The Navy Midshipmen and the SMU Mustangs will face off in an American Athletic clash at 3:30 p.m. ET Oct. 9 at Jack Stephens Field at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium. Both teams seek to continue their momentum from their previous wins.
Navy didn't have too much breathing room in their contest with the UCF Knights last week, but they still walked away with a 34-30 win. The victory came about thanks to a strong surge after the third quarter to overcome a 30-17 deficit. No one had a standout game offensively for the Midshipmen, but they got two touchdowns from QB Tai Lavatai.
Meanwhile, SMU made easy work of the South Florida Bulls last week and carried off a 41-17 win. SMU QB Tanner Mordecai was slinging it as he passed for four TDs and 301 yards on 42 attempts.
Navy have to know they'll be fighting an uphill battle given the 13.50 point spread they are up against. They might be worth taking a chance on against the spread, however, as they are currently on a two-game streak of ATS wins.
The wins brought Navy up to 1-3 and SMU to 5-0. A couple stats to keep in the back of your head while watching: The Midshipmen are 248th worst in the nation in passing yards per game, with only 62.3 on average. The Mustangs have experienced some struggles of their own as they are stumbling into the game with the 214th most passing yards allowed per game in the nation, having given up 289.4 on average. It's possible one of these Achilles' heels will wind up tripping the losing team up.