Tulsa Golden Hurricane vs UAB Blazers: College Football Preview and Predictions for November 2, 2024

The Tulsa Golden Hurricane (3-5, 1-3 American) are set to face the UAB Blazers (1-6, 0-4 American) in an American Athletic Conference (AAC) matchup on Saturday, November 2, 2024. The game will be held at Protective Stadium in Birmingham, Alabama, and is scheduled to start at 2:30 p.m. ET. It will be broadcast on ESPN+.

Tulsa is coming off a thrilling 46-45 victory over the UTSA Roadrunners, where they overcame a 28-point deficit. This win snapped their three-game losing streak. The Golden Hurricane are averaging 29 points per game, with 224 yards passing and 154.1 yards rushing per game. In their last game, Cooper Legas completed 52% of his passes for 333 yards and five touchdowns, while Kamdyn Benjamin had seven catches for 125 yards and three touchdowns.

UAB, on the other hand, is struggling with a six-game losing streak. Their most recent loss was a 35-25 defeat to the South Florida Bulls. The Blazers are averaging 21 points per game, with 239.3 yards passing and 134.7 yards rushing per game. Jalen Kitna, who has taken over for the injured Jacob Zeno, completed 59% of his passes for 384 yards, two touchdowns, and one interception in the loss to South Florida.

Tulsa has a historical advantage over UAB, having won all four of their previous meetings. The most recent matchup was in 2012, where Tulsa won 49-42. Despite this history, the current odds favor UAB by 2.5 points, with an over/under of 57.5 points.

From a betting perspective, Tulsa is seen as the better offensive team and is expected to exploit UAB’s poor run defense. UAB, however, has a strong pass defense but struggles against the run. The prediction leans towards Tulsa covering the spread, given their recent performance and UAB’s ongoing struggles.

Injury updates for Tulsa include Champ Lewis and Jeremiah Ballard, both of whom are out for the season due to knee and leg injuries, respectively. For UAB, Jacob Zeno is currently out with a shoulder injury, which has led to Jalen Kitna taking over as the quarterback.