Western Kentucky Hilltoppers vs Old Dominion Monarchs Prediction, Picks and Game Preview - 12/18/2023

Game Time: 2:30 pm ET, Monday, December 18, 2023

Venue:  Jerry Richardson Stadium, Charlotte, NC

Where to Watch:  ESPN

DraftKings:  Point Spread:  WKU +4.5, ODU -4.5; Over/Under:  51.5 points

Bet365:  Point Spread:  WKU +4.5, ODU -4.5; Over/Under:  51.5 points

BetMGM:  Point Spread:  WKU +4.5, ODU -4.5; Over/Under:  51.5 points

Western Kentucky Hilltoppers:  7-5 (5-3) (4th place, C-USA)

Old Dominion Monarchs:  6-6 (5-3) (4th place, SBC East)

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Western Kentucky Hilltoppers:  won their last game on the road against the Florida International Panthers 41-28.

Old Dominion Monarchs:  won their last game at home against the Georgia State Panthers 25-24.

Western Kentucky is entering this game with a 7-5 record overall and they have a 5-3 record in their conference games too. They are 4-2 in their home games, 3-3 in their road games, and they are also 0-0 in their neutral site games this season, but they will be at a neutral site for this game. They won their last game against FIU 41-28. Austin Reed was the starting QB and he completed 26/35 passes for 280 passing yards, 4 touchdowns, and 0 interceptions. Markese Stepp led the team in rushing yards with 32. Malachi Corley led the receivers with 52 receiving yards on 6 catches and 1 TD. Talique Allen led the defense in that game with 4 solo tackles and 0 assisted tackles while Kendrick Simpkins led the defense in sacks with 1. Talique Allen and Alex Ford each came away with 1 interception for them in that game.

 

 

 

Old Dominion is entering this game with a 6-6 record overall and they have a 5-3 record in their conference games too. They are 4-2 in their home games, 2-4 in their road games, and they are also 0-0 in their neutral site games this season, but they will be at a neutral site for this game. They won their last game against GA State 25-24. Grant Wilson was the starting QB and he completed 15/33 passes for 208 passing yards, 1 touchdown, and 1 interception. Obie Sanni led the team in rushing yards with 85 and 1 TD. Reymello Murphy led the receivers with 96 receiving yards on 4 receptions and 1 TD. Nolan Johnson led the defense in that game with 5 solo tackles and 0 assisted tackles while no one on the defense recorded a sack in that one. Nolan Johnson and Ashton Whitner each came away with 1 interception for them in that game.

The current betting odds have Western Kentucky listed as a 4.5 point underdog in this Famous Toastery Bowl game according to Draftkings Sportsbook. Both of these teams are entering this game with 2 wins in a row to end the regular season but Old Dominion needed to win those 2 games while Western Kentucky only needed to win 1 to become bowl eligible. ODU finished with a 6-6 record overall this season while Western Kentucky was 7-5 overall, but ODU also struggled more in their games that weren't at home compared to WKU. WKU had much higher hopes this season of making it to the Conference USA Championship and they fell short of that but they still have a really good air raid offense and will be looking to end their year on a positive note here. Meanwhile, Old Dominion fought hard to win enough games to get here, especially with the start to the season they had, but they are just happy to qualify for this bowl game while Western Kentucky is the better team and will be looking to bring home the win to end their year. Western Kentucky has the potential to pull off an upset win here but they will keep the game within a field goal if they do lose. The best way to place a bet here is on Western Kentucky to cover the spread in this game. 

Western Kentucky Old Dominion Prediction:  Our NCAAF Pick for Monday, December 18, 2023 (2:30 pm ET start time) is WKU 34 ODU 21.

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Western Kentucky Hilltoppers: 1-5 ATS after playing a game where 60 total points or more were scored. 1-7 ATS after a game where they committed 1 or less turnovers. 4-2 UNDER after playing a game where 60 total points or more were scored. 4-1 UNDER off 1 or more straight overs. 

Old Dominion Monarchs: 7-4 ATS in all games. 6-2 ATS after allowing 125 or less rushing yards in 2 straight games. 4-1 ATS after 2 or more consecutive straight up wins. 23-15 UNDER when the total is between 49.5 and 56. 9-4 UNDER after 1 or more consecutive losses against the spread.

Western Kentucky Hilltoppers:  R. Robich (LS) Out indefinitely - Undisclosed. M. Mathison (WR) Out indefinitely - Hip.

Old Dominion Monarchs:  K. Calloway (RB) Ques Mon - Undisclosed.

"Very, very competitive football team. I think it says a lot about them that they win their last two games to get bowl eligible. It says that they're a tough, gritty football team and highly motivated. It's a great honor to be bowl eligible. I know, like us, they're excited for the opportunity to play in this bowl game. They've got good skill players on offense. Their offensive scheme is good. They like to go fast. The quarterback is a good player, they've got good runners that run the ball extremely hard. It'll be a good challenge for our defense, for sure. Then offensively they cause a lot of problems. They've got a good front, they like to blitz, they've got good blitz schemes, they get after the quarterback, their linebackers are good players, good coverage guys, they change up their coverages and their looks, so it's going to be a tough day for us offensively as far as trying to figure out what's going on. We've got to be hitting on all cylinders offensively in the first couple of drives so that we can get them figured out. Overall, they're a really good football team and it should be a good matchup. Our guys are excited to play. That's what you want in a bowl game. You want two good football teams that are motivated that are both excited to be there. It's important to us. We like to go to bowl games, but it's important to us to try to go win a bowl game and get that trophy, so we're definitely going to go try and do that." - Tyson Helton on his team playing against ODU in the Famous Toastery Bowl.

“I’m excited that our fans can drive there overnight and come back. It can be a relatively inexpensive trip to support their team in a bowl and really show people what ODU football and ODU in general is all about.” - Ricky Rahne on his team playing against WKU in the Famous Toastery Bowl.

WR Smith, Dalvin  

WR Burt Jr., Craig 

WR Corley, Malachi 

WR Smith, Dalvin 

TE Helms, River 

QB Reed, Austin 

RB Young, Elijah 

WR Murphy, Reymello  

WR Williams, Kelby 

WR Paige, Isiah 

TE Butler, Jalen 

QB Wilson, Grant 

RB Wicks, Keshawn 

Passing: A. Reed (3317)

Rushing: E. Young (477)

Receiving: M. Corley (963)

Touchdowns: M. Corley (11)

Passing: G. Wilson (2026)

Rushing: K. Calloway (594)

Receiving: R. Murphy (495)

Touchdowns: K. Wicks (5)

Coaches:

Western Kentucky Hilltoppers: Tyson Helton (5th season)

Old Dominion Monarchs: Ricky Rahne (4th season)