- What: NCAA Football Game
- When: Thursday, October 3rd
- Who: Texas State vs. Troy
- Time: 4:00 p.m. PST
- Where: Veterans Memorial Stadium (Troy, AL)
We’ve got Sun Belt football tonight as the Texas State Bobcats head to Troy, AL, to take on the Trojans. Both teams are looking to rebound from last week’s losses.
The Bobcats have not defeated the Trojans in nearly twenty years, the last time they did so was in 1997. The Trojans have a 13-1 record against them.
Texas State
Jordan McCloud leads the Texas State’s offense with 1,141 passing yards and 12 touchdowns, adding 101 rushing yards and two scores.
His key targets include Jaden Williams, with 292 yards and three TDs; Joey Hobert, with 265 yards and four TDs and Chris Dawn Jr., who adds 222 yards and three TDs. Ismail Mahdi spearheads the rushing attack and has 307 rushing yards on the ground, and Lincoln Pare adds 165 with three TDs.
Our time is now.
Watch live on ESPN2 at 6 PM. #TakeBackTexas pic.twitter.com/D9xbpRCuH8
— Texas State Football (@TXSTATEFOOTBALL) October 3, 2024
Defensively, Texas State ranks 74th in points allowed, with standout performances from Ben Bell with 3.5 sacks and Bobby Crosby with three passes defended and one interception.
The Bobcats allow 27 points per game, placing them 91st in the country. They need a strong performance to forget that horrendous 22-point blown lead to Sam Houston State last week.
Troy
This Troy team is very different from last year’s team, which went 11-2. They have a different head coach, and many of their top players followed Jon Sumrall to Tulane. As a result, Troy has one of the worst defenses in the country.
Defensively, Troy ranks 84th in points allowed, excelling against the pass, ranking in the top-20 but struggling against the run, ranking 110th. Jordan Stringer and Brendan Jackson are defensive leaders, each with 33 tackles.
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— Troy Trojans Football 8x⚔️ (@TroyTrojansFB) October 3, 2024
On the offensive end, Troy has rotated quarterbacks. Tucker Kilcrease has completed 8 of 15 passes for 130 yards and a touchdown, while Goose Crowder, despite battling injuries, has five passing touchdowns.
Devonte Ross leads in receiving with 529 yards and six touchdowns. Damien Taylor heads the rushing attack with 336 yards and two scores.
Bobcats-Trojans Best Bet
The Bobcats offense has been the most impressive side of the ball in this matchup. While the Trojans offense is less potent, their explosive rushing attack could exploit the Bobcats defense.
Texas State is favored by 14 points in this game and that’s a key number, so I’m going to target the total instead. The total opened up at 54 points but has been bet up to 57 and 57.5 points at some sportsbooks.
The way these defenses have played this season, I’m comfortable recommending the Over all the way to 59 points in this one.
Over 57 points at -115 odds is the best bet in this one.
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Tony Reyes is a sports betting analyst and reporter for Dice City Sports. You can follow him on X @TonyParlay.
