How to watch
Thursday
Appalachian State vs Marshall
Time: 6:30 CT
TV: ESPN
Spread: App -7
Location: Boone, NC
Appalachian State turned it up in the second half against Elon and ran away with win number two on the year. This week its out for a revenge after a disappointing 17-7 loss to Marshall last season.
The Mountaineers have given up just five touchdowns through three games. Chase Brice and Cam Peoples are second in the league in passing yards and rushing yards, respectively.
Depth chart:
Saturday
Coastal Carolina vs UMass
Time: noon
TV: ESPN+
Spread: CCU -36
Location: Conway, SC
The Chanticleers get one final tune up before opening conference play next week. Coastal survived Buffalo a week ago behind a career day from Shermari Jones (16/145/1).
Following UMass, Coastal gets to host ULM on Oct. 2. Is there an easier back-to-back set of games in the country?
Depth chart:
Texas State at Eastern Michigan
Time: 1:00
TV: ESPN+
Spread: TXST +6.5
Location: Ypsilanti, MI (not a real place)
The Bobcats will have a week of soul-searching under their belt when they follow up their Incarnate Word loss with a trip to MAC country on Saturday.
With a loss here, Texas State would drop to 1-3 and have little room for error in conference play. Brady McBride is throwing the ball more than any other quarterback in the conference but is seventh in both completion percentage and passing yards.
Depth chart:
Georgia State at Auburn
TV: SECN
Time: 3:00
Spread: GSU +27
Location: Auburn, AL
The Panthers finally come to the end of a brutal non-conference schedule on Saturday with a matchup against a nearby SEC foe. Shawn Elliott has some experience in this league, having coached at South Carolina and led Georgia State to a win over Tennessee just a couple season ago.
Darren Grainger will make his second start in a Panther uniform this Saturday after replacing Quad Brown in the lineup ahead of last week’s win against Charlotte. Destin Coates also figures to take another backseat to the power running Tucker Gregg.
Depth chart:
Arkansas State at Tulsa
Time: 4:00
TV: ESPN+
Spread: Ark St +13.5
Location: Tulsa, OK
It’s quickly gone from bad to worse for Arkansas State. It gave up another 50-point game last week, only this time it did not score 50 points to stay in the game. It scored three points.
For the first time this season, there is no OR between the quarterbacks. Butch Jones is rolling with James Blackman as his official starter. Blackman has thrown for 651 yards and four touchdowns to no picks up to this point.
Depth chart:
Louisiana at Georgia Southern
Time: 5:00
TV: ESPN+
Spread: UL -14
Location: Statesboro, GA
Conference play officially opens with the Cajuns and Eagles in Southeast Georgia. The Eagles were recently hit several key injuries on defense but will be working back running backs JD King and Amare Jones into the offensive rotation. Justin Tomlin will be starting again at quarterback.
Louisiana has several reserves who are out this week but have a healthy two-deep coming into this one. The Cajuns are coming in with extra rest after a weekday beating over Ohio.
Depth charts:
Troy at ULM
Time: 7:00
TV: ESPN+
Spread: Troy -24
Location: Monroe, LA
Troy and ULM are conference game number two on the year and will be a late kickoff down in Funroe. The Trojans boast the top scoring defense in the league at 11 points allowed per game. Monroe, conversely, is averaging a league-worst 11 points per game.
The Warhawks are one of only four teams in the country without a turnover. Their +3 margin per game tops the nation.
Depth charts:
Picks
All picks against the spread
Andrew and I are rolling so far. My preseason game-by-game picks are also currently sitting at 27-2.