The Appalachian State Mountaineers (1-0) and the North Carolina Tar Heels (1-0) meet Saturday at Kenan Stadium in Chapel Hill. Kickoff is scheduled for 5:15 p.m. ET (ACC Network). Below, we analyze BetMGM Sportsbook’s lines around the Appalachian State vs. North Carolina odds, and make our expert college football picks and predictions.
App State opened its season with a 45-25 victory over the Bulldogs of Gardner-Webb from nearby Boiling Springs, N.C. The Mountaineers were unable to cover the 23-point number against the FCS foe as the Over (51) cashed rather easily. App State gained 394 total yards to 365 for GW, but the big difference was a plus-3 turnover margin.
UNC opened the season with a resounding 31-17 win over border rival South Carolina at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte last Saturday. QB Drake Maye tossed a pair of TDs, and the Heels got after it on D with 9 sacks. That helped mask a concern, as Carolina was minus-2 in turnover margin.
North Carolina is No. 16 in the USA TODAY Sports AFCA Coaches Poll.
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Appalachian State at North Carolina odds
Provided by BetMGM Sportsbook; access USA TODAY Sports Scores and Sports Betting Odds hub for a full list. Lines last updated Thurday at 7:53 p.m. ET.
- Moneyline (ML): Appalachian State +700 (bet $100 to win $700) | North Carolina -1100 (bet $1100 to win $100)
- Against the spread (ATS): Appalachian State +19.5 (-115) | North Carolina -19.5 (-105)
- Over/Under (O/U): 58 (O: -110 | U: -110)
Appalachian State at North Carolina picks and predictions
Prediction
North Carolina 45, Appalachian State 30
Moneyline
North Carolina (-1100) will cost you 11 times your potential return, and that’s quite a bit to risk on a singular wager. Even as part of a multi-team parlay, including UNC straight up is not a wise play, and sucks all of the value out of your ticket. Over the long term, betting such heavy favorites is not a good betting strategy.
AVOID.
Against the spread
APPALACHIAN STATE +19.5 (-115) is worth a look. Remember, these teams played an epic 63-61 game in Boone last season, with the Mountaineers giving the Tar Heels all they could handle. Will we see anything close to that? It’s doubtful, but this is a big game for Yosef Nation and the App State fans, and the Mountaineers should be able to keep it within 2 TDs.
Over/Under
OVER 58 (-110) might be the best play on the board in this battle.
Again, we had 124 total points in last season’s matchup, with both sides eclipsing this total on their own. We aren’t going to see that again. But these teams suddenly didn’t become Iowa or San Diego State, i.e. teams which have lockdown defenses. We’ll see our share of points at Kenan on Saturday, just not a video game like at Kidd Brewer Stadium last season.
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