After a 3-3 start to the season, the Temple Owls have been one of the hottest teams in America over their past six games. They will aim to push their winning streak to seven in a matchup against the Navy Midshipmen in the American Athletic Conference Championship game in Week 14 of the season.
Navy is a slight home favorite, but the oddsmakers have forecasted a close game between a pair of evenly-talented teams. Temple has only allowed 10 total points in its past three games so the Midshipmen must find a way to move the ball well in this one.
Watch this regular season Week 14 matchup live on Saturday, December 3, 2016, at 12 p.m. ET at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium in Annapolis, Maryland.
College Football Odds at BookMaker.eu
Temple +2.5
Navy -2.5
Odds Analysis
The gamblers are not buying Temple’s recent stretch of dominance, as nearly 88 percent of the early money is coming in on Navy to cover the spread. The Midshipmen are nationally ranked, which could be a reason why some of the bettors are choosing them.
Navy is 9-2 overall and 7-4 against the spread this season. The Midshipmen have played at home six times this season and covered the spread in four of them.
Temple is 9-3 overall and 8-3-1 against the spread. The Owls are 3-1-1 attempting to cover in games away from home this season.
Revenge Angle
The Owls aren’t playing the same team, but they nonetheless want to exact some revenge after falling short in the AAC title game a year ago. Temple faced off against Houston and came up short by a score of 24-13.
The AAC championship game was formed just last year, and so Temple is the only team to make it twice. The Owls really would prefer not to start a trend of making the conference championship game and then losing it, but must outpace the oddsmakers’ projections in order to beat Navy and come home with the hardware.
Temple’s lone conference loss came against Memphis. The Owls defeated South Florida head-to-head in their regular season matchup, which gave them the tiebreaker as both finished AAC play with a 7-1 record.
Matchup to Watch
Navy rushing game against Temple defense -- This matchup could very well decide this outcome. The Midshipmen are racking up 342 rushing yards per game this season and scoring 41.7 points.
Navy’s leading rusher is Will Worth, who has 258 carries for 1,181 yards and 25 touchdowns. He’s not the only potent player on the ground for Navy, and the Temple defense will need to be sound in order to prepare for all the different options Navy has.
Luckily the Owls have been really good at that aspect of late. Temple has two shutouts in its past three games and will try to force Navy to go to the air. Getting ahead would be a key to that, but doing so won’t be easy.
Free ATS Pick
Navy has more national prestige this season but these two teams are almost as even as you can get. The Midshipmen’s lone conference loss came to South Florida, a tough opponent who they played tough throughout.
It seems like this is destined to be a tight matchup, with a late score likely being the difference-maker. Even though Navy has the home field advantage, Temple is really clicking defensively.
Expect the Owls to make enough plays on that side of the ball to pull out a win. Temple may be a slight underdog but a cover and a straight-up victory are both on the table. With that being the case, a moneyline bet on the Owls is the way to go. The scoring total may be set too high as the defenses could make some plays in this one.
College Football Odds: Temple 27, Navy 23
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