The Bettor’s Guide to UCF vs. Boise State

The UCF Knights and Boise State Broncos kick off the season this Thursday at 7pm inside The Bounce House on ESPN. UCF is currently a 5.5 point favorite with the over/under set at 68.5 according to OddsShark. Betting on season openers is always hard considering we haven’t seen either team. In addition to it being the first game of the season, both teams have brand new head coaches which adds another level of complexity.

Andy Avalos returns to his alma mater as head coach of the Broncos where he was on the defensive staff from 2012-2018 before coaching at Oregon the past two seasons. His defensive coordinator, Spencer Danielson, has been on the defensive coaching staff at Boise since 2018. This is an advantage for UCF as they’ll be able to study previous Boise game film to understand what type of defensive structures they’ll be going against.

A key matchup to watch will be UCF’s inexperienced receiver group going against Boise’s inexperienced cornerbacks. Another area to watch for will be UCF’s running game. Bentavious Thompson is no longer with the team and R.J. Harvey suffered an injury that will cause him to miss the season. Outside of grad transfer Isaiah Bowser, this position group is severely lacking game experience.

Roster Notes

UCF Key Losses: Marlon Williams (WR), Otis Anderson (RB), Bentavious Thompson (RB), Richie Grant (S), Greg McCrae (RB), Tre Nixon (WR), Jacob Harris (WR), Aaron Robinson (CB)

UCF Injuries: RJ Harvey (RB) - out for the season with a knee injury

Boise State Key Losses: Jalen Walker (CB), Avery Williams (CB), John Bates (TE), Sam Whitney (DE), Nick Crabtree (RT)

Boise State Inuries: No notable injuries.

Picks

OddsShark

UCF will win, cover the spread, and the total will go over with a projected score of 38.2-31.6.

Public Consensus

UCF covers the spread (58%) and the total will go over (55%).

My Picks

UCF covers the spread and the total will go under.