Eastern Michigan of the Mid-American Conference hasn’t won a bowl game since the late 1980s and the Eagles are sizable underdogs on the college football odds for Thursday’s Quick Lane Bowl in Detroit against ACC school Pittsburgh Panthers.
How to Bet Pittsburgh vs Eastern Michigan Quick Lane Bowl Odds & Game Info
- When: Thursday, 8 PM ET
- Where: Ford Field, Detroit
- TV: ESPN
- Quick Lane Bowl Odds: Pittsburgh -11 (Total 49)
Series history
Pitt leads 2-0 but the teams haven’t played since 2007.
Why Bet on Pittsburgh?
Pittsburgh finished 7-5 by losing its final two games. It was 26-19 at home to Boston College on Nov. 30. Behind AJ Dillon, BC rolled up 264 yards on the ground against a team that entered ranked sixth in the country in run defense, allowing just 92.6 yards per game. Dillon surpassed that total on his own, including a 61-yard dash to the end zone in the third quarter that put Boston College ahead to stay shortly after Pitt went in front on a 39-yard sprint by Vincent Davis.Pitt lost the turnover battle, 4-0. The Panthers fumbled five times and the Eagles recovered three of them. It was the first time that Pitt lost three fumbles in a game since the Panthers lost six against Georgia Tech on Oct. 25, 2014. Entering the game as the FBS leaders in sacks, Pitt’s defense sacked Eagles QB Dennis Grosel just once. The Panthers’ two leading sackmen – Jaylen Twyman and Patrick Jones II – each assisted on the sack. Twyman (10.5) and Jones (8.5) will finished among the ACC’s leaders in sacks this season.
Some Numbers
Twyman was first-team All-ACC. The 6-foot-2, 290-pound Twyman has been a spearhead up front for Pitt, which ranks 11th in the nation in total defense (302.5 yards per game), 11th in rushing defense (106.9 yards per game) and 20th in passing defense (195.6 yards per game). The Panthers have compiled 49 team sacks—their most since 1987—and rank second nationally with an average of 4.08 sacks per game.The 2019 Quick Lane Bowl marks Pitt’s 35th all-time bowl appearance and fourth under the direction of Coach Pat Narduzzi. The Panthers can win eight games for the third time under Narduzzi. A bowl win would be the Panthers’ first since 2013. This will be Pitt’s second postseason trip to Detroit. The Panthers last played a bowl game at Ford Field in 2013, when the Panthers defeated Bowling Green, 30-27. The Panthers are 32-4 all-time against MAC opponents, including a 20-10 victory over Ohio this season (Sept. 7). Narduzzi is 2-0 against MAC foes as Pitt’s head coach.
Team Stats
Offense- Points per Game: 20.08
- Passing Yards: 253.42
- Rushing Yards: 120.67
- Yards per Play: 5.07
Defense
- Points per Game: 21.83
- Passing Yards: 195.58
- Rushing Yards: 106.92
- Yards per Play: 4.44
Why Bet on Eastern Michigan?
Finishing the regular season at 6-6 with a loss in the final game of the regular season, Eastern Michigan wasn’t sure it would end up getting one of the final bowl spots. But EMU will play in its 4th bowl game in program history. EMU’s only bowl win was in 1987 where they beat San Jose State in the California Bowl. Despite Pittsburgh being heavily favored, the Eagles have the privilege of playing only 40 minutes away from their campus.Senior quarterback Mike Glass III was named the team’s Most Valuable Player this season. Glass put up 3,203 yards of total offense (345 rushing, 2,858 passing) and 29 touchdowns. He led the MAC and ranks 17th nationally in total offense with 291.2 yards per contest. Glass finished the regular season ranked 14th in the FBS in completion percentage (67.8%), 18th in completions per game (21.64), 18th in points responsible for per game (16.0), and 24th in passing yards per game (259.8). Glass ranks fourth in total offense in a season in EMU’s 128-year history and needs just 188 yards to pass Charlie Batch’s mark of 3,390 that has stood since 1997.
Strong Defense
The defensive star is senior defensive back Vince Calhoun. The all-time leader in Eastern Michigan history with 48 career games started, Calhoun has 336 career tackles, which ranks 12th all-time at EMU. In 2019, Calhoun notched 97 tackles, 5.5 TFLs, two sacks, two forced fumbles and an interception for the EMU defense. Just the seventh student-athlete in program history to collect All-MAC honors in three different seasons, Calhoun ranks ninth in the MAC and 55th in the NCAA with 8.1 tackles per game.
Linebacker Kobie Beltram leads the defense with 116 total tackles this season. Beltram also has six tackles for loss, five pass breakups and two fumble recoveries.
Eastern is one of the most consistently disciplined squads in the country. The Eagles rank among the nation’s best in both fewest penalties and fewest penalty yards per game. EMU’s 56 total penalties rank 11th-nationally, while its 40.92 penalty yards per game is 13th-best in the country.
Team Stats
Offense- Points per Game: 29.08
- Passing Yards: 279.67
- Rushing Yards: 125.08
- Yards per Play: 6.11
Defense
- Points per Game: 30.33
- Passing Yards: 225.83
- Rushing Yards: 202.42
- Yards per Play: 6.02
Pittsburgh vs Eastern Michigan 2019 Quick Lane Bowl Betting Trends
- Panthers are 1-4 SU in their last 5 games played in December
- Panthers are 4-2 ATS in their last 6 games played on a Thursday
- The total has gone UNDER in 7 of Pittsburgh’s last 8 games when playing as the favorite
- Eagles are 0-5 SU in their last 5 games against an opponent in the Atlantic Coast conference
- Eagles are 14-6 ATS in their last 20 games when playing as the underdog
- The total has gone OVER in 7 of Eastern Michigan’s last 7 games played on a Thursday
