by Amedeus Mastrangelo
Tuesday, Nov 23, 2021
Game Time: 3:30 pm ET, Saturday, November 27, 2021
Venue: Joan C. Edwards Stadium, Huntington, WV
Where to Watch: CBS Sports
Opening Odds at USA Sportsbooks
DraftKings: Point Spread: WKU +1, Marshall -1; Over/Under: 74.5 points
Bet365: Point Spread: WKU +1, Marshall -1; Over/Under: 74.5 points
BetMGM: Point Spread: WKU +1.5, Marshall -1.5; Over/Under: 74.5 points
Season Record
Western Kentucky Hilltoppers: 7-4 (1st place, C-USA East)
Marshall Thundering Herd: 7-4 (2nd place, C-USA East)
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Western Kentucky Hilltoppers vs Marshall Thundering Herd Preview and Analysis
Recent Form
Western Kentucky Hilltoppers: won at home on Nov. 20 against the Florida Atlantic Owls 52-17.
Marshall Thundering Herd: won on the road on Nov. 20 against the Charlotte 49ers 49-28.
Western Kentucky Hilltoppers Analysis
WKU is coming into this game with a 7-4 record overall and they are 3-2 in their road games this season where they will be in this game. This will be their 8th conference matchup of the year and they are currently 6-1 in their conference games this season. They are coming into this game on a 6 game winning streak after another win in their last game. Bailey Zappe struggled a bit but overall played a great game in that one as he completed 39/49 passes for 470 yards, 6 touchdowns and 2 interceptions. Noah Whittington led the team in rushing with 46 yards on 9 carries while Jakairi Moses ran in 1 TD on the ground as well. Mitchell Tinsley had a very nice day as he led the receivers with 164 yards and 2 touchdowns on 9 receptions while Jerreth Sterns had 143 yards and 1 touchdown on 12 receptions. Joey Beijan caught 2 touchdown passes in that one while Malachi Corley had the other one. Beanie Bishop led the defense in that game with 6 solo tackles and 1 assisted one. JaQues Evans led the defense in sacks in that game with 2 while Bishop, Omari Alexander, and Christian Gomez all came up with 1 interception each for them in that one. They have scored 466 points in their 11 games this season averaging 42.4 PPG and they have allowed their opponents to score 303 points against them allowing 27.6 PPG. Their offense is averaging 528.7 YPG while their defense is allowing 419.2 YPG.
Marshall Thundering Herd Analysis
Marshall is coming into this game with a 7-4 record overall and they are 3-2 in their home games this season where they will be in this game. This will be the 8th conference matchup on their schedule this year and they are currently 5-2 in their conference games this season. They have won 5 of their last 6 games and are coming into this one off of another win in their last game. Grant Wells played well in that game as he completed 21/28 passes for 267 yards and 2 touchdowns. Rasheen Ali led the team in rushing with 203 yards and 3 touchdowns on 23 carries while Sheldon Evans had 68 yards and 2 touchdowns on 9 carries. Corey Gammage led the receivers with 78 yards and 1 touchdown on 3 receptions while Jayden Harris led the team in receptions with 5 for 38 yards. Xavier Gaines caught the other touchdown pass in that one. Steven Gilmore led the defense in that game with 4 solo tackles and 5 assisted ones. No one on the defense recorded a sack in that game while Nazeeh Johnson came up with the only interception for them in that one. They have scored 387 points in their 11 games this season averaging 35.2 PPG and they have allowed their opponents to score 220 points against them allowing 20 PPG. Their offense is averaging 484.4 YPG while their defense is allowing 379.3 YPG.
Western Kentucky vs Marshall Prediction
Marshall is coming into this game as a 1 point favorite with the current betting odds according to Draftkings Sportsbook. This game is very important as it is the last game of the regular season and will decide which team faces UTSA in the Conference USA championship game. If WKU wins then they are the only 1 loss conference team and if Marshall wins then they have the same conference record but Marshall has the head-to-head. Both teams have been playing well leading up to this game with both teams scoring a lot of points on offense. WKU allows a lot of points in most of the games they play while Marshall actually has a good defense that can keep a game more low scoring. Marshall' s defense will be the deciding factor in this game and will likely be able to stop WKU while they cut through the WKU defense. The best bet to place in this game is on Marshall to cover the spread here and win the game straight up on the moneyline.
Western Kentucky Marshall Prediction: Our NCAAF Pick for Saturday, November 27, 2021 (3:30 pm ET start time) is Marshall 38 WKU 24.
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NCAAF Betting Trends
Western Kentucky Hilltoppers: 17-12 ATS when the line is +3 to -3. 88-79 ATS in all games. 28-19 ATS when the total is greater than or equal to 63. 51-35 ATS as an underdog. 32-21 ATS as a road underdog. 45-36 ATS in road games. 60-47 ATS against conference opponents.
Marshall Thundering Herd: 134-145 ATS in all games. 79-94 ATS as a favorite. 47-56 ATS as a home favorite. 88-105 ATS against conference opponents.
Key Injuries
Western Kentucky Hilltoppers: J. Simon (TE) Out indefinitely - Knee injury.
Marshall Thundering Herd: None.
Notable Quotes
“It’s great to be in that position. It’s what you work for. Marshall is an excellent football team. It’s going to take everything we’ve got, but it’s what you work for. You want to be in that position to go play in the championship and that’s the goal. We’re excited to be there and have that opportunity. We’ve got to take care of business. They’ll be a tough opponent and they’ll want it just as bad as we do, for sure.” - Tyson Helton on his team being 1 win away from reaching the title game.
“They accepted the challenge. It was a rough week of practice - hard love and hard coaching and hard reality, looking at the film and asking themselves if they can take pride in their personal performance.” - Charles Huff on his team’s win against Charlotte in their last game.
Starting Lineups
Western Kentucky Hilltoppers
WR Tinsley, Mitchell
WR Davis, Daewood
WR Sterns, Jerreth
TE Beljan, Joey
QB Zappe, Bailey
RB Cofield, Adam
Marshall Thundering Herd
WR Gammage, Corey
WR Ahmed, Shadeed
WR Keaton, Talik
TE Gaines, Xavier
QB Wells, Grant
RB Ali, Rasheen
Statistical Leaders
Western Kentucky Hilltoppers
Passing: B. Zappe (4640)
Rushing: N. Whittington (383)
Receiving: J. Sterns (1511)
Touchdowns: J. Sterns (12)
Marshall Thundering Herd
Passing: G. Wells (3360)
Rushing: R. Ali (1142)
Receiving: C. Gammage (775)
Touchdowns: R. Ali (20)
Coaches:
Western Kentucky Hilltoppers: Tyson Helton (3rd season)
Marshall Thundering Herd: Charles Huff (1st season)
Amedeus Mastrangelo
About the Author:
Amedeus Mastrangelo has been heavily wagering on all sports for years and plays just about everything, including sides, totals, favorites, underdogs, against the spread, alternative spreads, first half, second half, player props, and futures. The bottom line is, if Mastrangelo can see an edge in any way shape or form, then he's going to take advantage.
