Coastal Carolina vs. Jacksonville State Prediction, Odds, Key Players to Watch for College Football Week 1

Reed Wallach | Aug 26, 2024

Jacksonville State's Ron Wiggins makes a run during college football action at Burgess-Snow Field Jacksonville State Stadium in Jacksonville, Alabama August 26, 2023. (Dave Hyatt: The Gadsden Times) / Dave Hyatt / USA TODAY NETWORK

Jacksonville State made waves in its first season in the FBS ranks, posting a 9-4 record under head coach Rich Rodriguez. 

The Gamecocks will look to fortify its standing at the top of the Conference USA pecking order with an opening weekend win against Coastal Carolina in nonconference action on Thursday. 

The Chanticleers will be transitioning to new starting quarterback Ethan Vasko, who saw time last season and will look to fill the void for veteran Grayson McCall. 

Will Coastal Carolina be able to hold up on the road in its opener? 

Here’s our betting preview. 

Coastal Carolina vs. Jacksonville State Odds, Spread and Total

Spread

• Coastal Carolina: +2.5 (-114)
• Jacksonville State: -2.5 (-106)

Moneyline

• Coastal Carolina: +108
• Jacksonville State: -130

Total: 55.5 (Over -110//Under -110)

Odds courtesy of FanDuel Sportsbook

Coastal Carolina vs. Jacksonville State How to Watch

• Date: Thursday, August 29th
• Game Time: 8:00 PM EST
• Venue: AmFirst Stadium
• How to Watch (TV): CBS Sports Network
• Coastal Carolina Record: 0-0
• Jacksonville State Record: 0-0

Coastal Carolina vs. Jacksonville State Key Players to Watch

Coastal Carolina 

Ethan Vasko: The expectation is that Vasko will outlast Michigan State transfer Noah Kim for the QB1 job. Vasko saw a handful of action last season, completing 63% of his 89 pass attempts while passing for 580 yards. He also added 318 yards on the ground to total six touchdowns. What will be the drop-off from Vasko to McCall? 

Jacksonville State

Ron Wiggins: The Gamecocks offense funnels through the run game, and the team returns its two potent running backs in Wiggins (more than five yards per carry and six touchdowns on the ground) and Anwar Lewis. While the team transitions from Zion Webb at quarterback to a quarterback-by-committee system, expect Wiggins to get his fair share of touches against a poor Coastal Carolina rush defense. 

Coastal Carolina vs. Jacksonville State Prediction and Pick

Coastal Carolina struggled to contain the ground game last season. The Chanticleers had an elite secondary that ranked top 20 in EPA/Pass but was 101st in EPA/Rush and ranked 115th in tackles for loss. 

The Chanticleers will be up against it on the road against a Jacksonville State team that plays at a top-10 pace and bolsters a stout offensive line that revolves around its ground game, which ranked 59th in EPA/Rush last season and 30th in yards per carry at nearly five per game. 

While there are questions if Logan Smothers or UConn transfer Zion Turner (or even Tyler Huff) can secure the long-term job, I believe Rodriguez and the home team can lean on its ground game to play ahead for much of this one against a lackluster defense. 

The Gamecocks defense will take a step back from last year's unit that thrived under now-Oklahoma defensive coordinator Zach Alley, and the team returns about half of its production, but there are questions about the state of the Coastal Carolina offense that lost its long-time QB and its top two receivers.

I can trust the Jacksonville State offense to win on the ground, I’ll take the home team to cover the small spread. 

PICK: Jacksonville State -2.5

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Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.

Follow Reed on Twitter @ReedWallach and get all his college football bets on betstamp @rw33

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