UAB Blazers vs BYU Cougars Prediction, Picks and Game Preview - 12/18/2021

Game Time: 3:30 pm ET, Saturday, December 18, 2021

Venue:  Independence Bowl, Shreveport, LA

Where to Watch:  ABC

DraftKings:  Point Spread:  UAB +7, BYU -7; Over/Under:  54.5 points

Bet365:  Point Spread:  UAB +6.5, BYU -6.5; Over/Under:  54.5 points

BetMGM:  Point Spread:  UAB +8.5, BYU -8.5; Over/Under:  54.5 points

 

UAB Blazers:  8-4 (2nd place, C-USA West)

BYU Cougars:  10-2 (2nd place, FBS Independents)

 

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UAB Blazers:  won at home on Nov. 26 against the UTEP Miners 42-25.

BYU Cougars:  won on the road on Nov. 27 against the USC Trojans 35-31.

 

 

 

UAB is coming into this game after finishing their regular season with an 8-4 record overall and they are 1-0 in neutral site games this season where they will be in this game. They have won 3 of their last 4 games and are coming into this one off of a win in their last game. Their last loss was against the UTSA Roadrunners while their 3 wins in that span came against the Louisiana Tech Bulldogs, the Marshall Thundering Herd, and the UTEP Miners in their last game. Dylan Hopkins completed 15/20 passes for 108 yards, 2 touchdowns and 1 interception. DeWayne McBride led the team in rushing with 99 yards and 1 touchdown on 7 carries while Jermaine Brown Jr. had 88 yards and 3 touchdowns on 16 carries. RaJae' Johnson led the receivers with 24 yards on 5 receptions while Gerrit Prince and Hayden Pittman both caught the touchdown passes with 1 each in that one. Dy'jonn Turner led the defense in that game with 5 solo tackles and 2 assisted ones. Alex Wright led the defense in sacks in that game with 1.5 while Grayson Cash came up with the only interception for them in that one. They have scored 353 points in their 12 games this season averaging 29.4 PPG and they have allowed their opponents to score 274 points against them allowing 22.8 PPG. Their offense is averaging 384.5 YPG while their defense is allowing 323.9 YPG.

 

 

BYU is coming into this game after finishing their season with a 10-2 record overall and they are 1-0 in their neutral site games this season where they will be in this game. Their last loss was against the Baylor Bears but they finished their season on a 5 game winning streak since then with wins coming against the Washington State Cougars, the Virginia Cavaliers, the Idaho State Bengals, the Georgia Southern Eagles, and the USC Trojans in their last game. Jaren Hall completed 20/32 passes for 276 yards, 2 touchdowns and 2 interceptions in that one. Tyler Allgeier had a nice day on the ground as he led the team in rushing with 111 yards and 2 touchdowns on 21 carries while Jackson McChesney also ran in 1 TD in that one. Keanu Hill led the receivers with 72 yards and 1 touchdown on 4 receptions while Puka Nacua caught the other touchdown pass in that one. Max Tooley led the defense in that game with 9 solo tackles and 4 assisted ones. No one on the defense was able to record a sack or come up with an interception for them in that one. They have scored 402 points in their 12 games this season averaging 33.5 PPG and they have allowed their opponents to score 291 points against them allowing 24.3 PPG. BYU’s offense is averaging 457.4 YPG while their defense is allowing 386.3 YPG.

 

BYU is coming into this Radiance Technologies Independence Bowl as a 7 point favorite and the point total set at 54.5 with the current betting odds according to Draftkings Sportsbook. Both of these teams have been playing well this season and will each want to cap their season off with a bowl win here. Both teams have been playing well and scoring a lot of points in their recent games. BYU and UAB both average close to 30 points per game and they have both been scoring that many points and way more in their recent games. This should be a closer game that goes back and forth as both teams keep scoring to take the lead back. This score is going to get driven up here with these two strong offenses so the best bet to place in this game is on the over.

 

UAB BYU Prediction:  Our NCAAF Pick for Saturday, December 18, 2021 (3:30 pm ET start time) is BYU 38 UAB 35.

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UAB Blazers: 32-20 ATS as an underdog of 3.5 to 10 points. 14-5 ATS after playing a conference game. 5-2 ATS after a bye week. 9-2 ATS in games played on turf. 13-5 ATS after having won 2 out of their last 3 games. 9-4 ATS off a win against a conference rival.

BYU Cougars: 3-6 ATS as a favorite of 3.5 to 10 points. 2-12 ATS off 2 consecutive road wins. 4-8 ATS after scoring 31 points or more in 2 straight games. 12-31 ATS after a 2 game road trip. 2-5 ATS after gaining 6.25 or more yards/play in their previous game.

 

 

UAB Blazers:  None.

BYU Cougars:  J. Empey (OL) Ques Dec 18 - Undisclosed injury. C. Ah You (LB) Ques Dec 18 - Undisclosed injury. I. Rex (TE) out for season - Ankle injury. N. Pau'u (WR) Out indefinitely - Leg injury. B. Romney (QB) Out indefinitely - Head injury.

 

 

“What a great opponent we’ve got in BYU. There are other ranked teams that they beat this year. I was familiar with Coach Sitake before when he was a coordinator, so we know just how hard these guys play and how physical they are. We were just getting to start watching film on them yesterday and we’re gonna have our work cut out for us.” - Bill Clark on their upcoming opponent in this game.

 

 

"We just stuck to our basics and got the energy back. Once we were able to do that, it came together well and it was an easy march down the field." - Jaren Hall on their win against USC in their last game.

 

 

 

WR Rudolph, Samario 

WR Trea Shropshire

WR Davis, Ryan 

TE Pittman, Hayden 

QB Hopkins, Dylan 

RB Brown Jr., Jermaine 

 

WR Gunner Romney

WR Nacua, Samson 

WR Nacua, Puka 

TE Rex, Isaac 

QB Hall, Jaren 

RB Allgeier, Tyler 

FB Wake, Masen 

 

 

Passing: D. Hopkins (2085)

Rushing: D. McBride (1185)

Receiving: T. Shropshire (683)

Touchdowns: D. McBride (12)

 

Passing: J. Hall (2583)

Rushing: T. Allgeier (1414)

Receiving: P. Nacua (796)

Touchdowns: T. Allgeier (20)

 

Coaches:

UAB Blazers: Bill Clark (6th season)

BYU Cougars: Kalani Sitake (6th season)