The North Carolina State Wolfpack (-6.5) are set to pay a visit to the West Virginia Mountaineers at Mountaineer Field at Milan Puskar Stadium. This critical afternoon game is scheduled to start at 12:00 p.m. ET and FS1 will broadcast the action.
Betting Preview: West Virginia Mountaineers vs. North Carolina State Wolfpack
In this Saturday game, North Carolina State is getting picked as the favorite and is currently giving up 6.5 points. The Wolfpack are also receiving -270 moneyline odds while the Mountaineers are +210. Oddsmakers have placed the over/under (O/U) at 48 points. If the favorites give up points in the early stages, it would probably produce a worthy in-game betting opportunity.
Sharp bettors are siding with both the Wolfpack and the under. The line originally opened at 5.5 and the over/under was initially 51.
The Wolfpack are 2-0 against the spread (ATS) and have recorded 1.0 unit so far in 2019. They’ve been a good under bet and have posted an Over-Under mark of 0-2.
The Mountaineers have gained 0.0 units for moneyline bettors this season. They’re 0-1-1 ATS and also own an O/U record of 0-2.
The Wolfpack are 2-0 straight up (SU) in 2019 while the Mountaineers are 1-1 SU.
The Pack are hoping to remain undefeated following a 41-0 win over Western Carolina last week where the Wolfpack completed 22-of-33 passes for 231 yards and one touchdown. Matthew McKay went 18-for-28 for 200 yards and one touchdown while Bailey Hockman completed four-of-five for 31 yards. Zonovan Knight (119 yards on 18 rush attempts, two TDs) and Ricky Person (51 yards on 10 carries, one TD) spearheaded the running attack while Cary Angeline (four receptions, 47 yards, one TD) and Tabari Hines (three catches, 36 yards) handled the receiving duties in the win.
West Virginia just dropped a brutal 38-7 game to Missouri. Austin Kendall completed 15-of-25 passes for 137 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions. Alec Sinkfield (27 yards on nine rush attempts) mounted the running game as Sam James (five receptions, 35 yards) and George Campbell (two catches, 59 yards, one TD) led the pass-catching attack in the loss.
North Carolina State has run the ball on 53.8 percent of its offensive possessions this year while West Virginia has a rush percentage of 44.8 percent. The Wolfpack have produced 250 rush yards per game and have seven touchdowns on the ground this year. The Mountaineers are averaging 32 rushing yards per game and have yet to record a rush TD.
Judging by the early season results, the Wolfpack should own the edge when it comes to efficiency in the ground game, as their backfield has produced 6.0 yards per carry while their defense is allowing a YPC of 1.0 to opponents. The Mountaineers have ran for 1.1 yards per carry and given up a YPC of 4.1 to opponents.
The Pack offensive scheme has tallied 272.5 yards per contest through the air overall and has two passing TDs so far. The Mountaineers have put up 200.5 pass yards per contest and have three total pass score.
Defensively, North Carolina State has allowed opponents to rush for an average of 24.5 yards and pass for 163 yards per game. The West Virginia defense has allowed 153 yards per game to opposing passers and 202.0 yards per game to opposing runners. The Pack are allowing an adjusted net yards per pass attempt (ANY/A) of only 3.08 to opposing QBs, while the Mountaineers have given up a 5.15 ANY/A.
McKay has been more productive than Kendall recently, as his adjusted net yards per pass attempt sits at 7.86for the year (and 8.43 over the last two outings). Kendall’s ANY/A is 1.57 for the year and 4.80 across his past two outings.
North Carolina State Wolfpack vs. West Virginia Mountaineers Free Pick
SU Winner: West Virginia, ATS Winner: West Virginia, O/U: Under
Team Betting Trends
- Both teams have yet to lose a fumble this season.
- Both passing attacks have produced two pass plays of 40 or more yards and two pass plays of 30+ yards.
- Both teams have allowed zero pass plays of 40 yards or more. The North Carolina State defense has given up one pass play of 30+ yards while West Virginia has yielded zero such plays.
- The North Carolina State offense has created six rushing plays of 20+ yards, while West Virginia has created zero such run.
- The Wolfpack defense has allowed zero rushing plays of 20+ yards, while the Mountaineers have given up one such run.
- Each team defense has produced six sacks this season.
