Welcome to Week 7 of the college football season, sports betting family. We finally have some action on a Wednesday night, and before you know it, we'll get some ever-so-lovable MAC games on Tuesdays.
I've found some nice edges on Wednesday evening's Missouri State vs Middle Tennessee State game, which kicks off at 7:30 Eastern Time on ESPN2. I've broken down all aspects of this matchup and came up with an early best bet to hopefully help build your bankroll.
Good luck and enjoy the action! This should be an exciting Conference USA clash in Murfreesboro. Let's get into it!
Online sportsbooks opened this line at Missouri State -2.5 on the look-ahead line, mainly because of Middle Tennessee's 1-4 start to the season. Surprisingly, the current number is now Missouri State -2, which is kind of a shock since Middle Tennessee is coming off a rough loss to Kennesaw State.
As for the game total, there's been a large move toward the Under so far. The line opened at 54.5, and almost every sportsbook in the US is now offering 49.5. The main outlier so far is FanDuel, which is dealing 50.5.
The Bears are coming off a hard-fought 5-point loss to Western Kentucky back on September 27. They took the lead early in the 2nd half before the Hilltopper offense started having too much success.
Missouri State allowed 8.1 yards per pass in that contest, so their secondary will have to play better on Wednesday night. Another question for Mizzou State will be the health of its starting QB, Jacob Clark. The 6'5" senior leads the team with 1,195 passing yards, but he suffered a lower-body injury against Western Kentucky.
He was seen on crutches on the sidelines after that happened, and head coach Ryan Beard has said that Clark is a game-time decision on Wednesday night. If Clark can't go, freshman Deuce Bailey will likely take the reins.
To say it's been a rough start to the season for Derek Mason's troops would be a gross understatement. Getting thumped by FCS Austin Peay to begin the year didn't exactly make the Blue Raiders fan base feel all warm and cozy. Nevertheless, MTSU's win as a 9.5-point underdog at Nevada was a nice surprise.
The Achilles heel so far has been the defense, which ranks outside the Top 100 in both yards per rush allowed and yards per pass allowed. Thankfully, the Bears don't pose much of a threat in the running game.
That being said, the Blue Raiders' DBs could have their hands full with the Bears' passing game (40th in yards per pass). MTSU will need to rely on its steady pass rush to help out its undersized corners.
Y'all just know we got to have a little action on our first Wednesday college football game of the season. Luckily for me, this one involves my alma mater, Middle Tennessee State. The Blue Raiders are off to a rough 1-4 start, but Cox is their main go-to receiver, and he should see a ton of targets in this one.
If you don't have access to Hard Rock, I'm perfectly fine with you laying the -130 that's available at either FanDuel or Caesars. Cox has already hauled in 4 TDs this season, and he can burn corners deep. He's 6'3" and will be matched up with Jordan Dunbar of Mizzou State, who is only 6-foot.
According to CFB Depth, Cox rates out at a 13.1 overall grade as a wideout. Dunbar rates out as an 11.0 grade corner. Things will be even better on the snaps when Cox is lined up against Thomas Anderson, who only rates out as a 9.8 corner. Let's play Cox to score a TD on Wednesday night!