Thursday night college football and we will see the Florida State Seminoles take on the Louisville Cardinals in Louisville, Kentucky. The game has a start time of 7:30 pm (Eastern) and will be televised on ESPN. Current Vegas odds have the Seminoles listed as 4.5 point favorites, while the total is set at 50.5.
Analysis: The Seminoles come in off a bye week after taking down the Notre Dame Fighting Irish by a 31-27 score. The win now has the Noles ranked 2nd in the polls with a 7-0 record, that includes a 3-0 mark on the road. The Seminoles are just 1-7 ATS in their last 8 games before playing Virginia, 0-4 the last 4 in this series and 1-6 ATS in their last 7 games following a SU win. The Noles are a solid offensive team, ranking 47th in total offense, 14th in passing offense, 104th in rushing and 19th in scoring (37.9 ppg). The defense has not been as good as last year and comes ranked 53rd in yards allowed, 63rd vs the pass, 48th vs the run, and 29th in points allowed (21.6 ppg).
The Louisville Cardinals come in with a solid 6-2 mark on the year that includes a 4-0 mark at home. Louisville is in 3rd place in the ACC's Atlantic Division, with a 4-2 conference mark. The Cardinals are 16-2 ATS in their last 18 games vs the ACC, but they are also 1-4 ATS in their last 5 home games vs. a team with a winning road record. The offense has not been as good for the Cardinals his year as it was last year, as they come in ranked 93rd in total offense, 72nd in passing, 90th in rushing and 58th in scoring (30.8 ppg). The defense is where this team's bread is buttered this year as they come in ranked 1st in the nation in yards allowed, 10th vs the pass, 1st vs the run and 4th in points allowed (14.6 ppg).
Pick: Im gonna look at the Over in this game. You read that right. The Cardinals have played great defense this year, but they haven't really been tested by an offense of this caliber just yet. The Noles offense hasn't been as explosive as last year's group, but still they have put up 31 points or more in 6 of their 7 games this year. For Louisville, they have not been a strong offensive team this year, but they are now healthy with Parker back and Dyer also in good form, plus Petrino is an offensive coach and I expect him to go right at this Florida State defense that has struggled at times, allowing 31 to Oklahoma State, 41 to NC State and 27 to Notre Dame. This should be a close game, but should also be a higher scoring game than some might think. I look for at least 55 points in this one.
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College Football Betting Preview: Florida State vs Louisville
What college football bettors need to know about betting Florida State Seminoles vs Louisville Cardinals on Thursday (10/30/14) - No pick in this game but insight from Pregame.com's Bryan Leonard and Steve Fezzik.