2022 Birmingham Bowl – Coastal Carolina vs East Carolina
posted December 20
The Game
It’s time to get down and dirty in the MAGIC CITY as a pair of teams from the Carolinas go head-to-head in the Birmingham Bowl. Coastal Carolina had a down year by their lofty standards but still managed to win nine games along the way. East Carolina rolls into town with a mark of 7-5 and they went 4-4 in the rough and tough AAC.
The Details
East Carolina -8 Coastal Carolina (62)
MEGALOCKS LINE – East Carolina -9.5
“Vegas” Implied Projected Score: East Carolina 35 Coastal Carolina 27
East Carolina offense vs Coastal Carolina defense
The ARRRRRRRRR Pirates were a spicy bunch this year (#24 FBS total offense, #16 passing offense) thanks in large part to the play of a pair of stars. The ageless QB H Ahlers has booked an excellent 23-5 TD to INT mark whilst RB K Mitchell is one of the most underrated RBs in college football (1,325, 7.4, 13 TD). Starting TE R Jones has quit but the Pirates still have a devastating 1-2 combo at WR in I Winstead and CJ Johnson who’ve combined for almost 2,000 receiving yards and 13 TDs. The Chanticleers have been brutal on defense this season (30 PPG, #101 FBS; 22 PPG, #25 LY) and things could get DEATH JAB UGLY in this one as Coastal will be without several doods who entered the transfer portal including their best pass rusher J Stewart. East Carolina should be able to do whatever they want on offense and the only concern is how they perform without starting center Avery Jones.
Coastal Carolina offense vs East Carolina defense
The Chants got some great news when their all-UNIVERSE QB G McCall decided that he was gonna do the unthinkable and finish the season that he started. This despite declaring his intention to transfer after the season. He’s one of the best signal-callers in the nation and has an impossible….wait for it……we know you want it…..78-8 career TD to INT mark. McCall has been nursing an ankle injury and hasn’t been that mobile down the stretch but his arm looked just fine during the Sun Belt title game vs Troy (319, 3 TD, 1 INT). We don’t expect them to do much on the ground as their run game has been subpar and the ARRRRRR Pirates have the #19 rushing defense in the country. East Carolina is weak vs the pass so we expect Coastal to score some points.
Trends, Intangibles and More!
Coastal Carolina HC Jamey Chadwell is off to Liberty and DC Chad Staggs will be the interim HC for this tilt…..This is Mike Houston’s first bowl game as recall that the ARRRRRRRR Pirates had their Military Bowl date with Boston College safely and effectively cancelled in 2021.
Summary
We expect the bullets to be PEW PEW PEW flying in this one and will take a small taste of the over. You may want to wait until gameday to make sure that McCall is actually playing in this game.
Conclusion
Lean – Over 62
Note:
‘Official play’ implies we have played the game for our standard wager amount.
‘Lean’ implies we are comfortable suggesting ‘small potatoes’ on the game if you want to get down on some sweet action.
‘No leanage’ implies we won’t be involved in the game from a betting standpoint. In-game wagering possibilities only.