The Temple Owls (-10) are traveling south to take on their AAC nemesis East Carolina Pirates at Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium. Fans can catch the action live on ESPN and kickoff is pegged for 8:00 p.m. ET.
Betting Preview: Temple Owls vs. East Carolina Pirates
East Carolina is a live dog in this one and is currently getting 10 points. If they want to take the moneyline, gamblers would currently have to spend $400 in order to win $100 back on the Owls (-400). The Pirates are getting +300 moneyline odds. If one squad can find paydirt early it’ll create a decent live betting opportunity. Vegas has set the over/under (O/U) at 46.5 points.
Sharp bettors have been siding with both the Pirates and the under. The line initially opened at 13 and the over/under was originally 48.
The hapless Owls are 3-1 against the spread (ATS) and are down 4.5 units so far in 2019. The team’s posted an O/U record of 2-2.
The Pirates are up 0.3 units this season. The team is 2-3 ATS and has an O/U record of 0-5.
The Owls are 3-1 straight up (SU) and they haven’t faced any AAC competition yet. The Pirates are 3-2 SU overall and are also 0-1 SU in conference play.
The Owls are coming off a resounding 24-2 win over Georgia Tech last week. The passing attack could’ve been sharper as Anthony Russo completed only nine-of-22 passes for 127 yards and one interception. Re’Mahn Davis (135 yards on 29 rushes, two TDs) and Jager Gardner (69 yards on 18 carries) led the running attack while Jadan Blue (four receptions, 66 yards) and Isaiah Wright (two catches, 33 yards) handled the receiving duties in the win.
East Carolina is coming off of a 24-21 win over Old Dominion. The defense held its territory in the victory, holding the Monarchs to only 203 passing yards and 90 yards on the ground. Stone Smartt had a good outing in the defeat for Old Dominion, posting 76 rushing yards and a score on 22 attempts. For East Carolina, Holton Ahlers completed eight-of-21 passes for 202 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions. Trace Christian (21 rushing yards on 10 attempts) and Demetrius Mauney (52 yards on 10 carries) spearheaded the running game while Deondre Farrier (two receptions, 61 yards) and Blake Proehl (two catches, 100 yards, one TD) led the receiving attack in the win.
Temple’s run the ball on 48.5 percent of its offensive possessions this year while East Carolina has an overall rush percentage of 55.6 percent. The Owls have produced 141 rush yards per game and have five touchdowns on the ground this year. The Pirates are totaling 173.4 rush yards per game and have six total rushing TDs.
The Owls offense has tallied 292.3 yards per game in the air overall and has 11 passing TDs so far. The Pirates have recorded 197.4 pass yards per game and have four total pass scores.
Defensively, Temple appears to have the upper hand in both phases. The team has allowed 132.5 rush yards and 151.3 pass yards per game. The East Carolina defense has allowed 191 yards per game to opposing passers and 151.4 yards per game on the ground. The Owls are giving up an adjusted net yards per pass attempt (ANY/A) of just 3.08 to opposing QBs, while the Pirates have allowed a 5 ANY/A.
Ahlers has completed 59-of-112 passes for 703 yards, three TDs and five INTs for East Carolina. His adjusted net yards per pass attempt sits at a less-than-stellar 4.26 for the year and 5.92 over his past two outings. In the other locker room, Russo has put up 813 passing yards this season. He’s completed 61-of-100 attempts with seven passing touchdowns and three interceptions. Russo has a 7.90 ANY/A for the year, although that number sits at 3.12 over the past two games.
When these two schools faced one another last year, Temple knocked East Carolina off easily 49-6.
Temple Owls at East Carolina Pirates Betting Pick
SU Winner: Temple, ATS Winner: Temple, O/U: Over
Team Betting Trends
- The Over/Under for Temple’s last game was set at 47.5. The under cashed in the team’s 24-2 win over Georgia Tech.
- As a team, Temple has rushed for 3.4 yards per attempt over its past three games and 3.1 over its last two.
- East Carolina has averaged 4.1 yards per carry over its last three outings and 4.5 over its past two.
- Both teams have lost three fumbles this year.
- Over its last three games, Temple is 2-1 ATS and the under cashed in two of those three.
- The O/U for East Carolina’s previous match was 47. The under cashed in the team’s 24-21 win over Old Dominion.
- In its last three matches, East Carolina is 1-2 ATS and the under cashed in each of those three.
- The Owls offense has created four pass plays of 40+ yards, while the Pirates have put up three such plays.
- The Temple defense has allowed two pass plays of 40 or more yards, while East Carolina has given up four such plays.
- The Temple offense has created three rushing plays of 20+ yards, while East Carolina has created 13 such runs.
- The Owls defense has allowed three rushing plays of 20+ yards, while the Pirates have given up nine such runs.
- The East Carolina defensive unit has registered 13 sacks on the year while Temple has 10.
