Old Dominion Monarchs vs Virginia Tech Hokies Prediction, 9/2/2023 College Football Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Old Dominion Monarchs vs Virginia Tech Hokies

Date: Saturday, September 2, 2023

Location: Lane Stadium in Blacksburg, VA

TV: ESPN+

Odds/Point Spread: Hokies (-13)

Total/Over-Under: 50

The Old Dominion Monarchs (3-9 last season) are hitting the road to Lane Stadium on Saturday, September 2, 2023 where they will go up against the Virginia Tech Hokies (3-8 last year). Virginia Tech opens as 13-point favorites. The total is 50.

The Old Dominion Monarchs wrapped up their season with a 3-9 record. The last time they stepped onto the field, the Monarchs took the field against the South Alabama Jaguars and walked away from this one with a loss by a score of 27-20. Blake Watson was the leader on the ground for the Monarchs with 18 carries for 110 yds (6.1 yards per carry). Hayden Wolff went 21/36 with 285 yards passing and 2 TDs. He had a quarterback rate of 143.2 and walked away from the contest with no picks. On the ground, the Monarchs conceded 208 yards on 49 attempts, which calculates to 4.2 yds per rush surrendered. Old Dominion conceded 17 pass completions on 29 attempts for 190 yds, and a completion rate of 58.6%. For the game, they had 61 plays which totaled 381 yds. The Old Dominion Monarchs ended up rushing 25 times and compiled 96 yds, which earned them an average of 3.8 yards per attempt.

In terms of scoring, the Old Dominion Monarchs averaged 19.5 points per contest. Offensively they maintained an average of 92.3 yards on the ground, ranking this team 125th in the country. The Monarchs attained 4,073 yards in total for the prior year. Old Dominion earned 19 passing touchdowns and 8 touchdowns via the ground. Old Dominion totaled 192 1st downs as a unit, and they committed 82 infractions for 745 yds. They surrendered the ball 19 times.

Regarding passing yards, the Monarchs gave up 2,932 yds which had them ranked 75th in D-1. In their 12 games played, they yielded 244.3 yards per contest through the air and allowed a completion percentage of 64.8%. They relinquished 442.6 yards per outing putting them 118th in college football. They gave up 17 throwing touchdowns in addition to 19 touchdowns on the ground. Opposing teams ran for an average of 4.2 yards per run and 198.3 rushing yards per contest over the course of last year. In total, they gave up 2,380 running yards through 12 outings. The Monarchs ranked 65th in college football in terms of team defense, giving up 26.6 PPG.

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The Hokies ended the season having a 3-8 mark. For their last game, the Hokies took home the win by a final score of 23-22 when they played the Liberty Flames. Jalen Holston ran the football 26 times for 99 yds, walking away from the contest with 3.8 yards per carry for Virginia Tech. Grant Wells finished the game with 148 yds on 14/20 passing while his QB rating was 132.2. He didn't toss any interceptions and his Y/A was 7.4. Virginia Tech gave up 29 rush attempts for 115 yards (4.0 yds per carry). The Hokies passing defense allowed a completion rate of 58.8%, relinquishing 217 yards on 20 for 34 through the air. The Hokies finished the contest with a total of 324 yards while running 79 plays (4.1 yards per play). Virginia Tech ended up running for 3.0 yards per tote, finishing the contest with 176 yards on 59 attempts.

When discussing their scoring prowess, the Hokies were 118th in Division 1 with an average of 19.3 points per contest. For the previous season, the Hokies threw for 2,236 yards through the air together with averaging 203.3 passing yards per outing, ranking them 103rd in the nation. The Virginia Tech Hokies averaged 313.5 yards per contest, which had them sitting 120th in D-1. The Virginia Tech offense totaled 644 yds of penalties on 81 infractions, which ranked them 51st in D-1 in terms of giving up free yards.

Virginia Tech surrendered a total of 1,487 yards rushing (135.2 yards per contest) as well as 15 touchdowns by way of the ground game last season. They surrendered 13 touchdowns through the air and 235.2 yards per game, which had them sitting 83rd in D-1. The Hokies defense took the field for 755 plays, which ranked them 9th in the nation. The Hokies gave up 24.7 PPG, which put them in 54th in D-1. Overall, they allowed 272 total points.

Who will win tonight's Monarchs/Hokies college football game against the spread?

Josh's Pick: Take the Monarchs +13

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