UL Monroe vs. Troy: Week 16 College Football Game Preview
UL Monroe Warhawks vs. Troy Trojans
Thursday, December 17, 2020 at 7 p.m. ET (ESPN3) at Veterans Memorial Stadium in Troy Alabama
The State of Louisiana-Monroe
Does anybody want to win for Louisiana-Monroe?
The Warhawks have been emaciated by opt-outs and transfers. The list of Warhawk players who have bailed on the team include the (now former) starting quarterback.
So far, this team has seen 23 first-time starters. Most recently, the linebacker, cornerback, and safety positions saw first-time starters.
Indeed, defense is just one major problem for UL-Monroe as the Warhawks have given up a combined total of 170 points in their last three games combined.
Troy Offense vs. UL-Monroe Defense
Now, can the Trojans extend UL-Monroe’s defensive woes? In order to answer this question, we do need to consider one injury.
Starting quarterback Gunnar Watson left the Trojans’ last game with an undisclosed injury. He’s currently listed as ‘questionable.’
But fortunately, we don’t have to worry about Watson because we know what we’ll get in his backup.
Fellow quarterback Jacob Free competed with Watson for the starting job during the Summer. Free has also seen plenty of game-time action and some starts.
Free’s best game came against Arkansas State. In a 38-10 victory for his Trojans, Free completed 33 of 45 pass attempts for 419 yards, two touchdowns, and zero interceptions.
I mention Free’s best performance because the Red Wolves resemble the Warhawks in defensive quality. While the Red Wolves rank 128th nationally in opposer passer rating, the Warhawks rank 125th in the category.
In ULM’s last game, the Warhawks gave up over 300 yards to a single wide receiver.
The Trojan wide receiver who appears most likely to replicate that level of damage is Kaylon Geiger, who leads the team with 64 receptions and 752 yards. He’s coming off a 100-yard effort against Coastal Carolina.
Geiger is an explosive type of player who can use his speed to quickly separate himself from the opposing cornerback.
With his burst, he has positive play-making ability and can easily break away from the defense in order to accrue big gains.
Without having to face ULM’s former top cornerback Corey Straughter, the former preseason All-Sun Belt first-teamer who suffered a season-ending injury, Geiger will easily have his best game of the season.
As for Troy’s running game, Kimani Vidal can improve upon his 5.1 YPC average without having to face the likes of injured linebacker KeyShawn Johnson.
UL-Monroe Offense vs. Troy Defense
UL-Monroe is not starting its current quarterback by choice.
The initial starter Colby Suits opted out of the rest of this season and entered the transfer portal.
So Jeremy Hunt has taken over the position. He has been inefficient and mistake-prone as he currently is barely completing over half of his passes. He’s thrown six touchdowns to four interceptions.
Hunt will have little support. After losing four starters during the offseason, the ULM offensive line struggles to open up holes for its ball-carrier.
So Josh Johnson was regarded highly enough entering the season. But he’s only averaging 3.6 YPC despite being the team’s feature running back.
Likewise, the Warhawks haven’t been able to replace their departed top wide receiver. Their leading pass-catcher is a tight end.
Troy’s defense has allowed high point totals against the stronger teams in the conference.
But the Trojans have excelled against the bottom-feeders, giving up fewer than 20 points to teams like Texas State and Arkansas State.
So I expect similar success against the Warhawks.
The Verdict
With your Best Bets, consider how hopeless and demoralized UL-Monroe seems to be.
Expect Troy to add another blowout to the Warhawk resume. Troy has the weapons in the pass attack and on the run ground to score over 50 points on the Warhawk defense.
Meanwhile, UL-Monroe will have trouble exceeding 10 points with its backup quarterback and lack of surrounding quality.
Best Bet: Trojans -25.5 at -110 with Bookmaker
UL Monroe Warhawks vs. Troy Trojans
Thursday, December 17, 2020 at 7 p.m. ET (ESPN3) at Veterans Memorial Stadium in Troy Alabama
The State of Louisiana-Monroe
Does anybody want to win for Louisiana-Monroe?
The Warhawks have been emaciated by opt-outs and transfers. The list of Warhawk players who have bailed on the team include the (now former) starting quarterback.
So far, this team has seen 23 first-time starters. Most recently, the linebacker, cornerback, and safety positions saw first-time starters.
Indeed, defense is just one major problem for UL-Monroe as the Warhawks have given up a combined total of 170 points in their last three games combined.
Troy Offense vs. UL-Monroe Defense
Now, can the Trojans extend UL-Monroe’s defensive woes? In order to answer this question, we do need to consider one injury.
Starting quarterback Gunnar Watson left the Trojans’ last game with an undisclosed injury. He’s currently listed as ‘questionable.’
But fortunately, we don’t have to worry about Watson because we know what we’ll get in his backup.
Fellow quarterback Jacob Free competed with Watson for the starting job during the Summer. Free has also seen plenty of game-time action and some starts.
Free’s best game came against Arkansas State. In a 38-10 victory for his Trojans, Free completed 33 of 45 pass attempts for 419 yards, two touchdowns, and zero interceptions.
I mention Free’s best performance because the Red Wolves resemble the Warhawks in defensive quality. While the Red Wolves rank 128th nationally in opposer passer rating, the Warhawks rank 125th in the category.
In ULM’s last game, the Warhawks gave up over 300 yards to a single wide receiver.
The Trojan wide receiver who appears most likely to replicate that level of damage is Kaylon Geiger, who leads the team with 64 receptions and 752 yards. He’s coming off a 100-yard effort against Coastal Carolina.
Geiger is an explosive type of player who can use his speed to quickly separate himself from the opposing cornerback.
With his burst, he has positive play-making ability and can easily break away from the defense in order to accrue big gains.
Without having to face ULM’s former top cornerback Corey Straughter, the former preseason All-Sun Belt first-teamer who suffered a season-ending injury, Geiger will easily have his best game of the season.
As for Troy’s running game, Kimani Vidal can improve upon his 5.1 YPC average without having to face the likes of injured linebacker KeyShawn Johnson.
UL-Monroe Offense vs. Troy Defense
UL-Monroe is not starting its current quarterback by choice.
The initial starter Colby Suits opted out of the rest of this season and entered the transfer portal.
So Jeremy Hunt has taken over the position. He has been inefficient and mistake-prone as he currently is barely completing over half of his passes. He’s thrown six touchdowns to four interceptions.
Hunt will have little support. After losing four starters during the offseason, the ULM offensive line struggles to open up holes for its ball-carrier.
So Josh Johnson was regarded highly enough entering the season. But he’s only averaging 3.6 YPC despite being the team’s feature running back.
Likewise, the Warhawks haven’t been able to replace their departed top wide receiver. Their leading pass-catcher is a tight end.
Troy’s defense has allowed high point totals against the stronger teams in the conference.
But the Trojans have excelled against the bottom-feeders, giving up fewer than 20 points to teams like Texas State and Arkansas State.
So I expect similar success against the Warhawks.
The Verdict
With your Best Bets, consider how hopeless and demoralized UL-Monroe seems to be.
Expect Troy to add another blowout to the Warhawk resume. Troy has the weapons in the pass attack and on the run ground to score over 50 points on the Warhawk defense.
Meanwhile, UL-Monroe will have trouble exceeding 10 points with its backup quarterback and lack of surrounding quality.
Best Bet: Trojans -25.5 at -110 with Bookmaker
