The Navy Midshipmen are looking to wrap up an impressive regular season in the old rivalry game with the Army Black Knights. Navy had its four-game winning streak snapped last time out but gets this contest at a neutral site and has had great success in this matchup in past years.
The Midshipmen are solid favorites and if the game goes as expected they will reach double-digits in victories before bowl season. Army hopes its defense can lead the way in an upset win.
Kickoff for this regular season Week 15 game is set for Saturday, December 10, 2016, at 3 p.m. ET at M&T Bank Stadium.
College Football Odds at BookMaker.eu
Army +8.5
Navy -8.5
Odds Analysis
Navy is 9-3 straight up and 7-5 against the spread. The Midshipmen have been the favorites seven times this season and won four of them.
Army is 6-5 straight up and 5-6 against the spread. The Black Knights have been underdogs five times on the season and have covered in two of those.
Key Stat
14. That’s how many times in a row that Navy has beaten Army in a winning streak that dates back to 2002. Navy leads this series 60-49-7 all-time and has certainly had the upper hand in recent years.
In last year’s meeting, the Midshipmen beat the Black Knights 21-17 and they come into this year’s game as the favorite again. Army’s last win against its rival was in 2001 and it’s the team’s only win against the Navy this century.
This rivalry has traditionally gone back-and-forth pretty nicely but the Midshipmen have a huge recent advantage and that’s expected to remain in this one.
Injury Report
Navy quarterback Will Worth suffered an ankle injury and is expected to miss the rest of the season. It’s a huge loss, as he has been the leader of this offense this season. Worth has thrown for 1,397 yards with eight touchdowns and three interceptions.
He has also been the go-to guy on the ground this season with 1,198 rushing yard and 25 touchdowns.
Worth would have been the best player on either offense in this game and his absence is a huge blow to Navy. It will now turn to Zach Abey, who ran for a team-best 70 yards in relief of Worth in a loss to Temple last time out but also threw a pair of interceptions.
Abey will need to play better and take care of the ball against Army in order for Navy to live up to the billing as the favorite.
Free ATS Pick
Navy has been the better team this year, but Army may not be a hugely surprising upset pick. The Black Knights might only be 5-4 but are outscoring their opponents by an average of 10.9 points per game. That seems to bode well in this one although Army is going against a superior foe.
The Black Knights are only giving up 19.1 points per game and the defense must find a way to slow down Abey and the other key Navy players.
With both teams running the ball so much, fumbles could be huge. If Army can win that battle, it should stick close enough to cover this spread. If Worth was around, this would be an easy call for Navy.
However, injuries have hit the group hard and it’s unknown how well it will regroup. The Black Knights are the right call to cover, and while we’ll go with the Midshipmen to win this game on the strength of its entire team, it’s certainly not crazy to pick Army as the upset pick which would pay off lucratively on the moneyline.
College Football Odds: Navy 27, Army 23
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