Navy Air Force Betting – The Commander-In-Chief’s Trophy Hangs In The Balance
The Navy Midshipmen have been the best service-academy football team for seven years. Air Force wants to change that.
NCAA football betting: Navy Midshipmen @ Air Force Falcons
Online Betting Odds: Air Force -10
Why To Bet On Navy
It’s been a long time since Navy dropped a game to Air Force, the program that used to own the Commander-in-Chief’s Trophy with the same two-fisted totality the Mids have exhibited in recent years. Navy hasn’t dropped a duel to the Falcons since 2002. Starting in 2003 and continuing through 2009, Navy has nipped Air Force at the wire with uncanny regularity, winning seven straight showdowns by an average of 5.14 points.
Navy just knows how to win against Air Force. Moreover, these games are almost always close. The five-point-per-game margin of victory is one indicator. Also consider that Navy has won the last two meetings by a combined total of nine points. The passion both schools display in their quest for military bragging rights is intense. Maybe Air Force will win this game, but history does tell us that Navy should play the game under the number. Navy has overachieved too much over the past several years, and won too many big games (twice in the past three years against longtime nemesis Notre Dame) on the national stage to be discounted in Colorado Springs.
Why To Bet On Air Force
Air Force just might have the team that’s capable of beating Navy like a drum this year. Air Force looks as the third-best team in a solid Mountain West Conference. Air Force sent BYU off to independent conference status by blitzing the Cougars, 35-14. Intent on proving that was no fluke, the kids from Colorado Springs then went into Norman and very nearly upended the seventh-ranked Oklahoma Sooners. Air Force rushed for a whopping 351 yards against a Bob Stoops defense coached by coordinator Brent Venables, one of the more seasoned chessboard strategists in major college football. Tim Jefferson is quarterbacking the AFA attack with the slickness of other great Falcon quarterbacks (think Shaun Carney in recent years and Dee Dowis from the 1980s). The Air Force has become more polished and resolute, and has learned how to play the game faster than in the past. Reads are being made more easily and linemen are blocking with the consistency coach Troy Calhoun craves. What also adds to the sense that Navy is cheating the fates – and is therefore due for some payback at the hands of the Falcons this Saturday – is that the last time the Mids went to Colorado Springs, they needed some wild plays to dig out a 33-27 triumph. The Mids blocked not one, but two Air Force punts and returned them directly for touchdowns. Air Force’s offense outscored Navy’s offense, 27-19, but Navy’s fortuitous plays staved off defeat. Bet your bottom dollar that Navy won’t block two or more punts this time around.
How The Game Will Play Out
Air Force is ready to win a game in this series, but Navy is too tough and savvy to allow the Falcons to get a blowout. Expect Air Force to win on home turf, but pick Navy against the number. History indicates that this game is almost always close. Trust the past if you’re going to make a play on this game.
Navy Air Force Betting Pick: Navy +10
