← Matchups

Middle Tennessee

CUSA · 1-1 · power -2.2 · #203
Our side · spreadMTSU +13.5 logged our number at the pick MRSH -13.2 · now MRSH -9.2 · 2.3 pts from the market now

Marshall

SBC · 1-1 · power +5.2 · #121
Final MTSU 26 · MRSH 28 ML W Spread W Total W our logged sides, graded on the record
Our side
SpreadMTSU +13.5 logged live now: MTSU +11.5 — the pick stands, the number moved · ours MRSH -9.2

The market's move decides. The line opened MRSH -15 and is now MRSH -13.5, toward MTSU; since 2021 the side the market moves toward has covered 54.7% at the opener, and our own number has carried nothing the closing line lacks. Our number at the pick: MRSH by 13.2 — the same side.

TotalUnder 57 logged live now: Over 55.5 — the pick stands, the number moved · ours 57.1

The market's move decides. The total opened 57.5 and is now 57, toward the under; that side has covered 55.1% at the opener since 2021. Ours at the pick: 54.0 — the same side.

MoneylineMRSH to win logged ours 70% · book 79%

Our number: MRSH by 13.2 — MRSH to win.

MTSU team totalMTSU under 20.5 logged live now: MTSU under 21.5 — the pick stands, the number moved · ours 24.0

Our number: MTSU 20.4, from our margin and total split into two scores.

MRSH team totalMRSH under 34.5 logged ours 33.1

Our number: MRSH 33.6, from our margin and total split into two scores.

Distance from the market 2.3 pts / +1.6 total a caution, not a signal
Projected score 24–33 MTSU – MRSH
2026-09-12 · 7:00 PM Joan C. Edwards Stadium · Huntington, WV Early season

The books 5 account books · tap any price — the ticket builds at that book

Book MTSU spreadMRSH spread OverUnder MTSU winMRSH win MTSU TT overMTSU TT under MRSH TT overMRSH TT under
DraftKings
FanDuel
BetMGM
ESPN Bet
Caesars

The gold price is the best available on that side; a gold marks the side our number implies — a read, not a pick. TT is a team total — that team’s own points, not the game’s; columns are empty where no book hangs one. Send to book opens whichever book you tapped, not the one we would have picked. Prices are the books’ own.

Ours vs the market

SpreadMarshall -9.2
the marketMarshall -11.5
Total57.1
the market55.5
Marshall win70% vs 79%

Both percentages are Marshall’s chance to win — ours, then the book’s with the vig removed, medianed across the books we track.

What the gap has been worth 10,740 games · 2016–2025

0–3 pts52.0%
3–750.2%
7–1449.3%
14+46.8%

How often the side we favoured covered, by how far our number sat from the market’s. Break-even at −110 is 52.4% — no bucket reaches it, and the rate falls as we disagree more. The further we sit from the market, the worse we have done.

Public vs booksbets vs money · Action Network captured in-game spread MTSU 52% bets · 65% money total Under 94% bets · 91% money ML MRSH 99% bets · 81% money
Series Marshall and Middle Tennessee split 10 (5–5) · 10 meetings since 2013
2025 unit ranks — last completed season, from games actually played
Run game edge Marshall Thundering Herd 73 ranks
Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders #142 rush offense Marshall Thundering Herd #69 run defense
Pass game even 8 ranks apart
Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders #158 pass offense Marshall Thundering Herd #150 pass defense
Run game edge Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders 93 ranks
Marshall Thundering Herd #172 rush offense Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders #79 run defense
Pass game edge Marshall Thundering Herd 186 ranks
Marshall Thundering Herd #61 pass offense Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders #247 pass defense
Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders Balanced · 42% run Avg pace Marshall Thundering Herd Run-heavy · 62% run Avg pace Dual-threat QB · 60 rush ypg
Derek Mason · 30-64 Tony Gibson · 5-7

Ranked by team-unit strength (rush & pass offense vs. run & pass defense) across all 265 D1 teams, not by individual players. Identity, tempo and unit strength are measured from the 2025 season.

The evidence 2025 production and power ratings · supporting the number above

Who carried each team in 2025
Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders
WR Cam'ron Lacy 17 rec · 190 yds · 2 TD #37 WR
DB Kalen Woods 13 tkl · 1 PD #59 DB
DL Zeion Simpson-Smith 11 tkl · 1.0 TFL #286 DL
QB Roman Gagliano 443 pass yds · 4 TD · 1 INT #100 QB
Marshall Thundering Herd
DB Caleb Clark-Glover 20 tkl · 2 PD #50 DB
DL Kelvon McBride 6 tkl · 1.0 sacks · 2.0 TFL #91 DL
TE Toby Payne 9 rec · 61 yds #49 TE
DL Nate Blanc 2 tkl · 1.0 sacks · 1.0 TFL #323 DL

Top-rated players from last season, ranked within their position across D1. A grade measures what a player produced, and no 2026 game has been played yet — so this is who produced for these programs in 2025, not a claim about who is on the field this year.

Power breakdown
TeamPowerOffDefRank
Middle Tennessee Blue RaidersCUSA -2.2 -1.3 -0.9 #203
Marshall Thundering HerdSBC +5.2 +3.8 +1.3 #121

Def is higher = better. The projection assumes a 2.4-pt home edge (0 at neutral sites).

Where the number comes from
Middle Tennessee offense vs Marshall defense-2.7 pts
Marshall offense vs Middle Tennessee defense+4.7 pts

An efficiency adjustment from season-to-date EPA and success rate applies once teams have played enough games; before then it is 0 and the number is the power rating alone.