Louisiana Tech was rolling into Huntington on a wave of eight consecutive straight-up victories, the latter four as covers, until disaster struck. Three key players, notably QB J’Mar Smith, were suspended. That leaves redshirt freshman Aaron Allen, who has thrown nine passes as a collegian, in charge on a Friday night away from home. Marshall, which has a stellar ATS record on Fridays, has yet to cover at home but is 4-1 straight-up. With the modest spread, an ATS break-through is likely.

I had been looking at this line all week trying to figure out what was going on. Marshall opened as a 2.5-point favorite and it now sits at Marshall -7. Well, now we know why. Louisiana Tech has suspended multiple players for this game, including its starting quarterback J'Mar Smith and leading receiver Adrian Hardy.

Louisiana Tech comes into this huge Conference USA matchup with a well-balanced offensive attack. QB J'Mar Smith does a great job of playing efficiently within the passing game and avoiding the critical mistake. Marshall is a very good defensive team that should be able to slow down the Bulldogs a bit. However, LaTech's defense, especially the secondary, is one of the best in the FBS. It also can create pressure with its front seven. It'll be all about defense in this game.