Coming off a 2-10 campaign, the Kennesaw State Owls were projected to be one of the worst teams in FBS this season. Instead, the Owls are 5-2 overall and sitting in the driver’s seat in Conference USA.
There are a lot of terrific storylines in college football with Indiana, Vanderbilt, and Virginia ascending, but don’t overlook what Jerry Mack is doing in the Atlanta suburbs with Kennesaw State.
Mack and the Owls are 10.5-point favorites over UTEP on Tuesday evening.
Kennesaw State vs. UTEP odds, prediction
UTEP was not expected to be very good this season, but it is still eye-opening to see Kennesaw State, widely considered one of the worst teams in the country last season, sitting as a double-digit favorite over any FBS team this season. It’s a testament to what Mack is building at Kennesaw State.
Another feather in the cap for Mack and the Owls is that SP+, Bill Connelly’s catch-all metric, makes Kennesaw State the 82nd-best team in the country this season. That may not sound impressive, but it puts the Owls on par with teams like Michigan State and Virginia Tech. Furthermore, in SP+’s preseason rankings, Kennesaw State was 133rd, ahead of only Kent State, Charlotte, and UMass.
Now, it’s UTEP that finds itself near the bottom of the pile, currently ranked 120th, per SP+.
The Miners do have a defense that can hang with fellow Group of 5 programs, but the offense has really struggled to make its mark. UTEP ranks 122nd in points per game, 123rd in yards per play, and 111th in red-zone scoring percentage.
Betting on College Football?
Kennesaw State’s defense, which grades out as the 53rd-best unit in the country according to SP+, should have no issues containing the Miners, barring anything unforeseen.
That should allow Kennesaw State’s offense to get to work. The Owls won’t blow you away in any facet, but they boast a balanced attack that keeps you guessing.
Everything is trending in the right direction for the Owls right now, while UTEP is playing out the string of a disappointing season.
This is a good spot to lay some wood with the favorite.
The Play: Kennesaw State -10.5 (-110, FanDuel)
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Michael Leboff is a long-suffering Islanders fan, but a long-profiting sports bettor with 10 years of experience in the gambling industry. He loves using game theory to help punters win bracket pools, find long shots, and learn how to beat the market in mainstream and niche sports.
