[11:30 AM] Cincinnati @ Connecticut

Who will WIN this matchup?

Cincinnati Bearcats (3-2)

@ Connecticut Huskies (2-3)

 

Current odds:

Cincinnati Bearcats: (-145)

Connecticut Huskies: (+125)

 

ESPN simulations have Cincinnati as XX% favorites to cover the spread.

XX% of sports bets are currently on Cincinnati to win as (XX) favorites.

The line for this game is Cincinnati by 3 points.

Three second-half turnovers not only turned the game around but also turned the home crowd against Cincinnati in its 45-20 loss to USF last week. The Bearcats, with questions at quarterback, look to rebound when they visit Connecticut for an American Athletic Conference game Saturday.

The Bearcats are 10-2 all-time against UConn (3-0 in AAC games) and hammered the Huskies 37-13 as Kiel threw for 327 yards in last year’s contest. But Kiel missed most of the preseason and fell behind Trail and Hayden Moore, who started the first three games of the season but remains doubtful with an ankle injury.

Senior wide receiver Noel Thomas ranks sixth in the nation (second in the conference) in receptions per game (9.2) and had six catches for 135 yards and a score against Houston last week. The Huskies have still been stout against the run, allowing 118.2 yards a game which ranks 30th in the country, but the Cougars’ Greg Ward threw for a career-high 389 yards and accounted for five touchdowns in just more than three quarters last week. That came on the heels of UConn’s 31-24 setback against Syracuse when Eric Dungey threw for 407 yards and Amba Etta-Tawo racked up 270 yards on 12 catches.

The Bearcats have split their backfield duties with Tion Green has averaging 69 yards per game on the ground and Mike Boone averaging 49.4 yards.

Arkeel Newsome leads UConn in rushing with 224 yards on 58 attempts but carried the ball only six times last week.

UConn had 25 takeaways in 2015, but only two in 2016.
StreakSmarts Pick: Cincinnati Bearcats

Confidence: 4/10

Confidence
StreakSmarter Pick