The Bowl games in the NCAAF start on Friday, December 16, with 41 games scheduled for the next month, so make sure you don’t miss out on the best Roadrunners vs. Trojans betting pick and odds.

UTSA and Troy will fight for the Cure Bowl when they face at Exploria Stadium. The Trojans are slight 1-point favorites on MyBookie Sportsbook, while the total is set at 54.5 points. These non-conference rivals have never met before.

Roadrunners clinched the conference title

The (25) UTSA Roadrunners (11-2-0, 7-6-0 ATS) are on a red-hot run of ten wins. They defeated all of their opponents in conference play to finish with an 8-0 record, after which the Roadrunners beat the North Texas Mean Green 48-27 for the Conference USA title. It is UTSA’s second overall and second consecutive conference title. UTSA dominated North Texas in every segment; total yards (571-366), first downs (32-19), and possession (37:43-22:17), while they forced two and committed no turnovers on the other end.

Frank Harris completed 32 of 37 passes for 341 yards and four touchdowns. He also scored a rushing touchdown, but Kevorian Barnes ran the show on the ground with a career-high 175 yards and a TD on 28 carries. Zakhari Franklin was excellent in the air with a season-high 144 yards and three touchdowns on ten catches, while Oscar Cardenas and Joshua Cephus combined for 168 and a TD. On defense, Clifford Chattman and Trevor Harmanson led the team with nine tackles apiece.

RB Brenden Brady (arm) and RB Trelon Smith (undisclosed) are questionable to play against Troy on Friday.

Trojans secured the Sun Belt title

The Troy Trojans (11-2-0, 10-3-0 ATS) also won each of their previous ten games, including the Sun Belt Championship game against the Coastal Carolina Chanticleers. Troy won its 22nd conference championship and its first since 2017. The Chanticleers actually had more total yards and first downs than the Trojans, but Coastal Carolina was reckless with possession on a couple of occasions and their defense was very soft. In the end, it wasn’t even a contest as Troy won 45-26.

Gunnar Watson completed 12 of 17 passes for 318 yards and three touchdowns. The fact that he needed just 12 completions for 300+ yards is saying you everything you need to know about the Chanticleers’ D in this one. RaJae’ Johnson was on the receiving end of two of those TD passes as he registered a career-high 134 yards on only four catches. Deshon Stoudemire contributed a career-high 99 yards and a score on three receptions, while DK Billingsley scored even three rushing touchdowns and had 57 yards on nine carries. Defensively, T.J. Jackson had a fumble recovered, TJ Harris chipped in an interception, while Dell Pettus led all the players with 11 tackles.

WR Jabre Barber is sidelined with a leg injury, and there is no timetable for his recovery.

Trends:

UTSA:

  • 4-1 ATS in the last five games overall
  • 4-1 ATS in the last five vs. Sun Belt opponents
  • 6-2 ATS in the last eight games following a straight-up win of more than 20 points

Troy:

N/A

UTSA Roadrunners vs. Troy Trojans Pick  

The Roadrunners are better in every offensive department, while Troy has a stronger defense that is allowing 17.5 points per game – the 8th best D in the country. However, they allowed 26 points against Coastal Carolina, and I think the Roadrunners, who have a top-15 offense (38.7 ppg) will score around 30 in this one. The defense wins championships, but that is not going to be the case on Friday. UTSA scored 34+ points in each of its last five games, and even Troy’s excellent defense can’t stop the Roadrunners.

Pick: Take the Roadrunners at +1.5 (-120)

The Total

I am backing the Roadrunners to score around 30 here, so it’s natural I expect to see a high-scoring affair here. UTSA is averaging 308.6 passing yards per game and is just outside the top 10 in that regard, while the Trojans also have a solid pass offense that is averaging 252.8 ypg. We will likely see multiple passing touchdowns from each side. If that doesn’t work out for the Roadrunners, they can use their run offense that averages 177.5 ypg. Over is 12-5 in the Roadrunners’ last 17 games overall; Over is 5-0 in UTSA’s previous five non-conference games, while Over is 8-0 in the Trojans’ last eight bowl games.

Pick: Go Over 52.5 points (-130)