Jacksonville State vs Middle Tennessee Pick & Prediction - 10/29/2025
Updated July 9, 2026
The Jacksonville State Gamecocks (4‑3, 3‑0 CUSA) will go up against the Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders (1‑6, 0‑3 CUSA) in Murfreesboro on Wednesday night. Jacksonville State arrives with an unbeaten record in Conference USA play and an elite rushing attack. Middle Tennessee is still searching for momentum after a handful of tight losses. Before kickoff from Murfreesboro, continue reading to get my Jacksonville State vs Middle Tennessee prediction.
Jacksonville State has won its first three conference games and carries the momentum into this mid‑week clash. Middle Tennessee has lost six of seven and is still seeking its first CUSA win of the season. With that said, Jax State is only a slight favorite, suggesting that this game could be closer than the records of these teams would lead you to believe.
The running attack of Jacksonville State is also a huge storyline going into this game. They rank near the top nationally in rushing yards per game at 276 yards per game, while they are scoring 30.7 points per game. Middle Tennessee’s defense against the run is middling. They allow 142.9 rushing yards per game and surrender 29.7 points per game. Jax State should be able to move the ball effectively here and the question will be whether that is enough for them to stay perfect in CUSA.
The Jacksonville State quarterback is set to be Caden Creel. He is not the centerpiece of the offense, but he has done a decent enough job of keeping the chains moving and switching things up from the rushing attack. Creel is expected to play after leading the Gamecocks' last game against Delaware due to injury.
Middle Tennessee quarterback Nicholas Vattiato has thrown for 1,673 yards, 11 touchdowns, and five interceptions so far. The running game and scoring output for MTSU has not been good enough to support Vattiato this season but Vattiato will try to make up for that in this contest.
I am going to take the Jacksonville State Gamecocks to win and cover the spread on the road against Middle Tennessee. The running game of the Gamecocks should allow them to overcome any quarterback questions they have due to Creel being banged up. I expect Middle Tennessee to wear down defensively late in this game and for Jax State to remain undefeated in Conference USA play with a win here.
Jay Sanin is the GM and Head of Sports at ATS.io. He has been writing about sports gambling since 2013, handicapping tens of thousands of sporting events. He plays sides and totals aggressively across most sports and is more selective in player prop markets. He does his own modeling across most sports, and his family is jealous of how much time he spends on his precious spreadsheets.
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