No. 16 Mississippi State Bulldogs (-6.5) at Auburn Tigers, Total 56 |
The Mississippi Bulldogs will be seeking revenge from last year’s 17-14 loss to the Auburn Tigers as 1-point home underdogs a year ago. The Bulldogs are coming into this contest off a season-opening victory over the Memphis Tigers for the second consecutive year, tallying a 59-14 win as 30-point road favorites last Thursday.
Third-year head coach Dan Mullen has things rolling in Starksville and will be looking to have his offense score 30 or more points for a fifth straight game. Under his direction, Mississippi State has gone over that mark 11 times in 26 games.
Turnovers are a major strength of this team, posting a plus-11 margin in seven of its nine wins a year ago and already staring with a plus-two differential in the 2011 campaign.
SEC Offensive Player of the Week Vick Ballard will lead the Bulldogs rushing attack, as he gained 166 yards and scored three touchdowns against Memphis last week. He accumulated those numbers with just 10 carries.
Bettors will be interested in knowing that the Bulldogs are 8-2 ATS as favorites and 9-7 ATS versus conference opponents the last two-plus years. The ‘under’ is 10-6 in their last 16 SEC tilts.
Auburn escaped with a 42-38 win as 24-point home favorites over the Utah State Aggies last week at Jordan-Hare Stadium, as the program begins life after winning a national championship and losing Heisman Trophy quarterback Cam Newton to the NFL draft.
The Tigers are 44-28-5 in SEC openers and have won 17 of their last 18 such contests. It’s also important to note that the program will be carrying in the nation’s longest winning streak at 16 games as a considerable home underdog.
Head coach Gene Chizik will remain calm on the sidelines if the contest is close towards the end, as he’s posted an 8-0 record in games decided by four points or less since arriving at Auburn.
Chizik will also be proud of his 7-2 record against ranked opponents, including wins in six straight contests.
This is a different team than the championship squad that fans witnessed last year, as the rebuilding process caused 13 true freshman to see action in Week 1. It definitely showed in the running game, as the team was held to just 78 rushing yards.
Bettors will find that the favorite is 7-2 ATS in the last nine meetings of thei college football betting matchup, while the Tigers are 5-6 ATS as home underdogs of 3.5 to 7 points.
