by Chuck Sommers
Thursday, Dec 01, 2022Sun Belt Conference Championship Game
Time: 3:30 p.m. ET
Venue: Veterans Memorial Stadium, Troy, AL
Where to watch: ESPN2
Opening Odds at USA Sportsbooks
DraftKings: Troy -8.5
FanDuel: Troy -8.5
BetMGM: Troy -8.5
Caesars: Troy -8.5
Season record
Coastal Carolina: 9-2 (6-2 Sun Belt)
Troy: 10-2 (7-1 Sun Belt)
Conference championship week is here, and you can't tell me you don't think these games mean a little bit extra on the books. College Football Playoff implications, the balance of power in the college football landscape to be decided this weekend, starting Friday with a big game notably in Las Vegas. Do you have the right idea when you head to the books for these important games? Our champion handicappers surely have you covered. Will Rogers is running an impressive 24-11-0 in the last month. Al McMordie has also been cashing in heavily with a 40-29-1 mark in college football over the last 30 days. Our guys here have you ready to go for what should be an exciting week. Be tuned to bigal.com for everything!
Coastal Carolina - Troy preview, analysis and prediction
This is actually going to be a very fun Sun Belt Conference Championship game. The Coastal Carolina Chanticleers, better known as the favorites of the group for the last number of years, will be taking on the Troy Trojans in what should be a fun matchup featuring a bunch of points, the hammering of the over, and a partridge in a pear tree. Yes, can't you tell that I am 100% in the Christmas spirit? You all would be surprised, or not, if I just spoken Christmas speak for the rest of the month and it would be enjoyable by all.
Nevertheless, it is going to be a really fun matchup between two teams that I would say her on different sides of the spectrum. On one hand you have Coastal Carolina, the team that has taken the hearts and minds of many over the years, crawling up the AP Top 25 Poll and for lack of a better term winning games when you don't think that they should be winning games. This year in conference play, however, Coastal Carolina has slipped up a little bit. two conference losses, one to Old Dominion and the other to James Madison, have given Coastal Carolina enough of a chance to be in the conference Championship game and win it again. This time, however, Coastal Carolina will not be the home team in this championship game. All because Troy went on a ridiculous Run Tour the end and finished 7-1 in conference play.
One good thing coming from Coastal Carolina at least this week, is the return of quarterback Grayson McCall. McCall has missed the last two games with an injury, and if he played today according to the Chanticleers, he would not be cleared to go. So there is a lot of Doubt stemming from this group especially given the fact that Coastal Carolina is not favored in this one. Troy is actually favored by 8.5 points oh, something I don't think anybody expected when the season began. But I don't think anybody anticipated Troy being as good as it is this year.
Think of it this way with the Trojans. They started the year 1-2. The losses were to Ole Miss and Appalachian State. the latter was just by 4 Points.If Troy won that game they would have ran the table with an 8-0 Conference record and would have probably been competing for a top 25 spot, or at the very least, a pretty good bowl game. Troy is coming off a 48-19 victory over Arkansas State last Saturday to get to this point. Running back Kimani Vidal ran for 208 yards and four touchdowns in the victory over Arkansas State. When you have a running back who is dominating like that, you’re bound to have an edge. Coastal Carolina will be the toughest test for Troy in the running game so far, however. The Chanticleers average just 134 rushing yards given up this year. It might need to be on quarterback Gunnar Watson to win this one.
Much like it’ll need to be on McCall to win this game. He’s only thrown one interception this season as opposed to 21 touchdowns. Troy has given up just 317 total yards per game. With the home-field advantage, it’s easy to understand why Troy would be favored.
Prediction
But even a great defense can’t contain the likelihood that is McCall having a big game. His mobility may be hampered a little bit, but McCall is going to be the best quarterback Troy sees this year and it’ll likely be a battle that they’re going to need everyone on deck for. CCU in the upset. Coastal Carolina by 4
Last week
Coastal Carolina: lost 47-7 at James Madison
Troy: won 48-19 at Arkansas State
Betting trends
Coastal Carolina is 0-6 ATS after winning 8 or 9 of 10 the last 3 seasons.
Troy is 7-1 ATS in conference games this season.
The over is 54-35 when Troy plays 2 straight conference games since 1992.
Statistical leaders
Coastal Carolina:
Passing: Grayson McCall – 2,314 yards, 21 TD, 1 INT
Rushing: CJ Beasley – 672 yards, 4 TD
Receiving: Sam Pinkney – 836 yards, 2 TD
Troy:
Passing: Gunnar Watson – 2,387 yards, 10 TD, 10 INT
Rushing: Kimani Vidal – 1,006 yards, 9 TD
Receiving: Tez Johnson – 764 yards, 4 TD
Don't miss our champion handicappers' free picks and expert football picks today. And if you enjoyed this Coastal Carolina Chanticleers - Troy Trojans prediction, be sure to drop by every day for our daily NCAA projections and previews.
Chuck Sommers
About the Author:
Chuck Sommers has camped outside of sportsbooks since he can remember, learning the tricks and nuances of the trade. He still has nightmares of betting $5,000 on the Raiders in the Tuck Rule game but has since turned that to 25 years of veteran handicapping greatness. You can find him mostly in the shadows at the Red Rock or Aliante casinos wondering if the over is cashing on any given Sunday.
