Posted at 8:50 AM EST

7:00 PM EST. One of the reasons the Black Knights are heavily favored here is because they are 3-0 and they’re coming off a 66-14 victory in UTEP. Another reason is because the Bulls are 0-2 after losses to Albany and Nevada, the latter on the road by a score of 38-14. The combined results of these two combatants have set up these inflated points we’re taking back but there are many more moving parts than just those aforementioned results. To begin with, this is a massive letdown spot for the Black Knights after their cornerback, Brandon Jackson died in a car crash shortly after Army’s win over Rice the previous week on Sept. 10. The funeral was the following Monday in New York and the entire team attended it. They dedicated the game to Jackson and played their hearts out in UTEP. The Knights will now play back-to-back road games and their third road game in four weeks. Give Army credit for three victories but let’s get real here. Army has finished with a winning record just once this century, a 7-6 mark in 2010. Otherwise, it hasn’t won more than five games since 1996. The Black Knights are 8-22 against the spread in their last 30 road games and most of the time they’re taking back big points. Now they’re laying two converted TD’s. Furthermore, Army has had nothing but good fortune on the field, as they have eight takeaways, which is third in the nation. That type of good fortune likely does not await them here.

After opening the season against Albany, Buffalo subsequently had 15 days off before they would play again at Nevada. It was also Redshirt freshman quarterback Tyree Jackson’s first career start so we can understand the difficulty the Bulls faced. However,the Bulls were able to effectively move the ball on the ground, rushing for a season-best 231 yards. The Bulls have 42 new players on the roster this season and are thus one of the most inexperienced teams in FBS but those 15 days off and a trip to Nevada likely served them well and they figure to be much better here. The Bulls have a tremendous coaching staff that starts at the top with the 2015 hiring of Lance Leipold. Leipold reached 100 victories faster than any coach in National Collegiate Athletic Association history, doing so in his 106th game on October 18, 2014. During his tenure at UWW, the Wisconsin–Whitewater Warhawks won the NCAA Division III National Football Championship in 2007, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2013, and 2014 and were runners-up in 2008. Leipold’s collegiate teams were known for a ferocious brand of defense and we should see his unit improve greatly from week-to-week. Buffalo was just a 12½-point road dog at Nevada last week and now they’re getting 14 points at home. Additionally, the Bulls catch the Army Black Knights at precisely the perfect time, that being after what will turn out to be the most emotional game in the careers of every single player on that Army squad. This one has upset written all over it but more than that is the Black Knights cannot be a two TD road favorite under these circumstances.

Open an account today at Pinnacle Sports and take advantage of their -104 style pricing on sides and totals, which is 60% better than other sportsbooks.