Appalachian State Mountaineers vs North Carolina Tar Heels Prediction, Picks and Game Preview - 09/09/2023

Game Time: 5:15 pm ET, Saturday, September 9, 2023

Venue:  Kenan Memorial Stadium, Chapel Hill, NC

Where to Watch:  ACC Network

DraftKings:  Point Spread:  App State +18, UNC -18; Over/Under:  60 points

Bet365:  Point Spread:  App State +18, UNC -18; Over/Under:  60.5 points

BetMGM:  Point Spread:  App State +17.5, UNC -17.5; Over/Under:  60.5 points

Appalachian State Mountaineers:  1-0 (0-0) (1st place, Sun Belt East)

North Carolina Tar Heels:  1-0 (0-0) (7th place, ACC)

Do not miss out on our expert handicapper analysis! Amedeus Mastrangelo is on a HOT STREAK in CFB coming off a MASSIVE 9-2 CFB WEEKEND! Make sure you check out his picks and many more from the expert handicappers featured in the Shop Picks section.

Appalachian State Mountaineers:  won their last game at home against the Gardner-Webb Runnin’ Bulldogs 45-24.

North Carolina Tar Heels:  won their last game at a neutral site against the South Carolina Gamecocks 31-17.

Appalachian State is entering this game with a 1-0 record overall and they have a 0-0 record in their conference games too.  They are 1-0 in their home games, 0-0 in their road games, and they are also 0-0 in their neutral site games this season, but they will be on the road for this game. They won their last game against Gardner-Webb 45-24. Joey Aguilar was the starting QB and he completed 11/13 passes for 174 passing yards, 4 touchdowns, and 0 interceptions. Nate Noel led the team in rushing yards with 117 and 1 TD. Kaedin Robinson led the receivers with 64 receiving yards on 4 receptions and 1 TD. Nicholas Ross led the defense in that game with 3 solo tackles and 9 assisted tackles while no one recorded a sack in that one. Jackson Greene and Jack Scroggs each came away with 1 interception for them in that game.

 

 

 

North Carolina is entering this game with a 1-0 record overall and they have a 0-0 record in their conference games too.  They are 0-0 in their home games, 0-0 in their road games, and they are also 1-0 in their neutral site games this season, but they will be at home for this game. They won their last game against South Carolina 31-17. Drake Maye was the starting QB and he completed 24/32 passes for 269 passing yards, 2 touchdowns, and 2 interceptions. British Brooks led the team in rushing yards with 103. Kobe Paysour led the receivers with 66 receiving yards on 7 receptions and 1 TD. Kaimon Rucker led the defense in that game with 6 solo tackles and 2 assisted tackles while Kaimon Rucker and Amari Gainer each led the defense in sacks with 2. No one on the defense came away with an interception in that game.

The current betting odds have Appalachian State listed as an 18 point underdog in this game according to Draftkings Sportsbook. UNC looked really good in their 1st game of the season as they looked like they haven't skipped a beat from last year, but they only beat South Carolina by 14 points at a neutral site and that was more of a home game for them. App State does have to play on the road here and they gave up a lot of points in their 1st game of the season, but they still have a really good offense and this North Carolina defense struggled to keep points off the board last season against really good offenses. North Carolina is going to put up points in this game but so will App State with that good offense and this is just too many points for UNC to cover against a good App State team that is always a threat to win the Sun Belt. The best way to place a bet here is on Appalachian State to cover the spread in this game.

Appalachian State North Carolina Prediction:  Our NCAAF Pick for Saturday, September 9, 2023 (5:15 pm ET start time) is UNC 41 App State 27.

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Appalachian State Mountaineers: 1-5 ATS off a home no-cover where the team won as a favorite. 4-10 ATS after a game where they committed 1 or less turnovers. 23-12 UNDER when the total is between 56.5 and 63. 27-11 UNDER after scoring 42 points or more last game.

North Carolina Tar Heels: 5-1 ATS after playing a non-conference game. 4-2 ATS after gaining 325 or more passing yards in the last game. 31-18 UNDER after gaining 325 or more passing yards in the last game. 5-2 UNDER after a game where they committed no turnovers.

Appalachian State Mountaineers:  R. Burger (QB) day-to-day - Finger.

North Carolina Tar Heels:  D. Walker (WR) day-to-day - Eligibility. N. McCollum (WR) day-to-day - Undisclosed. J. Randolph (TE) out for season - Lower Body. L. Cavazos (DB) Out indefinitely - Lower Body. R. Grigsby (OL) Out indefinitely - Lower Body.

"Joey came in, his first collegiate pass for App State is a touchdown, and that gave us the spark we needed." - Shawn Clark after his team’s win against Gardner-Webb in their last game.

“We were good tonight. We need to be great.” - Mack Brown after his team’s win against South Carolina in their last game.  

WR Robinson, Kaedin 

WR Horn, Christan 

WR Davis, Dashaun 

TE Gibbs, Miller 

QB Burger, Ryan 

RB Noel, Nate 

WR Walker, Devontez 

WR Blackwell, Gavin 

WR McCollum, Nate 

TE Copenhaver, John 

QB Maye, Drake 

RB Brooks, British 

Passing: J. Aguilar (174)

Rushing: N. Noel (117)

Receiving: K. Robinson (64)

Touchdowns: K. Robinson (1)

Passing: D. Maye (269)

Rushing: B. Brooks (103)

Receiving: K. Paysour (66)

Touchdowns: O. Hampton (2)

Coaches:

Appalachian State Mountaineers: Shawn Clark (5th season)

North Carolina Tar Heels: Mack Brown (5th season)