App State Mountaineers vs UAB Blazers Point Spread Picks

NEW ORLEANS BOWL - Appalachian State would have been in a bigger bowl if it wasn't for a 31-24 loss to Georgia Southern as a 14-point favorite. They also lose their coach as Eli Drinkwitz just left to take the Missouri job, so offensive line coach Shawn Clark steps in. The last three times they've been a double-digit favorite they failed to cover two of them. College football favorites between 10.5 to 21 points that have won eight or more of their last 10 games are 31-63 ATS when facing a team with a winning percentage between 60-80%. They face an Alabama-Birmingham squad that is delighted to be in any Bowl game. The program has bounced back after the football program was terminated from 2015-16 because of financial reasons. They won 10 games last season, including a 37-13 Boca Raton Bowl rout of Central Michigan. This year's team has won nine games and has excellent balance on offense behind QB Tyler Johnston III, RB Spencer Brown and WR Austin Watkins (933 yards, 19.9 yards per catch). The defense has allowed an average of 16.3 points the last nine contests, including a 20-15 victory over South Carolina of the SEC as a touchdown underdog. Appalachian State is 17-6 UNDER the total after scoring 40+ points in their previous game, so back the big dog in a close, defensive duel. Play UAB and the UNDER.