2021 Frisco Football Classic Over-Under Preview & Pick

The Frisco Football Classic is anything but a classic. This game was thrown together in the span of a few weeks after it became obvious that some teams would be left out of bowl season despite there being 44 bowl games. It will pit the Miami Redhawks against the North Texas Mean Green, and both programs are 6-6 heading into this bowl game.

The first (and probably only) Frisco Football Classic will take place on Thursday, December 23, 2021, between the North Texas Mean Green and Miami Redhawks at Toyota Stadium in Frisco, Texas at 3:30 p.m. ET on ESPN.

College Football Betting Odds

North Texas +3

Miami (OH) -3

Total 54.5

North Texas is the most improbable bowl team of the 2021 season. The Mean Green were 1-6 and left for dead in mid-October, and it looked like Seth Littrell would probably be fired. However, they closed out their season with five straight wins and knocked off both UTEP and UTSA. The victory over UTSA was extremely impressive as the Roadrunners were 11-0 ahead of the season finale.

Miami of Ohio didn’t win its first FBS game until October. The Redhawks were one of the best teams in the MAC East though, and they nearly made it to the MAC Championship Game before losing their season finale to Kent State 48-47 in overtime.

When North Texas Has the Ball

The Mean Green were one of the best teams in the country against the spread this season. North Texas ran the ball very well, averaging 4.9 YPC and 237 YPG on the ground. DeAndre Torrey is the leading rusher with 1,215 yards (4.9 YPC) and 13 touchdowns, and freshman Ikaika Ragsdale is averaging 5.7 YPC while fellow freshman Ayo Adeyi is averaging 6.1 YPC.

There is not a good quarterback on the roster. Jace Ruder was not good in North Texas’ first two games, and Austin Aune hasn’t been much better. Aune is only completing 51.7% of his passes for 1,763 yards (6.7 YPA) with nine touchdowns and seven interceptions. He is a much better runner than Ruder though, so that’s helped him keep the starting job.

Miami is in the bottom half of the FBS in both rush defense and pass defense. The Redhawks rank 77^th in both categories, but they do a good job of getting to the quarterback. They have 37 sacks, and Kameron Butler and Lonnie Phelps have combined for 16.5 sacks.

When Miami (OH) Has the Ball

Brett Gabbert is having a strong sophomore season for the Redhawks. The younger brother of Blaine Gabbert isn’t the most accurate signal caller, but he has had a lot of success with the deep ball. Gabbert is completing 58.2% of his passes for over 2,400 yards (9.0 YPA) with 24 touchdowns and six interceptions on the year.

The top receiver on the team is Jack Sorenson. He was one of the MAC’s top receivers with 69 receptions for 1,290 yards and 10 touchdowns on the year. Mac Hippenhammer is someone to watch on Miami too, as the Redhawks love to take deep shots.

North Texas has done a decent job stopping the run, but the Mean Green have had some trouble against the pass. They are allowing 7.9 YPA, so this secondary might end up being torched by Gabbert on Thursday afternoon in Frisco.

Prediction

The Mean Green will have the crowd support, but this isn’t a good matchup for them. Miami should be able to move the chains through the air and get the win in one of the last bowl games before Christmas.

These teams should be able to move the ball in this game. The weather is forecast to be great on Thursday, and both offenses are going to put up points. That makes the over a very good play in the Frisco Football Classic.

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