Monday, December 26, 2016

St. Petersburg Bowl

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The Miami RedHawks take on the Mississippi State Bulldogs on Monday, December 26, 2016 in the St. Petersburg Bowl. The opening line for this game has Mississippi State as 11.5 point favorites. This season the RedHawks are 8-4-0 against the spread and their over/under record is 4-8-0. The Bulldogs have an over/under record of 7-5-0 and they are 5-7-0 against the spread.

Gus Ragland finished with 380 yards through the air for Miami in his last game. He completed 26 passes out of 35 attempts for a 74% completion percentage. The RedHawks were led in rushing by Alonzo Smith, who finished with 84 yards on 11 rushes. He ended the contest with an average of 8 yards per carry. Rokeem Williams was the team leader in receiving with a total of 145 yards and 6 receptions. He finished the game with an average of 24 yards per reception. As a team in that game Miami got a total of 20 first downs. Of those first downs, 5 came on the ground while 14 came through the air. They ran 60 total plays for 442 yards for the game. The RedHawks ran for 62 yards on 25 attempts.

Nick Fitzgerald finished with 109 yards passing for Mississippi State in his last contest. He went 8 for 17, resulting in a 47% completion percentage. The Bulldogs were led on the ground by Nick Fitzgerald, who finished with 258 yards on 14 carries. He ended the game with an average of 18 yards per rush. Fred Ross led the team in receiving with 38 yards and 2 catches. He finished the game with an average of 19 yards per reception. Mississippi State had 23 first downs total. 17 came from running the ball and 5 came from a pass. They ran 64 total plays for 566 yards for the contest. The Bulldogs ran for 457 yards on 47 carries as a team.

Miami scores 23.4 points per game on offense this season, which ranks 111th in Division 1. In the passing department, they average 15.8 passes on 27.3 attempts for a 58.1 percent completion percentage this season. They throw for a total of 227.9 yards per game through the air as well, which ranks them 65th in college football. The RedHawks run for an average of 134.3 yards per game on 37.3 attempts for an average of 3.6 yards per carry. That ranks them 109th in the nation. They also run 64.5 plays per contest and average 5.6 yards per play for an average of 362.2 yards per game, ranking their offense 107th overall this season. The RedHawks average 19.2 first downs per game which ranks them 104th in the country. They accumulate 57.9 penalty yards per game via 7.1 penalties, which ranks 51st in the nation.

Miami allows 214.9 passing yards per game, ranking 50th in D-1, and they allow 24.3 points per contest on defense, which ranks 42nd. They give up 18.8 completions on 31.8 attempts per game for a completion percentage of 59.1. The RedHawks allow 139.8 rushing yards per game on 36.3 carries for an average of 3.9 yards per carry, which ranks their rush defense 33rd in the country. Miami allows 354.8 total yards per game including 5.2 yards per play, which ranks their overall defense 27th in terms of yards per game. They force 1.8 turnovers per contest and get flagged for 4.9 penalties for 51.6 yards per game, ranking them 61st among D-1 teams.

Mississippi State averages 31.5 points per game this season on offense, which ranks them 52nd in the country. In the passing department, they complete 18 passes per game on 31.9 attempts for a 56.4 percent completion percentage. They throw for 215.3 yards through the air per game, ranking them 83rd in Division 1. The Bulldogs run for an average of 233.7 yards per game on 41.7 attempts for an average of 5.6 yards per carry this season, which ranks them 24th on the ground. They also run 73.6 plays per game and average 6.1 yards per play for a total of 449 yards per game, ranking them 41st in the country on offense. The Bulldogs get an average of 22.4 first downs per game, which ranks 41st in the nation. They average 49.3 penalty yards per game via 5.5 penalties, ranking them 82nd in college football.

Mississippi State allows an average of 283.1 passing yards per game, which ranks 120th in Division 1. Their defense overall allows 33.1 points per contest, which has them ranked 97th in the nation. They give up 22.4 completions on 36.8 attempts for a completion percentage of 61 per game. The Bulldogs allow 178.3 rushing yards per contest on 37.4 carries for a 4.8 average per rush, ranking their overall rush defense 68th in the country. Mississippi State allows 461.4 total yards per game for an average of 6.2 yards per play, which ranks 111th in D-1. They force 1.8 turnovers per contest and 5.4 penalties for 44.3 yards in each contest, ranking 25th in the nation.

Miami Betting Trends

Miami is 4-8-0 against the over/under this season

Miami has an ATS record of 8-4-0 this season

Mississippi State Betting Trends

Mississippi State is 7-5-0 against the over/under this season

Mississippi State has an ATS record of 5-7-0 this season

Injuries to Watch

Miami

12/04/16 QB Billy Bahl Shoulder "?" Monday vs. Mississippi St
12/04/16 OL Matt Skibinski Undisclosed "?" Monday vs. Mississippi St
12/04/16 DL Zach Smierciak Legal problems "?" Monday vs. Mississippi St
10/05/16 Backup QB Jordan Martin Undisclosed out indefinitely
09/13/16 WR Chris Hudson Undisclosed out for season

Mississippi State

12/05/16 DB John Hankerson Suspension out indefinitely
08/25/16 DB Tolando Cleveland Knee out for season

Guy's Pick: Take Mississippi State -11.5

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