Both Troy and Jacksonville State were one win away from securing conference championship trophies in 2025.
Jax State began this season after winning last year’s Conference USA Championship. But, in Year 1 with Charles Kelly as head coach, the Gamecocks weren’t one of the favorites to win CUSA again.
Nonetheless, the Gamecocks went 8-4 during the regular season and 7-1 in league play. They nearly beat UCF and Georgia Southern early on this season, losing by just one possession.
But they did go on to win five straight games against CUSA teams to set them up for bowl-eligibility and a league title berth.
Jax State, though, lost to Kennesaw State in the CUSA Championship. The Gamecocks surely don’t want to end the season with two consecutive losses – which they haven’t dealt with since early 2024.
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Troy’s path to the Sun Belt Championship wasn’t always as clear. The Trojans started the year 1-2 overall, though they were competitive with Clemson in the second week of the season.
Then Troy won five straight games to put itself in contention for a conference title berth. But the Trojans lost back-to-back contests against Arkansas State and Old Dominion, and it didn’t seem as likely that they would reach the Sun Belt title game again.
The Trojans did what they had to in order to make that happen, though. They beat Georgia State and Southern Miss to close out the regular season and win the Sun Belt West.
Still, Troy couldn’t win its third conference title in four years, losing to James Madison in the Sun Belt Championship.
Similar to Jax State, Troy will be looking to end the season with a win.
Troy vs. Jacksonville State Betting Odds
Jacksonville State is a -1.5 college football betting odds favorite against Troy, with the Over/Under being 49.5 as of this writing. The moneyline for Troy is -105, while it’s -115 for Jacksonville State.
Troy vs. Jacksonville State On TV
The matchup between Troy and Jacksonville State will be televised on ESPN.
The game will kick off at 9 p.m. ET on Tuesday, Dec. 16. The contest is taking place at Cramton Bowl in Montgomery, Alabama.
Troy vs. Jacksonville State Prediction
I predict Jacksonville State will win and cover the 1.5-point spread. I also project the game will go Under 49.5 total points.
Both of these teams are top three in their respective conference in scoring defense, but neither are top three in scoring offense. That’s why I think this will be a low-scoring battle.
But I think that suits Jacksonville State the best.
The Gamecocks are fourth in the country with 258 rushing yards per game. Jax State running back Cam Cook is the nation’s rushing leader with 1,659 yards on the ground this year, which is almost 100 more than anyone else in the FBS. And quarterback Caden Creel has made an impact on the ground as well, rushing for 1,085 yards and seven TDs while averaging 6.4 yards per attempt.
Now Jax State will face Troy, which is 10th in the Sun Belt in rushing defense with 182.3 yards per game allowed on the ground and is ninth with 4.7 yards per attempt allowed.
I think Jax State will control the game on the ground and find a way to win.
