Temple vs SMU NCAA Football Betting Guide

The Temple Owls will look to get back in the win column after suffering their first loss of the season last weekend. Now, let’s find out if the big-time bowl game hopefuls can cover the college football spread as a double-digit road favorite against the lowly SMU Mustangs.

Betting the Owls vs Mustangs NCAA Football Spread & Game Info

When: 8:00 PM ET, Friday, November 6, 2015 Where: Gerald J. Ford Stadium, Dallas, Texas TV: ESPN2 Football spread: Temple -12.5 Over/Under: 55.5

Sean Chandler went from living in homeless shelters to being a scholarship football player for @Temple_FB. WATCH: https://t.co/Qd5dR9ehmH

— ESPN (@espn) October 31, 2015

How To Bet on the Temple Owls (7-1 SU, 6-2 ATS)

The Temple Owls had their seven-game winning streak snapped but played well in their narrow 24-20 home loss against Notre Dame in Week 9, although the Owls did cover the spread as a 12.5-point home dog just as I predicted. “It was a tough and hard fought football game against a very good Temple football team,” said Notre Dame coach Brian Kelly. “I was proud of the way we played in the fourth quarter, making the plays when we needed to.” Quarterback P.J. Walker completed 13 of 30 passes in the win with one touchdown and one interception while gifted running back Jahad Thomas added 82 yards and one score on 21 carries. The Owls also picked off Notre Dame signal-caller DeShone Kizer twice in the gut-wrenching loss. “Notre Dame is a great team and they made one more play than we did,” said Temple coach Matt Rhule. “A lot of things went against our guys and we kept battling and battling. Even to the last play I thought we had a chance to come back and win the game.” The Owls are ranked 58th in scoring (30.8 ppg) and ninth in points allowed (15.8 ppg).

How To Bet on the Southern Methodist Mustangs (1-7 SU, 4-4 ATS)

SMU has lost six straight games including its humbling 41-30 home loss against Tulsa as a 1-point underdog in Week 8. Quarterback Matt Davis completed 19 of 29 passes for 236 yards and three touchdowns to lead SMU but the Mustangs were held to just 84 total rushing yards in the defeat.  Defensively, the Mustangs allowed Tulsa to go 3-for-3 on fourth downs while giving up 179 rushing yards and four touchdowns. The Mustangs are ranked 68th in scoring (28.8 ppg) and 124th in points allowed (43.6 ppg).

My Expert Temple vs SMU Game Analysis and Betting Pick

While a convincing 72 percent of the betting public likes Temple to get back in the win column and cover the spread against the lowly SMU Mustangs, I say it doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure that out. The Owls are very good on both sides of the ball and will undoubtedly want to unleash all of their frustration for losing at home against Notre Dame last week, out on the lowly Mustangs. The Owls are 4-1 ATS in their last five conference games, an identical 4-1 ATS in their L/5 road games and an encouraging 9-4 ATS in their last 13 games following an SU loss. Conversely, the SMU Mustangs are just  2-5 ATS in their last seven conference games, 3-8 ATS in their last 11 home games and a discouraging 1-4 ATS in their last five games overall. The Temple Owls win going away! My Betting Prediction: Temple 35 SMU 14