Navy Midshipmen vs. Army Black Knights form & spread betting analysis

3:00 PM EST, Saturday, December 8, at Lincoln Financial Field, Philadelphia, PA

Betting Line: Army -7
Over/Under: 40.5 points at 888 Sportsbook

In the annual Civil War game between the US Army Black Knights and the US Navy Midshipmen, there’s nothing on the line but armed forces pride.

While the game, which is being held at a neutral site at Lincoln Financial Field in the City of Brotherly Love, may not have NCAA ramifications at stake, there’s still plenty for punters to get stuck into.

Navy is used to playing in Bowl games, but not this season, as the Midshipmen have had a season to forget. They have lost eight of their last nine games where their defense struggled and overall that unit had issues all season giving up an average of 34.9 points per game. Their season ends after this game, but can have a little silver lining with a win over their rival in Army.

While Navy has had a bad season, Army has been solid and will take on Houston in the Armed Forces Bowl. The Black Knights come into this game on fire, as they have won seven in a row and are a 7-point favorite in this game. This game features two team with great run games, as Army ranks second in the nation in rushing yards per game and Navy ranks third.

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Obviously, run defense will be key in this game. Army ranks a legit 12th in the nation defending the run while Navy only ranks 89th.

Last season Army beat Navy 14-13.

This season Navy is 3-9 SU with an ATS record of 4-8`and an O/U record of 7-5 and Army is 9-2 SU with an ATS record of 6-4-1 and an O/U record of 6-5.

Army is 4-0 ATS in their last four games facing Navy.

In their last game Navy was on the road and they lost to Tulane 29-28. They were outscored 21-3 in the first half and for the game they gained 321 yards while they gave up 420 yards.

The Midshipmen went to the air more often than usual in the Tulane game and Zach Abey passed for 167 yards with one touchdown and no interceptions and Malcolm Perry only had one pass attempt, but picked up 37 yards on a touchdown. Navy averaged 288.5 rushing yards per game, but only had 117 rushing yards with Anthony Gargiulo and Nelson Smith combining for 79 rushing yards.

Perry is a QB, but only had nine pass attempts all season, but led the team with 1,035 rushing yards. Still, in the loss to Tulane only rushed for eight yards on four carries.

Army was at home in their last game beating Colgate 28-14 where they jumped out to a 14-0 halftime lead. They gained 286 yards with 261 coming on the ground and gave up 251 yards with 188 of those yards rushing yards.

Kelvin Hopkins Jr. was only 2/6 for 25 passing yards, but he also led the Black Knights with 90 rushing yards. Darnell Woolfolk chimed in for 89 rushing yards, but only averaged 3.9 yards per carry. Woolfolk led Army with 823 rushing yards and Hopkins Jr. ranked second with 783 rushing yards and the two combined for 24 touchdowns.

Navy Midshipmen betting trends

• 2-6 ATS in their last eight games facing a team with a winning record
• 0-4 ATS in their last four non-conference games
• 3-7 ATS in their last 10 games
• Over record of 4-1 in their last five non-conference games

Take advantage of these betting trends with the best online bookies

Army Black Knights betting trends

• 4-1 ATS in their last five neutral site games
• 3-9 ATS in their last 12 games facing a team with a losing record
• Over record of 5-2 in their last 7 games

Navy vs. Army betting prediction

The Army has covered in their last four games facing Navy and they had a much better season, but their run defense was less than impressive in their last game.

Still, overall, they have a better run defense than the Midshipmen and they will show that in this game.

Navy may air it out more like they did in their last game, but will face a good Army pass defense that ranks 30th in the nation. Army will get their 10th win of the season in this game and cover the spread, getting the win in this HUGE rivalry game.

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