Sam Houston State Bearkats vs Liberty Flames Prediction, 10/5/2023 College Football Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Sam Houston State Bearkats vs Liberty Flames

Date: Thursday, October 5, 2023

Location: Williams Stadium in Lynchburg, VA

TV: CBSSN

Odds/Point Spread: Flames (-17)

Total/Over-Under: 48.5

The Liberty Flames (4-0) are welcoming the Sam Houston State Bearkats (0-4) at Williams Stadium on Thursday, October 5, 2023. Sam Houston State opens as 17-point dogs from Vegas oddsmakers. The over/under is set at 48.5.

The Sam Houston State Bearkats head into this matchup 0-4 for this year. The last time they stepped onto the field, the Bearkats took on the Jacksonville State Gamecocks and went home with a loss by a final score of 35-28. John Gentry was the rushing leader for the Bearkats with 30 attempts for 97 yards (3.2 yards per attempt). Keegan Shoemaker connected on 22/38 with 285 yds passing and 2 touchdowns. He had a quarterback rating of 133 and walked away from the contest with 1 interception. Against the rush, the Bearkats gave up 196 yds on 33 tries, which is an average of 5.9 yards per rush surrendered. Sam Houston State allowed 16 pass completions on 33 tries for 197 yards, and a completion percentage of 48.5%. On the day, they ran 94 plays which gave them 435 yds. The Sam Houston State Bearkats ran the football 55 times and accumulated 136 yds, which earned them an average of 2.5 yards per attempt.

When talking about putting the ball in the endzone, the Sam Houston State Bearkats have an average of 9.5 PPG. As a team they're averaging 65.5 yards via the ground game ranking them 131st in Division 1. The Bearkats have racked up 878 total yards for the year. When it comes to getting in the endzone, Sam Houston State has compiled 2 passing touchdowns and 3 touchdowns on the ground. Sam Houston State has tallied 49 1st downs as an offense, and they have been flagged for 27 penalties for 248 yds. They have surrendered the football 6 times.

The Bearkats are ranked 70th in Division 1 concerning their opponents scoring, allowing 25.0 points per game. The opposition is running for 4.5 yards per run and 184.5 rushing yards per game on the year. Overall, they have conceded 738 running yards through 4 games. Regarding yards through the air, the Bearkats have given up 708 yds which ranks them 4th in Division 1. They have relinquished 177.0 yards per game through the air as well as conceding a completion percentage of 62.2%. During the season, they have surrendered 361.5 yards per outing which has them ranked 63rd in D-1. They have yielded 5 touchdowns via the pass in addition to 8 touchdowns via the ground game.

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The Flames come into this game with a record of 4-0 for this season. When they last stepped on the field, the Flames went home victorious with a score of 38-6 against the FIU Panthers. Quinton Cooley ran the ball 12 times for 102 yds, ending the game with 8.5 yds per carry for Liberty. Kaidon Salter (2 TDs) finished the contest with 156 yds on 11/21 passing while his quarterback rating was 136.7. He tossed 1 pick and his average yards per attempt was 7.4. Liberty allowed 33 rush attempts for 64 yards (1.9 yds per rush). The Flames secondary gave up a completion percentage of 45.8%, relinquishing 147 yds on 11 out of 24 through the air. The Flames finished with 520 yards while running 65 plays (8.0 yards per play). Liberty ran the football for 8.3 yards per tote, finishing the game with 364 yards on 44 carries.

The Liberty Flames maintain an average of 501.0 yards per game, which has them sitting 10th in the country. The Liberty offense has 272 penalty yards on 25 infractions, which ranks 83rd in Division 1 in terms of giving up free yards. They hold an average of 271.3 run yards per game and have run for 1,085 yards for the year. They have given away 1 interception while letting opponents recover 4 fumbles and they have been able to obtain 90 first downs. Concerning this team's ability to score points, the Flames are sitting 13th in college football with 40.0 PPG. During the season thus far, the Flames have a total of 919 yards via the pass together with an average of 229.8 throwing yards per game, ranking them 73rd in college football.

The Flames are allowing 18.5 PPG, which puts them 32nd in the country. Liberty has conceded a total of 512 yards rushing (128.0 yards/game) and 3 touchdowns rushing for the campaign. In total, they have given up 74 points in total. They have allowed the opposition 6 touchdowns through the air in addition to 182.3 yards/contest, which has them sitting 22nd in the nation. The Flames defense has been on the field for 250 plays, which ranks them 4th in college football. Their defense has tallied 2 fumbles recovered and 10 interceptions this season.

Who will win tonight's Bearkats/Flames college football game against the spread?

Josh's Pick: Take the Bearkats +17

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