North Carolina Virginia Betting – Tar Heels Try To Snap Perplexing Losing Streak At Virginia
In one of college football’s most amazing losing streaks, the North Carolina Tar Heels have failed to win at Virginia for nearly three decades. They’ll try to get it right on Saturday.
NCAA football betting: North Carolina Tar Heels @ Virginia Cavaliers
Online Betting Odds: North Carolina -6.5
Why To Bet On North Carolina
The Tar Heels have to win at Scott Stadium in Charlottesville, Virginia, at some point in the very near future. Right?
Virginia has struggled demonstrably in recent years. The Cavaliers haven’t made a bowl game the past few seasons and do not offer the kind of offensive firepower that should worry a good defensive team like North Carolina. Virginia has fattened up on cupcakes to get to 2-3 on the season. The Cavaliers beat two FCS teams – Richmond and Virginia Military Institute – and scored a combined total of 82 points against those inferior ball clubs. In UVA’s three games against FBS opponents, the Cavs have mustered an average of just 16.3 points per game and have been handled without too much difficulty. Quarterback Marc Verica is decidedly average, hitting below 60 percent of his passes despite two outings against cupcake schools. Through five games, no Virginia Cavaliers running back has at least 300 yards, and no Cavalier receiver owns at least 400 yards’ worth of receptions. This is a minimalist offense under a first-year coach, Mike London, who is trying to rebuild the program.
With all of this in mind, let’s go back to the beginning statement above: North Carolina has to be able to beat this Virginia team, right? The Tar Heels haven’t won in Virginia since 1981. That’s a mind-bending fact when one realizes that UNC had a very good program in the mid-1990s under Mack Brown, now the coach at Texas. Surely, the odds have to line up with Carolina before too long. Maybe this will be the year for the Tar Heels in the shadows of Monticello.
Why To Bet On Virginia
The best reason to take Virginia – other than the crazy 29-year hex against North Carolina at Scott Stadium – is that the Tar Heels remain a limited team due to the lingering suspensions that persist in the midst of North Carolina’s multiple off-field scandals. Yes, it’s true that North Carolina did beat Clemson last week and justified Vegas’ faith in the Tar Heels, but that game said a lot more about the dysfunctional Clemson than it did about North Carolina’s strengths. The Tar Heels scored a modest 21 points and gave Clemson chances to come back in the fourth quarter, but the Tigers just couldn’t take advantage. Other teams in the Atlantic Coast Conference have pounded Virginia into submission. North Carolina doesn’t have the offensive firepower to be able to do the same. If this game is close heading into the final minutes, Virginia could definitely find added self-belief and push UNC’s winless drought in Charlottesville to 30 years and counting.
How The Game Will Play Out
This game will be close. North Carolina doesn’t have the depth or the explosiveness to humiliate Virginia. On the other hand, Virginia is just a very poor football team, while UNC – due to its gut-check win over Clemson last week – should feel very confident heading into Charlottesville. The Tar Heels should end their losing skid, but Virginia will keep this game under the number. Expect North Carolina to win by a field goal late.
North Carolina Virginia Betting Pick: Virginia +6.5
