Utah State vs Fresno State NCAA Football Picks & Predictions 11/9/2019

Saturday, November 9, 2019

Bulldog Stadium

Bulldog Stadium is the venue where Jorge Reyna and the Fresno State Bulldogs will take on the Utah State Aggies on Saturday. The odds on this contest have Fresno State as 2.5-point favorites. The Aggies are 4-4-0 ATS and 3-5-0 when betting on the total. The Bulldogs are 6-2-0 when wagering on the over/under and 3-4-1 against the spread.

The last time they took the field, the Utah State Aggies played the BYU Cougars and ended up taking the loss by a score of 42-14. Gerold Bright led the team on the ground for the game. He broke a long run for 19 yards and he added 1 TD for the contest. He rushed for 66 yards via 12 carries which had him averaging 5.5 yards per carry. Jordan Nathan was the receiving yardage leader by earning 133 yards on 7 catches. He had an average of 19.0 yards per catch for the game. Leading the way at QB for the Aggies was Jordan Love who went 29/49 with 394 yards through the air and threw 1 TD. He walked away with 3 interceptions during the game. The Aggies ended up running the ball 33 times and generated 127 yards which had them averaging 3.8 yards per run. Overall, the Aggies earned 26 1st downs and they had a total of 8 infractions for 55 yards telling us that this team was extremely undisciplined. On the day, they finished with a total of 82 plays for a total of 521 yards. When it comes to their defensive performance, Utah State conceded 23 catches on 33 throws for a total of 418 yards, and a completion percentage of 69.7%. For this contest, they conceded a total of 643 yards and forced 3 turnovers. Against the run, the Aggies conceded 225 yards on 40 attempts which is an average of 5.6 yards per rushing attempt allowed.

The Aggies head into this game 4-4 for this season. They are in the middle of the pack in regard to scoring in the nation averaging 27.1 points per game, which has them at 79th in the nation. As a unit, they have an average of 139.4 rushing yards per game which is 9th in the MWC. For total yards, they are currently ranked 10th in the Mountain West and 106th in the nation with 2,848 yards. The Aggies have one of the average defenses in the nation, allowing 26.4 points per contest which has them at 5th in the MWC. When it comes to passing yards, the Aggies have conceded 1,733 yards. Teams are completing 56.1% of the passes they throw against them and averaging 6.9 yards per attempt. When it comes to yards on the ground, Utah State is allowing 158.1 yards per game ranking them 8th in the conference and 63rd in college football. They are allowing teams to run for an average of 3.8 yards per rush ranking them 4th in the MWC and 43rd in college football overall. In total, they have allowed 1,265 rushing yards through 8 contests.

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The last time they took the field, the Fresno State Bulldogs played the Hawaii Warriors and ended up getting the win by a score of 41-38. Running the show from under center for the Bulldogs was Jorge Reyna who went 17/27 with 188 yards passing and tossed 1 touchdown. He ended the game with no interceptions. Ronnie Rivers led the team on the ground for that game. He tore off a long run of 44 yards and he notched 2 touchdowns for the game. He scurried for 103 yards by way of 19 carries which meant he was running for 5.4 yards per carry. Jalen Cropper led the team in receiving yardage with a total of 62 yards on 3 catches. He averaged 20.7 yards per catch for that game. The Bulldogs ran the football 40 times and earned 290 yards earning them an average of 7.3 yards per run. In the game, the Bulldogs racked up 26 first downs and they totaled 5 penalties for 45 yards which tells us their heads weren't always in the game. In the game, they ran 68 plays which added up to 514 yards. When it comes to their defensive performance, Fresno State gave up 26 completions on 51 tries totaling 346 yards, and a completion percentage of 51.0%. On the day, they conceded 555 yards and forced 1 turnover. On the ground, the Bulldogs gave up 209 yards on 31 carries which gave them an average of 6.7 yards per rushing attempt allowed.

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The Bulldogs step onto the field holding a record of 3-4. In discussing the offensive production, the Bulldogs have one of the top tier offenses in Division 1. Fresno State needs to do more to make teams respect their running game by averaging 146 rushing yards per game, which has them at 85th in college football. As a team, they have compiled a total of 1,168 yards rushing through 8 games, so they'll need to look to improve on these numbers if they want to compete with the better teams in the nation. The Bulldogs average 351.1 yards per contest overall which has them at 103rd in Division 1 and 10th in the conference. The Bulldogs are conceding 31.9 points per game which puts them at 6th in the conference and 99th in the nation. In terms of points given up, they have given up 255 points in total. In terms of yards rushing, they are allowing 139.1 yards per contest ranking them 46th in college football and 6th in the conference. For 2019, they have allowed 1,113 rushing yards and 12.8 rushing TDs. Their pass defense is one of the middle of the road groups in D-1. They are conceding 201.1 passing yards per game. For passing yards allowed per game, the Bulldogs sit in 4th in the conference.

Who will win tonight's Aggies/Bulldogs college football game against the spread?

Tony's Pick: Take the Aggies +2.5

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