Friday night’s betting action in Week 3 of the college football season features a matchup between the UMass Minutemen and the Temple Owls, out of the AAC. Game time from Lincoln Financial Field is set for 7 p.m. (ET) on ESPNU.
UMass at Temple Game Overview
The Minutemen are still looking for their first win of the season against three losses both straight-up and against the spread. Playing as an Independent, UMass has already lost to Hawaii and Coastal Carolina as a favorite before falling to Conference USA’s Old Dominion 17-7 last week as a 3.5-point underdog at home. The total went OVER in its first two games before staying UNDER 60.5 points on last Saturday’s loss.
After racking up a combined 63 points in their first two games, the Minutemen’s offense ground to a halt against some better competition. Andrew Ford completed 21-of-32 passing attempts for 236 yards and one score, but he was sacked eight times on the day. The offense added another 79 yards on 36 rushing attempts for an average of just 2.2 yards a carry. The only bright spot in this game was on defense after this unit was torched for a combined 76 points in its first two contests.
Temple is off to a SU 1-1 start (0-2 ATS) on the heels of last season’s run to the American Athletic Conference title. The Owls were hammered by Notre Dame 49-16 in their season opener as 19.5-point road underdogs and last Saturday they squeaked past Division IAA Villanova 16-13 as heavy 17-point favorites at home. Temple went a highly profitable 12-2 ATS last season to go along with a SU record of 10-4 and the total stayed UNDER in six of its last eight games.
Inconsistency on both sides of the ball has plagued the Owls in their first two games. Offensively, Logan Marchi has completed 39 of his 69 passing attempts for 519 yards and two touchdowns against no interceptions in what has been a respectable start for the sophomore. However, Temple’s vaunted ground game has yet to get in gear with just 164 yards rushing on 64 attempts through the first two games for an average of 2.6 yards a carry. The Owls’ normally stout defense was pushed around the field in the Week 1 loss to the Fighting Irish.
UMass at Temple Game Betting Trends
- The Minutemen have failed to cover ATS in four of their last five games overall and they are 1-4 ATS in their last five Friday games. The total has gone OVER in their last five games on the road.
- The Owls have gone 6-1 ATS in their last seven home games and they are a perfect 5-0 ATS in their last five games against a team with a SU losing record. The total has stayed UNDER in nine of their last 12 games at home.
- These two teams last met in 2015 with Temple coming away with a 25-23 victory as a 13.5-point road favorite. The total stayed UNDER the closing 55-point line.