South Florida has met and exceeded even some of the wildest expectations for this season, and we’re not even halfway through it yet.
The Bulls are 3-1 overall going into American Conference play, and that’s with two ranked wins to start the year. They kicked things off with a 34-7 win over Boise State, which was ranked No. 25 and was the preseason favorite to make it to the College Football Playoff among Group of Five teams.
Then USF stunned the college football world by going on the road to beat Florida 18-16. The Bulls’ lone loss has been at Miami, 49-12, but they bounced back and decisively defeated South Carolina State 63-14.
Now they begin league play at home against Charlotte. The 49ers are 1-3 overall, with their lone win being against FCS Monmouth.
Charlotte vs. USF Betting Odds
USF is a -28 college football betting odds favorite against Charlotte, with the Over/Under being 55.5 as of this writing.
The moneyline for Charlotte is +1850, while it’s -10000 for USF.
Charlotte vs. USF On TV
The matchup between Charlotte and USF will be televised on ESPN2.
The game will kick off at 7 p.m. ET on Friday, Oct. 3. The contest is taking place at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida.
Charlotte vs. USF Prediction
I predict USF wins and covers the 28-point spread. I also project the game will go Over 55.5 total points.
This South Florida team has already proven its one to be reckoned with in the American. And that’s not just because the Bulls beat Florida.
Against Boise State and SC State at home, the Bulls were incredible on offense as they put up a combined 97 points in those two contests. They also gave up just 21 points.
That’s the sign of a great team. USF doesn’t just win games, they take care of business on both sides of the ball and don’t often make mistakes that let opponents stay in games that they shouldn’t be.
I do believe Charlotte is going to be headed in the right direction as a program with Tim Albin as head coach. But he recently announced quarterback Conner Harrell and running back Henry Rutledge are going to miss the rest of the season.
Without the spark that those two provide, I expect this contest against USF on the road is going to be challenging. And because USF has already proven it can not only win but win by large margins at home, I think the Bulls will be victorious by 30-plus points.
