The Sun Belt’s hottest teams square off Thursday in a clash for conference supremacy as the Georgia Southern Eagles host the Appalachian State Mountaineers at 7:30 p.m. ET. Both are undefeated in conference play and coming off strong wins: The Eagles crushed New Mexico State by 17 and the Mountaineers slipped past Louisiana 27-17. Appalachian State opened as an 11.5-point favorite and now is laying 10. The over-under, which opened at 49, is 47.5 in the latest Appalachian State vs. Georgia Southern odds. Before you make any Appalachian State vs. Georgia Southern picks, check out what the SportsLine Projection Model has to say.
The advanced computer model simulates every FBS game 10,000 times, and those who have followed it have seen massive returns. In the past three years, this proprietary computer model has generated a jaw-dropping $4,210 profit for $100 bettors.
The model made several huge calls against the spread last week, including nailing LSU (-6) over Mississippi State, Washington State (-3) over Oregon and Alabama (-29.5) over Tennessee. And when it comes to top-rated picks against the spread, it finished Week 8 on a strong 5-1 run. Anyone who has followed it is way up.
Now, the model has simulated Appalachian State vs. Georgia Southern 10,000 times. We can tell you it’s leaning over, but it has also produced a strong against-the-spread pick that hits nearly 65 percent of the time. You can only see it at SportsLine.
The model has factored in that Appalachian State’s offense has been on fire all season, averaging an extraordinary 41.5 points. Quarterback Zac Thomas has been effective this season, throwing for 1,146 yards and 11 touchdowns against only four interceptions. The sophomore is also third on the team in rushing yards with 276 and has found pay dirt six times with his legs. His main go-to guy is receiver Corey Sutton, who’s notching a whopping 21.5 yards per reception.
But the Mountaineers’ ferocious, unrelenting ground attack is what propels their offense. Averaging 264 rushing yards as a team, Appalachian State nets 6.3 yards per carry. Over six games, it has 18 rushing touchdowns. Running backs Darrynton Evans (three touchdowns) and Jalin Moore (six) have half of those ground scores and at least 400 rushing yards apiece.
But just because Appalachian State has plenty of firepower doesn’t mean it’ll cover Thursday.
Eagles quarterback Shai Werts has only thrown for 491 yards and four scores, but has yet to toss a pick. He’s also the team’s leading rusher with 542 yards and nine touchdowns. The 5-foot-11 sophomore is deceptively quick and sturdily built. Linemen trying to tackle him in the open field one-on-one are toast as he often wends his way into opposing secondaries.
Keeping the heat off Werts is a heavy-duty, ground-and-pound rushing attack that is racking up 276 yards per game, 12 more than Appalachian State. Running back Wesley Fields trails only Werts in rushing yardage with 472 and four touchdowns. Spelling Fields is Monteo Garrett, who has four scores on 344 yards.
Who wins Appalachian State vs. Georgia Southern? And which side covers nearly 65 percent of the time? Visit SportsLine now to see which side you need to be all over, all from the incredible computer model that has returned over $4,000 to $100 bettors.
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