Western Kentucky vs. James Madison predictions, pick, odds, spread for Boca Raton Bowl

12/16/2024 10:57 AM

The Western Kentucky Hilltoppers (8-5) take on the James Madison Dukes (8-4) in the Boca Raton Bowl! It is time to continue our college football odds series with a Western Kentucky-James Madison prediction and pick. We will also let you know how to watch the game.

Western Kentucky-James Madison Last Game – Matchup History

This is the first ever matchup between these two teams.

Overall Series: 0-0-0

Here are the Western Kentucky-James Madison College Football odds, courtesy of FanDuel. 

College Football Odds: Western Kentucky-James Madison Odds

Western Kentucky: +6.5 (-110)

Moneyline: +184

James Madison: -6.5 (-110)

Moneyline: -225

Over: 51.5 (-110)

Under: 51.5 (-110)

How to Watch Western Kentucky-James Madison

Time: 5:30 PM ET/2:30 PM PT

TV: ESPN

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Why Western Kentucky Could Cover The Spread/Win

Western Kentucky is coming off a pretty bad loss in the CUSA championship game. However, they still had a pretty good season. At 8-5, the Hilltoppers were able to make some noise in the CUSA. As a team, they third in the CUSA in yards per game, and fourth in points per game. Offensively, the Hilltoppers were able to get the job done during the season, and they have to continue that in the Boca Raton Bowl.

The good news for Western Kentucky is Caden Veltkamp will play despite being in the portal. You can expect him to be at his best Wednesday night as this is the last time for teams to see him before he starts making decisions on his future. Veltkamp had a very good season. He threw for the most yards per game in the conference, and 24 touchdowns to just 10 interceptions. He also completed 66.6 percent of his passes while taking only 21 sacks. If Veltkamp can play well, the Hilltoppers will have a good game.

Western Kentucky will be missing some of their key defensive players because of the transfer portal. However, James Madison is without their star quarterback. Alonza Barnett III suffered an injury in their season finale against Marshall. Because of that injury, Barnett will not be active in the bowl game. He threw for 26 touchdowns to just four interceptions, and rushed four seven more touchdowns. That is a huge loss for the Dukes, and Western Kentucky has to take advantage of that.

Why James Madison Could Cover The Spread/Win

James Madison started the season looking like one of the favorites to make the playoffs as the group of five team. They put up 70 points on North Carolina, and at least 30 points in eight of their 12 games. However, a couple bad losses ruined those playoff, and Sun Belt Championship chances. Still, James Madison was a very good team. Even without Barnett, the Dukes should be able to do some damage.

One area where James Madison should succeed is the ground game. They averaged 189.8 rush yards per game, and 4.8 yards per carry. Their starting Left Tackle is in the portal, but that should not make much of a difference for their gameplan. George Pettaway is active, and he was the top rusher for the team with 5.9 yards per carry, and five touchdowns. Western Kentucky allows over 220 rush yards per game, and 5.0 yards per carry. The Dukes should dominate this game on the ground.

Western Kentucky has a whole bunch of players in the portal or injured heading into this game. Now, it is important to note that they can still participate in the game despite being in the portal, and they have under this head coach before. However, the Hilltoppers have 10 starters in the portal, and another 11 non-starters. That includes important defensive starters, offensive weapons, and key role players. Without these players, Western Kentucky has to pivot to some players that did not get a lot of playing time. This is going to work to the advantage of James Madison.

Final Western Kentucky-James Madison Prediction & Pick

The Portal makes these games hard to predict. However, Western Kentucky has a lot of players leaving the school, and I think James Madison will be able to dominate because of that. I will take James Madison to cover the spread.

Final Western Kentucky-James Madison Prediction & Pick: James Madison -6.5 (-110)

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