Betting
Spread
USF favouredMarket ARMY −3Ours ARMY −6.2
ARMY favouredgap 3.2 toward ARMY
Grey dot: the market · gold: our card line · small dot: FEI (bcftoys.com). A gap is a reason to look, not to bet.
Vegas
| Team | Spread | Points | Moneyline | Win% | Kalshi |
|---|
| USF away | +3.0 | 21.3 | +140 | 40.0% | — |
| ARMY home | -3.0 | 24.3 | -166 | 60.0% | — |
| Total | 45.5 | |
The closing line: this game was played before live prices were being collected.
Our model — cards
| Team | Spread | Points | Win% | vs book |
|---|
| USF away | +6.0 | 19.7 | 34.5% | +3.0 |
| ARMY home | -6.0 | 25.8 | 65.5% | -3.0 |
| Total | no total model | | | |
FEI — bcftoys.com
| Team | Spread | Points | Win% | vs book |
|---|
| USF away | +1.0 | 24.4 | 46.5% | -2.0 |
| ARMY home | -1.0 | 25.6 | 53.5% | +2.0 |
| Total | 50.0 | | | +4.5 |
"Points" is the implied score for each side: a spread and a total are the margin and the sum, so solving them back out says what each team is expected to score. A favourite is shown negative, the way a book quotes it. "vs book" is that model's line for the team minus the book's, so a plus means the model makes them the weaker side. Our cards are EA College Football 27 launch ratings rolled up; the gap between two teams is multiplied by a scale fitted on this season's results (real margins have run about 1.8 times the raw gap), plus 2.5 points of home field; the win chance comes from how far 7,877 FBS results landed from a line. FEI is Brian Fremeau's projection, shown as a reference only: measured on his own results pages it went 49.9% against the spread over 3,101 games (2022–25), and the pickers never see it. Neither model has shown it beats a closing line.
Team ratings
| Points vs an average FBS team | USF | ARMY |
|---|
| Offence (cards) | -1.980th | +1.548th |
| Defence (cards) | +0.455th | -1.196th |
| Card team rating | -1.673rd | +0.459th |
| SP+ (CFBD's rating, theirs) | +3.955th | -0.872nd |
| FEI (bcftoys.com, theirs) | -0.066th | -0.169th |
| F+ (FEI + SP+, theirs) | +0.159th | -0.170th |
| Card line | ARMY -6.2 (the gap ×1.87, fitted on 215 games, plus 2.5 home field) |
| Returning production | 13% | 80% |
Cards are EA College Football 27's Week 3 Ratings (EA re-rates weekly; we take the newest) with CFBD's measured stats shown beside them; the team rating rolls EA's starters up with the NFL position weights, unmeasured for college. SP+ is opponent-adjusted; ours is not yet.
Quarterbacks
Michael Van Buren Jr. USF77 ▲2 overall · Junior
Points added per play—
Completion65.9%
TD–INT3-0
Pass attempts, median game24
Pass yards, median game170
Rush yards, median game10
Games this season4
Team throws per game23.5
Cale Hellums ARMY84 overall · Senior
Points added per play0.371
Completion64.0%
TD–INT2-0
Pass attempts, median game9
Pass yards, median game59
Rush yards, median game87
Games this season3
Team throws per game10.0
The starter comes from the maintained depth chart (cfbdepth.com). The rating is EA College Football 27's Week 3 Ratings (EA re-rates weekly; we take the newest); everything under it is what CFBD has measured this season, as a median game rather than a total so a man who missed time is not shrunk.
Against the number
| Team | ATS | Cover% | vs spread | O/U | vs total |
|---|
| USF away | 2-2 | 50% | -0.6 | 2-2 | -7.8 |
| ARMY home | 1-1-1 | 50% | +3.8 | 2-1 | +2.2 |
Against DraftKings' closing number, this season. A record of what happened and nothing more — cover rates do not predict, which is why the pickers never see them.
Streak trends
No 4+ streak in any split for either side.
Cover, win/loss and over/under streaks in every split (home, away, favourite, underdog, division, primetime, big favourite), counted against the closing line. Measured over every FBS season on file: cover and over/under streaks revert (fade 6+); college win/loss streaks tell you nothing against the spread (50%), so they are shown here but the picker ignores them. These never reach the pickers' bundle; the "streak" row on the picks board bets on its own.
Venue, weather, rest and travel
Built when the game's bundle is (Michie Stadium).
Who is out (reported)
No news read for this game yet.
Covers.com injury tags
| Team | Player | Status | Since | Note |
|---|
| USF | A. Branch WR | questionable Undisclosed | Mon, Sep 28 | Branch is battling with an undisclosed injury, and it remains to be seen if he will be active against Temple on Saturday. |
| ARMY | B. Mott WR | out Undisclosed | Sat, Sep 26 | Mott is managing with a undisclosed injury, and it is unclear if he will face the Temple on Friday, September 25th. |
| ARMY | B. Luter QB | questionable Undisclosed | Sat, Sep 26 | Lutur is dealing with an Undisclosed injury, and it is undetermined if he will play against the Temple on Friday, September 25th. |
| ARMY | N. Dolbin WR | questionable Undisclosed | Fri, Sep 25 | Dolbin is tending to an undisclosed injury, and it has yet to be determined if he will suit up against Louisiana Tech on Saturday, October 3rd. |