Navy owns the rivalry with Army, winning the last 14 meetings in a row. But the Black Knights, in giving the Midshipmen some good battles recently, are 4-1 against the spread over the last five encounters. In the 114th edition of one of college football's great rivalries Army takes on Navy on Saturday afternoon on a neutral field in Baltimore. Point spread: The Midshipmen opened as 11.5-point favorites, according to sportsbooks monitored by Odds Shark. Line updates and matchup report.College football pick, via Odds Shark computer: 32.0-29.8 Midshipmen (College football picks on every game)Why the Army Black Knights can cover the spreadThe Knights just snapped a two-game losing streak with a 60-6 romp over Morgan State last week, becoming bowl-eligible for the first time in six seasons. Army grabbed a 7-0 lead on the Bears six minutes into the game, pushed that advantage to 29-3 by halftime and pulled away from there on its way to a cover as 43-point favorites.On the day the Knights outgained Morgan State 561-124 and rushed for 504 yards, as three Army ball-carriers hit the 100-yard mark. The Knights have now outgained and outrushed nine of 11 opponents this season, going 6-3 ATS in those games.Army lost this matchup last season 21-17 but covered easily as a 21-point 'dog. The Knights actually led the Midshipmen 17-14 well into the third quarter, and on the day outgained Navy by 33 yards. In fact, Army has led or been tied with the Mids in the second half of four of the last five meetings.Why the Navy Midshipmen can cover the spreadThe Midshipmen had won four games in a row to reach the AAC Championship Game last week, but they lost to Temple 34-10. Navy fell down to the Owls 7-0 just over five minutes into the game, later trailed 24-3, pulled to within two scores at 24-10 but could get no closer in its most disappointing performance of the season.Along the way the Midshipmen lost quarterback Will Worth for the season to an ankle injury. Navy also turned the ball over three times, equaling its total for its last seven games combined, leading directly to 17 Temple points.Prior to last week, though, the Mids had won six of their previous seven games, outrushing six of those seven opponents, going 5-2 ATS.Smart pickNavy is down its record-setting starting quarterback and its other two top rushers due to injuries. Meanwhile, Army's defense has held seven opponents this season to 14 points or less. Finally, it's about time the Knights did something about this rivalry losing streak. The smart money here backs Army.Betting trendsNavy is 14-0 SU in its last 14 games against Army.Navy is 1-4 ATS in its last five games against Army.The total has gone under in Navy's last 10 games against Army. All college football lines and betting trends courtesy of Bleacher Reports official odds partner, Odds Shark. All quotes gathered firsthand unless otherwise noted. Check out Twitter for injury and line-movement updates and the Odds Shark YouTube page for picks and analysis, or download the free odds tracker app.
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