Air Force vs Nevada Odds, Spread and Preview
- Nevada (7-3, 4-2 MWC) hosts Air Force (7-3,4-2 MWC) on Senior Night at Mackay Stadium on Friday at 9:00 pm ET on FS1
- The Wolf Pack are coming off a narrow 23-21 loss to San Diego State; Air Force took down Colorado State, 35-21 behind 509 yards of total offense
- See game odds, analysis and a prediction by scrolling below
The Nevada Wolf Pack (7-3, 4-2 MWC) host the Air Force Falcons (7-3, 4-2 MWC) Friday, in a game between teams with contrasting styles on moving the ball. Nevada owns the fourth-ranked passing offense in FBS (373.7 yards per game), while Air Force is the nation’s leading rushing offense (310.3 yards per game).
Kickoff at Mackay Stadium is set for 9:00 pm ET and the game will be televised on FS1. Nevada enters Friday’s tilt as narrow favorites in the Mountain West game with much on the line for both teams.
Air Force vs Nevada Odds
| Team | Spread | Moneyline | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Air Force Falcons | +2 (-109) | +108 | O 52.5 (-110) |
| Nevada Wolf Pack | -2 (-112) | -134 | U 52.5 (-110) |
Odds as of November 16th at Barstool Sportsbook
This is the first matchup between the teams since 2018, a 28-25 Nevada win in Colorado Springs. The year began with lofty expectations for the Pack, who were picked to win the West Division in the preseason for the first time, Now, Nevada won’t even play in the conference title game, barring a miracle.
Air Force remains in the mix for a conference title, but needs to win its final two games and a Utah State loss along the way.
Nevada’s Passing Attack Not Enough to Beat SDSU
With Nevada players and coaches floating the notion of reaching a New Year’s Six bowl prior to the 2021 slate, it will be interesting to see how they respond Friday. The Wolf Pack had a 21-20 lead on the Aztecs midway through the fourth quarter last Saturday, but couldn’t hold it.
Game on the line… @matt_araiza delivers pic.twitter.com/xqcdRxjC2P
— San Diego State Football (@AztecFB) November 14, 2021
The Wolf Pack’s ensuing drive stalled on its 49-yard line after failing to get a first down on three straight plays needing just two yards and that was that. Now, it’s up to projected first-round pick Carson Strong to not let his team fall completely off the cliff.
The junior quarterback has been brilliant this season, throwing for over 3,500 yards to go along with 28 touchdown passes and only seven picks on a 71% completion percentage. Against a stout San Diego State defense, he went 34-of-48 for 350 yards, three touchdowns and zero interceptions.
Carson Strong dime down the sideline alert… it’s an every week thing.
— Crissy Froyd (@crissy_froyd) November 14, 2021
The glaring issue for Nevada entering the Air Force game is its utter lack of a ground game. The Wolf Pack had just eight rushing yards against the Aztecs – the program’s lowest single-game output since 2004. But Nevada has been one-dimensional all season.
https://twitter.com/ByChrisMurray/status/1460286478139871236
Receiver Roman Doubs has caught at least one touchdown pass in five straight games, which is impressive. But this team needs to have some semblance of balance against another solid team defensively.
Flying Low
Air Force may not throw the ball often – but it doesn’t have to. The Falcons lead the nation in rushing and are one of only two teams (with Army being the other) averaging over 300 yards an outing. Head coach Troy Calhoun’s team has out-rushed its opponent in every game this season.
Running back Brad Roberts and quarterback Haaziq Daniels lead the way for the Falcons’ potent ground game, Roberts has accounted for 1,064 yards rushing and ten scores, while Daniels has gone for 639 yards and nine touchdowns.
.@Brad27_27 with his second touchdown of the night 👏 pic.twitter.com/y6ywSZbwJs
— Air Force Football (@AF_Football) November 14, 2021
Nevada’s run defense isn’t horrible (averaging 136.0 yards allowed per game, which is No. 49 in FBS). But how it handle Calhoun’s charges will certainly be one of the keys to victory. As for slowing down that vaunted Wolf Pack passing attack, Air Force appears to be up to the task.
The program ranks in the top three of the Mountain West and top-20 nationally in four defensive categories. The Falcons also lead the conference and rank fourth nationally in total defense with a 287.5 average, trailing only Wisconsin, Georgia and Oklahoma State in that category.
Air Force vs Nevada Best Bet
I’m throwing out the last time these teams played simply because it was three years ago and the vast majority of the personnel will be different Friday.
This game boils down to Nevada doing just enough running the ball (i.e. converting short yardage situations) and just enough defensively to slow down Air Force on the ground.
The Wolf Pack are more than Strong and Doubs, with three players pulling in at least 50 grabs and six with 30 or more. Daiyan Henley leads the team in tackles with 82, while Dom Peterson leads the squad with 9.0 tackles for loss and 5.0 sacks.
All three of Air Force’s losses have been by a touchdown or less and I suspect this one will be close too. But I think Nevada circles the wagons just enough to take care of business at home.
- The Pick: Nevada -2 (-110)
Blair Johnson is a veteran journalist and seasoned sports content creator. He has been writing and producing content as long as he can remember, with such familiar names as CNN, NFL Media and Yahoo. Blair currently lives and works in the greater Los Angeles area.
