The 17th-ranked Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns (9-1) and the University of Texas at San Antonio Roadrunners (7-4) meet Saturday for a 3:30 p.m. ET kickoff at Gerald J. Ford Stadium in Dallas for the SERVPRO First Responder Bowl. Below, we analyze the Louisiana-UTSA college football betting odds and lines, with picks and predictions.
Rankings courtesy of the Amway Coaches Poll powered by USA TODAY Sports.
Louisiana vs. UTSA: Betting odds, spread and lines
Odds via BetMGM; access USA TODAY Sports’ betting odds for a full list. Lines last updated at 8:15 a.m. ET.
- Money line: Louisiana -650 (bet $650 to win $100) | UTSA +425 (bet $100 to win $425)
- Against the spread/ATS: Louisiana -13.5 (-115) | UTSA +13.5 (-105)
- Over/Under: 55.5 (O: -105 | U: -115)
Louisiana vs. UTSA: Three things to know
- The Ragin’ Cajuns streak in with six straight wins since their only setback of the season, a 30-27 loss at home against unbeaten Coastal Carolina Oct. 14. They also enter on a 3-0 ATS run.
- UTSA RB Sincere McCormick posted 1,345 rushing yards, second in the nation to Iowa State’s Breece Hall (1,436 yards). McCormick also scored 11 touchdowns while posting a healthy 6.0 average yards per carry. He could find large chunks of real estate, as ULL’s rushing defense was just 84th in the nation with 180.9 yards per game allowed.
- Louisiana employs more of a two-headed monster, as RBs Elijah Mitchell went for 751 yards and seven scores and Trey Ragas posted 662 yards and nine touchdowns. QB Levi Lewis is also a dual threat, running for 310 yards and five scores while passing for 2,124 yards, 17 touchdowns and just seven picks.
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Louisiana vs. UTSA: Odds, betting lines, predictions and picks
Prediction
Louisiana 38, UTSA 27
Money line (ML)
Louisiana (-650) is on a roll this season, and they’re 5-2 SU in bowl games all-time since bumping up to the FBS. Well, 3-2, technically, as two New Orleans Bowl wins were vacated during Mark Hudspeth’s reign in Lafayette. That bowl record includes a solid 27-17 win over Miami-Ohio in last season’s Lending Tree Bowl. Still, risking six-and-a-half times your potential return is a lot of cake to post up for not much value. PASS.
Against the spread (ATS)
UTSA +13.5 (-105) should be able to hang around in this game with McCormick rumbling for big yardage. QB Frank Harris is also a productive dual-threat option with 1,422 passing yards with 10 touchdowns, and another 443 yards and eight scores on the ground. The Roadrunners have the tools to test the Ragin’ Cajuns well into the second half.
Over/Under (O/U)
OVER 55.5 (-105) is the best play of all options in the First Responder Bowl. While the Under cashed in six of the past eight for Louisiana, the Over is 15-5 in their past 20 against non-conference foes. UTSA has the tools to hang with a high-scoring Louisiana offense.
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