Tulane Green Wave travel to face Charlotte 49ers on Friday night in an American Athletic Conference matchup at Jerry Richardson Stadium in Charlotte, North Carolina. Kickoff is scheduled for 7 p.m. ET.
Charlotte (1-6, 1-2 AAC) earned its first victory of the season last week with a 38-31 road win over Temple. Tulane (3-4, 1-2 AAC) suffered a 42-19 loss to conference powerhouse UTSA but remains in bowl contention. The Green Wave hold a 2-0 edge in the recent series, including a 27-0 shutout last year.
Oddsmakers list Tulane as an 8.5-point favorite with an over/under of 47.5 points. The money line has Tulane at -345 and Charlotte at +275.
The SportsLine Projection Model, after simulating the game 10,000 times, projects the total to go over 47.5 points. Tulane's offense averages 20.3 points per game but features a rushing attack led by Johnnie Daniels (394 yards, 6.0 per carry) and Maurice Turner (315 yards, 8.5 per carry). Red zone issues and turnovers have hampered scoring. Defensively, Tulane allows 417 yards per game, while Charlotte's defense surrenders 40.6 points per game. Charlotte quarterback Cole Gonzales has thrown for 802 yards with seven interceptions. The over has hit in three consecutive 49ers games.
The model also indicates one side of the spread hits nearly 70% of simulations in an A-rated pick. SportsLine's model enters Week 9 on a 68-59 run on top-rated college football picks.
