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The time has come for yet another College Football betting prediction and pick for the Week 1 slate of action. We'll see another FCS vs. FBS matchup as the Austin Peay Governors visit the Louisville Cardinals to open the new season of CFB madness. It is time to continue our college football odds series with an Austin Peay-Louisville prediction and pick.
Here are the College Football odds, courtesy of FanDuel.
College Football Odds: Austin Peay-Louisville Odds
Austin Peay: +36.5 (-108)
Moneyline: N/A
Louisville: -36.5 (-112)
Moneyline: N/A
Over: 52.5 (-112)
Under: 52.5 (-108)
How to Watch Austin Peay vs. Louisville
Time: 12:00 p.m. ET/ 9:00 a.m. PT
TV: ACC Network
Stream: fuboTV (Free Trial)
Why Austin Peay Could Cover The Spread/Win
The Austin Peay Governors come into this season following their impressive conference-winning campaign from a year ago after going a perfect 6-0 within the United Athletic Conference. The Governors made the move to the new conference just two years ago and have immediately seen success over other top additions like Tarleton State, Central Arkansas, and Eastern Kentucky. With a 9-3 overall record, their FBS game last season came against No. 9 Tennessee where they were clearly outmatched and lost 13-30. they'll get this game out of the way early, but they're facing a much more manageable Louisville team and if they're able to find some big plays early, could come out and surprise a lot of people here.
Austin Peay will only be returning one starter on their offense, so we could see some visible struggles from them early as they try to find their footing within their new schemes. Last year, their offense ranked 14th overall in the FCS in yards per game, but they're bound to see a regression due to the number of players who left the program. Still, they're the inaugural UAC champions and they're far from an easy test for this Louisville team. Add their impressive play on the defensive side of the ball, particularly with their defensive ends, and they stand a serious chance to put the Cardinals on upset alert here.
Why Louisville Could Cover The Spread/Win
The Louisville Cardinals will come in following an impressive 10-4 season that saw them ranked No. 19 to close the year out. After beginning 2023 at 10-1, the Cardinals went on a regrettable three-game losing streak to close the season, dropping both the ACC Championship and Holiday Bowl in embarrassing fashion. They've done their work through the transfer portal to improve their already-stacked offense and new Grad-Transfer quarterback Tyler Shough will have a ton of weapons to work with in his first season under the offense. Their receiving corps will be the focus of the air-raid attack and while their offense hit great numbers last season, they're fully capable of outperforming themselves and repeating the success this year.
The defense was the biggest difference for the Cardinals last season as they ranked first in the ACC against the run and first in the nation in red zone defense. Louisville has historically been known for their strong recruiting within their secondary positions, which will be the same story with this team again. Running back Donald Chaney will also have to play an integral part in their success and returning Louisville to the heights of college football once again.
Final Austin Peay-Louisville Prediction & Pick
We'll have another FCS vs. FBS matchup here as the Louisville Cardinals enter the season with a bad taste in their mouths. After going 10-1 last season, they were staring the Playoff right down the barrel until halting for a three-game skid. Austin Peay comes in following an inaugural UAC Conference Championship and they're poised to pose a serious threat to the Cardinals in the home opener.
While Austin Peay may have their moments throughout this game, they're seriously outmatched with an entirely new offense of players matching up against one of the nation's best defenses from a year ago. They may see some success early, but yards will become tough to come by once this Louisville defense digs their cleats and settles into the pace of this game.
The Louisville Cardinals are the rightful favorite albeit an absurd betting line. They're 36-7 all-time against FCS opponents and have won their last 24 consecutive meetings against such teams. The spread will be a tough one to cover, but the Cardinals have historically performed well in this spot.
The Austin Peay Governors haven't beaten an FBS opponent since 1987 and the streak won't come to a magical end here. Let's roll with the Louisville Cardinals to cover the spread and they begin to hang points up in the second half of this game.
Final Austin Peay-Louisville Prediction & Pick: Louisville -36.5 (-112)
