The Pittsburgh Panthers (+15) are set to pay a visit to the No. 13 UCF Knights (-15) at Spectrum Stadium. The crucial daytime matchup is scheduled to kick off at 3:30 p.m. ET and ESPNU will broadcast the action.
Betting Preview: Pittsburgh Panthers at UCF Knights
Pittsburgh is a live dog and is currently getting 15 points in this game. The Panthers are also receiving +550 moneyline odds while the Knights are -840. There could be multiple decent live betting opportunities while this game’s underway.
This game’s line initially opened at -15 but has recently moved.
The Panthers are 1-3 against the spread (ATS) and have lost 1.0 unit so far. The team has posted an O/U record of 2-1.
The Knights have gained 1.0 unit for moneyline bettors this season. They’re 2-1 ATS and also have an O/U record of 2-1.
The Panthers are 2-2 straight up (SU) in 2018 while the Knights are 3-0 SU.
The Panthers are reeling from a narrow 38-35 loss to North Carolina last week. The defense allowed the Tar Heels to pass for 313 yards and two touchdowns while rushing for 173 yards and three scores. Antonio Williams had a productive day for the Tar Heels in that one with 114 rushing yards and two touchdowns on 16 attempts. On the offensive side, Kenny Pickett completed 19 passes for only 174 yards and two touchdowns. Pickett (37 rushing yards on 13 attempts, one TD) also spearheaded the running attack in the loss and was complemented by Qadree Ollison (72 yards on 12 carries, one TD). Maurice Ffrench (seven receptions, 65 yards, one TD) and Rafael Araujo-Lopes (two catches, eight yards) handled the receiving duties.
UCF just earned a 56-36 win over Florida Atlantic. The defense allowed the Owls to run for 320 yards on 50 rush attempts, including four rush TDs. Devin Singletary was a bright spot in the loss, recording 131 rushing yards and three touchdowns on 25 attempts for Florida Atlantic. For UCF, McKenzie Milton completed 21-of-32 passes for 306 yards and three touchdowns. Adrian Killins Jr. (66 yards on 16 rush attempts) and the signal-caller Milton (81 yards on 13 carries, three TDs) led the ground game in the win as Michael Colubiale (six receptions, 84 yards) and Gabriel Davis (five catches, 91 yards, one TD) led the pass-catching corps.
Pittsburgh has run the ball on 61.7 percent of its offensive possessions this year while UCF has an overall rush percentage of 55.0 percent. The Panthers have produced 212.3 rush yards per game and have nine touchdowns via handoffs this year. The Knights are logging 283.7 rushing yards per game and have 11 total rush TDs.
The Panthers offense has averaged 148.8 yards in the air overall and has four passing scores so far. The Knights have produced 304.0 pass yards per game and have nine total pass TDs.
Defensively, Pittsburgh has let opponents run for an average of 191.0 yards and throw for 205.3 yards per game. The UCF defense has allowed 157.7 yards per game to opposing passers and 239.0 yards per game to opposing runners. The Knights are allowing an adjusted net yards per pass attempt (ANY/A) of only 1.98 to opponents, while the Panthers have given up a 6.55 ANY/A.
Offensively, Pickett is up to 383 passing yards on the year. He’s completed 60 percent of his 73 attempts with four passing scores and two interceptions. He’s got a 3.83 adjusted net yards per pass attempt overall, although that number sits at 5.59 over the last two outings.
The Panthers will likely try to maintain tempo by pounding the defense with their running backs. In addition to receiver Taysir Mack (129 receiving yards), Qadree Ollison (264 rush yards, two rush TDs) and Darrin Hall (134 rush yards, one rush TD) have delivered in the Pittsburgh offensive scheme.
McKenzie Milton has completed 45-of-64 passes for 652 yards, eight TDs and zero INTs for UCF. His ANY/A stands at 12.42 for the year and 6.79 across his last two outings.
The Knights also prefer to leverage their backfield. In addition to Gabriel Davis (131 receiving yards, two receiving TDs), Adrian Killins Jr. (104 rush yards, one rush TD) and Dredrick Snelson (zero rush yards, 152 receiving yards, one TD) have gotten a lot of looks lately.
Pittsburgh Panthers at UCF Knights NCAA Pick
SU Winner: UCF, ATS Winner: UCF
Betting Notes
- Pittsburgh, as a team, has averaged 5.5 yards per carry over its past two outings.
- UCF has averaged 5.7 YPC over its last two.
- The UCF offense has lost zero fumbles this season while Pittsburgh has lost four.
- The Panthers offense has recorded three pass plays of 40 or more yards, while the Knights have put up one such play.
- The Pittsburgh defense has allowed three pass plays of 40 or more yards, while UCF has given up zero such plays.
- Both teams have produced seven rushing plays of 20 or more yards. The Pittsburgh offense has recorded 24 running plays of 10+ yards while UCF has accounted for 25 such plays.
- The Panthers defense has allowed 11 rushing plays of 20 or more yards, while the Knights have given up five such runs.
- The Pittsburgh defense has twice as many sacks as UCF this year (eight to four).
