by Chuck Sommers
Wednesday, Sep 07, 2022
Game time: 8 p.m. ET
Venue: Plaster Stadium, Springfield, MO
Where to watch: ESPN+
Opening Odds at USA Sportsbooks
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Caesars: Check back later
Season record
UT-Martin: 1-0
Missouri State: 1-0
What an exciting first official week of college football with a lot of shakeup in the top 25 already, as well as some fun matchups that make Week 2 all the more intriguing. Jack Banks is off to a strong 4-1-0 start after Week 1. Can he keep it up again in Week 2? Will you be building off a strong first week of college football? Make sure to check out Jack's picks, as well as other choices from our champion handicappers in our Best Bets section.
UT-Martin - Missouri State preview, analysis and prediction
Last week
UT-Martin: won 42-25 vs. Western Illinois
Missouri State: won 27-14 vs. Central Arkansas
A strong Week 1 for both the No. 14 Tennessee-Martin Skyhawks and the No. 5 (FCS) Missouri State Bears. Both teams got strong performances in different facets of their opening week victories.
We’ll start with one of the top teams in the FCS with the Bears going on the road to defeat Central Arkansas 27-14. Head coach Bobby Petrino’s group got 266 yards and a touchdown from quarterback Jason Shelley, with 160 of them going to leading receiver Ty Scott, the second most yards in a game in his collegiate career.
But the highlight of the night belonged to national special teams player of the week Montrae Braswell returning a kickoff 98 yards for a touchdown early in the fourth quarter to put Missouri State back up by 20.
"Mission accomplished," said Petrino. "We got done what we needed to do – come down here and win the game. Now what we have to do is get better from it."
The Bears’ running game did struggle in this one, giving up 210 yards on the ground, but they held Central Arkansas quarterback Will McElvain to just 173 yards and sacked him seven times. All in all, not a bad start for Missouri State.
But next week should be very important from a revenge aspect. The last time UT Martin and Missouri State met up, the Skyhawks pulled off the 32-31 upset in the first round of the FCS Playoffs last year before ultimately losing to the shocking Montana State team that made it all the way to the national championship game.
UT-Martin’s offensive performance was as dominant, if not more, than what Missouri State did. The Skyhawks amassed for 577 total yards in a 42-25 season-opening win over Western Illinois last Thursday. Running back Zak Wallace ran for 139 yards and three touchdowns on just 20 carries, putting together a dominant effort that resulted in 260 total yards on the ground. Wallace was named the Ohio Valley’s Offensive Player of the Week, while safety Shaun Lewis was the conference’s player of the week on the defensive side of the ball with two interceptions.
Funny enough, Missouri State has a 6-1 series lead all-time against UT-Martin … with that one loss coming in that playoff game. Even in FCS action, there are games that you’ll like early to set the tone with how teams look. This one is certainly the game of the week in the FCS ranks.
Prediction
There’s something to be said about the revenge factor, and I think there’s going to be something on the mind of Missouri State that gets them to victory. Not to mention it’s a home game for Missouri State. I like the Bears to get things done here. Missouri State wins by 10
UT-Martin:
Passing: Dresser Winn -- 317 yards, 3 TD, 1 INT
Rushing: Zak Wallace -- 139 yards, 3 TD
Receiving: Colton Dowell -- 100 yards, 1 TD
Missouri State:
Passing: Jason Shelley -- 266 yards, 1 TD
Rushing: Jason Shelley -- 51 yards, 1 TD
Receiving: Tyrone Scott -- 160 yards
Don't miss our champion handicappers' free picks and expert football picks today. And if you enjoyed this UT-Martin Skyhawks - Missouri State Bears prediction, be sure to drop by every day for our daily college football projections and previews.
Chuck Sommers
About the Author:
Chuck Sommers has camped outside of sportsbooks since he can remember, learning the tricks and nuances of the trade. He still has nightmares of betting $5,000 on the Raiders in the Tuck Rule game but has since turned that to 25 years of veteran handicapping greatness. You can find him mostly in the shadows at the Red Rock or Aliante casinos wondering if the over is cashing on any given Sunday.
