The Appalachian State Mountaineers will look to pick up right where they left off a year ago, when they take on the 15th-ranked Georgia Bulldogs in a Week 1 regular season opener that could be one of the most intriguing matchups on the entire Week 1 docket and the latest college football odds.
The Mountaineers will invade Sanford Stadium to take on the Bulldogs on Saturday, September 2, 2017 at 6:15 PM ET with this matchup airing live on ESPN. Now, let’s find out which team is the right pick to bring home the win in this regular season opener and make sure to review the current betting odds for this NCAA Football game here.
The Bulldogs struggled to score the ball in putting up a modest 24.5 points per game to rank 102nd in scoring nationally. The good news however is that sophomore quarterback Jacob Eason is back under center and will almost assuredly be better with a full year of experience under his belt after completing just 55.1 percent of his passes last season.
On the other hand, more good news comes in the forms of returning running backs Nick Chubb and Sony Michel, who were both expected to bolt for the greener pastures of the NFL. Georgia does have question marks at wide receiver and even more on the offensive line where they’ll have three new starters, but the return of Chubb and Michel should help, especially early on.
Appalachian State at Georgia College Football Odds & Preview for Week 1
When / Where: Saturday, September 2, 2017 at 6:15 PM ET Where: Sanford Stadium TV: ESPN Live Stream: WatchESPN College Football Odds: Georgia Bulldogs -14.5 / Total: 45.5 Weather Forecast- Partly Cloudy: 27°C/81°F
- Humidity: 54%
- Precipitation: 1%
- Cloud Cover: 34%
- Wind: 6 mph WSW
- Stadium Type: Open
Why Bet the Appalachian State Mountaineers at +14.5?
The Appalachian State Mountaineers might not be a nationally recognized program to casual college football bettors, but they’re very good and just a ‘dangerous’ kind of team if you ask me. The Mountaineers went 10-3 last season and earned a share of the Sun Belt conference championship before finishing off their 2016 season with a hard-fought, 31-28 win over Toledo in the 2016 Camellia Bowl. Now, as they get set for their fifth-year under head coach Scott Satterfield, the Mountaineers have a lot of hope heading into 2017 and for good reason. “If you think about it, there’s probably not one player on Georgia’s team that we had a chance at recruiting and there’s not a player on our team that Georgia wanted (to recruit). So, certainly, on paper we shouldn’t even be able to stay with those guys. But that’s what’s great about college football. You always play the game and then you see what happens.Alabama Tops FSU in NCAAF Odds for College Football Week 1
Offense Analysis?
Appalachian State’s offense is led by senior signal-caller Taylor Lamb who passed for 2,281 yards and 15 touchdowns last season while rushing for an additional 505 yards and nine scores. Lamb has guided the Mountaineers to 21 victories over the last two seasons. Hence, Appalachian State also has an elite running back in Sun Belt Conference Offensive Player of the Year, Jalin Moore who returns after rushing for 1,402 yards and 10 touchdowns in 2016. The Offensive line is experiencing with two senior starters and Lamb has a good No. 1 target in wide receiver Shaedon Meadors.Defense Analysis?
Defensively, the Mountaineers have talent at all three levels, starting with defensive linemen Tee Sims and Caleb Fuller who combined for 10 sacks last season. Senior linebacker Eric Boggs is back after leading the Mountaineers in tackles last season and the secondary has three of its four starters returning including cornerbacks Clifton Duck and A.J. Howard who combined for eight interceptions a year ago. “Georgia is coming off a solid year last year and they’ve got a ton of players back, basically their whole defense and, of course, their quarterback,” Satterfield said. “And they have arguably the best backfield and running back in the country this year. So there’s certainly high expectations for Georgia. But we’re looking forward to seeing what we can do against those guys.”Why Bet the Georgia Bulldogs at -14.5?
Georgia went 8-5 last season to record their lowest win total since 2013, but they did manage to close out their 2016 campaign with an encouraging 31-23 win over TCU in the Liberty Bowl.
The Bulldogs struggled to score the ball in putting up a modest 24.5 points per game to rank 102nd in scoring nationally. The good news however is that sophomore quarterback Jacob Eason is back under center and will almost assuredly be better with a full year of experience under his belt after completing just 55.1 percent of his passes last season.
On the other hand, more good news comes in the forms of returning running backs Nick Chubb and Sony Michel, who were both expected to bolt for the greener pastures of the NFL. Georgia does have question marks at wide receiver and even more on the offensive line where they’ll have three new starters, but the return of Chubb and Michel should help, especially early on.
Defense Analysis
Defensively, the Bulldogs were very solid in limiting the opposition to 24.0 points per contest to rank 37th in points allowed nationally. More importantly, the Bulldogs return a whopping 10 starters on defense after finishing last season ranked inside the top 20 against both, the pass and run. Moreover, Georgia’s front seven could be downright dominant, starting with defensive linemen Lorenzo Carter and Davin Bellamy and linebackers Roquan Smith and Natrez Patrick. The secondary features a wealth of experience with three senior starters. Still, second-year head coach Kirby Smart knows his team is facing a dangerous opponent in Week 1.Kirby Smart Comments & Team Analysis
“Appalachian State has a really good team and we expect quite a battle,” Smart said. “Their offense is very explosive with much experience and production returning. And defensively, Appalachian plays with incredible speed, toughness, and tenacity. Furthermore, their defensive front speed jumps out at you. We’ve got to be careful about putting them in 1-on-1 situations as their players guys use their great quickness to create a disadvantage sometimes for an opposing offensive line. They slash, they tackle for a loss and they’re very disruptive in what they do.”Series History
- Total Meetings: 1
- First Meeting: November 9, 2013. Athens, Georgia
- Last Meeting: November 9, 2013. Athens, Georgia
- All-Time Series: Georgia 1 (2013)
- Largest Margin of Victory: Georgia 45-6
- Longest Win Streak: Georgia 1 (2013)
- Current Win Streak: Georgia 1 (2013)
College Football Week 1 Betting Trends
- Georgia is 3-8 ATS in the last 11 games at home
- Appalachian State is 9-1 SU in the last 10 games
- The total went UNDER in 4 of Appalachian State’s last 6 games
- Appalachian State is 5-1 ATS in the last 6 games on the road
- Georgia is 4-1 SU in the last 5 games
- The total went UNDER in 14 of Georgia’s last 20 games
