The Appalachian State Mountaineers are 18-1 SU and 12-5-2 over their last 19 games since November 2018. The Mountaineers will look to continue their dominant run with a win and cover in the New Orleans Bowl against the UAB Blazers.
- Spread: Appalachian State -19.5
- Total: 47.5
- Date/Time: December 21, 9 p.m. ET
- Location: New Orleans
- Stadium: Mercedes-Benz Superdome
- TV Coverage: ESPN
- Appalachian State vs UAB Matchup Report & Updated Odds
New Orleans Bowl Odds Analysis
Early backers of UAB and its stingy defense couldn’t pass on the Blazers as 19.5-point underdogs, driving this line down 3 full points as Appalachian State is now just a 16.5-point favorite in the New Orleans Bowl. The total shifted only slightly, up half a point from its opener of 47.5 to 48 points.
Appalachian State News & Notes
It was a short stay with Appalachian State for head coach Eliah Drinkwitz, who coached the team to a 12-1 SU and 7-4 ATS record and a Sun Belt championship this season before leaving to take the head coach position with the Missouri Tigers. The departure of a coach before a bowl game can often have a negative impact on players, but in new head coach Shawn Clark, the team has a stable presence who has been with Appalachian State for the last four years.
UAB’s tough defense will have its hands full with a balanced Appalachian State attack that features quarterback Zac Thomas and running back Darrynton Evans, who rushed for 1,323 yards and 17 touchdowns this season. While both UAB (allowing 20.8 points per game) and Appalachian State (allowing 20.2) have strong defenses, the Mountaineers have the clear edge on offense with a unit that has averaged 39.4 points per game.
UAB News & Notes
Bill Clark has done an exceptional job with this UAB Blazers team over the last three seasons. Before the football program was disbanded in 2015, UAB had been to only one bowl game since its inception in 1991, which it lost. The program returned from the dead in 2017 with a respectable 8-5 campaign, and then last year UAB climbed to the top of the mountain with an 11-3 record, a Conference USA title and its first bowl win in program history.
A heavy focus on defense has led to this success, and it continued to drive the Blazers this season as they recorded a 9-4 SU and 7-6 ATS record. UAB is 8-7 SU and 9-6 ATS in its last 15 games as a betting underdog.
Betting Pick: UNDER 47.5
With almost a month to prepare for this modest UAB offense, Appalachian State’s defense should shut it down. UAB’s defense could also have a strong day, but even if it doesn’t, there’s plenty of room to stay UNDER this total.
- Appalachian State is 4-1 ATS in its last 5 games.
- UAB is 0-3 ATS in its last 3 games as a double-digit dog.
- The UNDER has hit in 4 of UAB’s last 6 games.
