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James Madison looks to continue an undefeated season as they face one-loss Georgia Southern. It is time to continue our College Football odds series with a Georgia Southern-James Madison prediction, pick, and how-to-watch.
Georgia Southern enters the game at 4-1 on the season. It opened up with a win over The Citadel 34-0 before they faced UAB. That was another win, 49-35. The next week was the only loss of the season against Wisconsin. After being up 14-7 against Wisconsin in the third quarter, Wisconsin scored four straight touchdowns to win 35-14. They would rebound though, with a 40-3 win over Ball State before their first conference game. Georgia Southern faced Coastal Carolina. They took a 21-14 lead into the half and while Coastal tied it up in the third, Georgia Southern would take a commanding lead into the fourth 38-21. They would end up winning 38-28.
Meanwhile, James Madison is 5-0. They have been solid this season first with a 38-3 win over Bucknell. Then it was a one-point win over Virginia. They scored two touchdowns in the fourth quarter to win 36-35. The next week they went against Troy and took away a 16-14 win. The next week they took a dominating 24-0 lead over Utah State and while it became a battle, they would win 45-38 with the help of a fourth-quarter touchdown from Reggie Brown. Finally, they moved to 2-0 in conference play last week with a 31-23 win over South Alabama.
Here are the college football odds, courtesy of FanDuel.
College Football Odds: Georgia Southern-James Madison Odds
Georgia Southern: +5.5 (-108)
James Madison: -5.5 (-112)
Over: 58.5 (-110)
Under: 58.5 (-110)
How to Watch Georgia Southern vs. James Madison Week 7
Time: 12:00 PM ET/ 9:00 AM PT
TV: ESPN2
Stream: fuboTV (Click for free trial)
Why Georgia Southern Will Cover The Spread
Davis Brin has been solid this year for Georgia Southern. He has completed 164 of 236 passes this year for 1,621 yards in just five games this season. He has 12 touchdowns this season with 14 big-time throws according to PFF. Brin has been great with pressure this year. he has been pressuring just 55 times this year with only nine sacks. Further, he has been taking care of the ball. He does have seven interceptions and nine turnover-worthy passes this year. Still, five of those interceptions and three of the turnover-worthy passes came in the loss to Wisconsin.
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All of the work from Brin ranks Georgia Southern ninth in the nation in passing, and 28th in the nation in scoring this year. The rushing game has not been as good this year, but OJ Arnold and Jalen White have been solid. Arnold has 269 yards rushing and three scores this year while averaging 7.5 yards per carry this year. White has 261 yards this year with three scores and is averaging 5.8 yards per carry.
Khaleb Hood has been great in the receiving game this year. He has 422 yards while bringing in 38 of 54 targets this season. Hood has scored three times this year, but he does have four drops this season. Meanwhile, Derwin Burgess has 371 yards this year with three scores on the season. Overall, Georgia Southern has just nine drops this year, with 13 touchdowns received.
The pass rush needs some work though. They have just nine sacks this season on 54 pressures. Isaac Walked is the only one with more than one sack this year. Still, Georgia Southern has been solid in the run game. Marques Watson-Trent has been great in the run game. He has 11 stops for offensive failures this season with 19 tackles overall. Georgia Southern has been good in the passing game as well. they have seven interceptions this year while allowing just three passing touchdowns.
Why James Madison Will Cover The Spread
Jordan McCloud has been solid this year for JMU. He has passed for 1,129 yards this year with 11 touchdowns. He does have three interceptions this year and has just five turnover-worthy passes this season. McCloud has been portrayed well, being pressured just 49 times this year, with only six sacks. Meanwhile, he has scrambled for positive yardage nine times this year. Overall, McCllud has 126 yards rushing with two touchdowns on the ground this year.
Meanwhile, Kaelon Black has been great on the ground this year. Black has 400 yards rushing this season while having an average of 5.3 yards per carry. He is not having to do it on his own either. Black is averaging two yards before first contact with 3.29 yards after first contact. He also has six carries over 15 yards this year. Still, he has not scored this year, but Ty Son Lawton has. He has scored three times this year with 209 yards rushing.
Further, Reggie Brown has been solid this year receiving, but not amazing. He has brought in 15 of 31 targets this year with 373 yards and three touchdowns. While he is averaging 24.9 yards per reception, he also has five drops this year. Elijah Sarrat has been very reliable. Sarrat has brought in 19 of 22 targets this year for 280 years. He does not have a drop and two touchdowns this season.
On defense, it is all about Jalen Green. He has eight sacks this year and 27 pressures on the season. He is part of 23 sacks for James Madison. Makail Kamara also had five sacks this year with 20 pressures on the year. On the run, JMU has been solid as well. They have missed just 19 tackles this year in the run game. They also have 79 stops for offensive failures on just 103 attempts. In coverage, they have not been as good. They have allowed ten touchdowns this year through the air, but they have seven interceptions this year. That is led by Francis Meehan who has two interceptions and two pass breakups.
Final Georgia Southern-James Madison Prediction & Pick
There are only three undefeated teams in the Sun Belt this year. Two of them are playing each other. They also have a combined one loss this year. Both teams are coming off bye weeks and are well prepared too. While Georgia Southern is looking for a conference title, JMU is not eligible. They are looking to show the NCAA that is a mistake. JMU is going out to prove they should not only be conference championship and bowl eligible, but they are the best Group of Five team in the nation and should be in the New Year's Six. They make that statement in this game.
Final Georgia Southern-James Madison Prediction & Pick: James Madison -5.5 (-112)
