has twice as many sacks as FIU this year (six versus three).
- FIU has lost two fumbles in 2019 while Massachusetts has yet to lose any.
- The Minutemen offense has recorded zero pass plays of 40 yards or more, while the Panthers have accounted for three such plays.
- The Massachusetts defense has allowed five pass plays of 40 yards or more, while FIU has given up four such plays.
- The Massachusetts offense has created seven rushing plays of 20 or more yards, while FIU has created five such runs.
- The Minutemen defense has allowed 10 rushing plays of 20 or more yards, while the Panthers have given up seven such runs.
- The Over/Under for FIU’s previous outing was set at 51. The over cashed in the 43-31 defeat to Louisiana Tech.
- Over its last three matchups, FIU is 0-3 ATS and the over cashed in two of those three.
- In its last three matchups, Massachusetts is 1-2 ATS and the over cashed in each of those three.
- The Over/Under for Massachusetts’ last game going into it was 61. The over cashed in the team’s 37-29 victory over Akron.
- Massachusetts has averaged 4.0 yards per carry over its last three games and 4.2 over its last two.
- FIU has averaged 4.8 yards per carry over its last three contests and 5.7 over its past two.
