Arkansas State Red Wolves vs. USC Trojans Preview<\/h2>\n
Where:<\/strong> Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, Los Angeles<\/p>\n When:<\/strong> Saturday, September 5, 11:00 PM ET<\/p>\n Line:<\/strong> Arkansas State Red Wolves (+28.5<\/strong>) at USC Trojans (-28.5<\/strong>) \u2013 view all NCAA Football lines<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n [sc:NCAA240banner ]Having made it to four straight Go Daddy Bowl games, the Red Wolves are coming into the new season with higher aspirations\u2014that is to win the Sun Belt conference for the second time under head coach Blake Anderson.<\/p>\n Anderson, who took over the program in 2014, had a pleasant beginning to his career in Jonesbro. Apart from steering the Red Wolves into another bowl game, Anderson also guided the team into a 7-6 record, thus extending Arkansas\u2019 winning season streak to four years. With those accomplishments now behind Anderson, he\u2019ll now have to find a way to make the Red Wolves even better.<\/p>\n This mission begins with the team\u2019s offense, which introduces nine starters, including senior dual quarterback Fredi Knighten. Knighten finished the 2014 season with 3,277 passing yards and seven touchdowns and rushed for 779 yards and 11 scores.<\/p>\n Knighten\u2019s flexibility is something that suits Anderson\u2019s fast-paced system and can cause trouble for the Trojans\u2019 defense. Arkansas\u2019 backfield also has senior running back Michael Gordon, who compiled 1,100 rushing yards and 13 rushing touchdowns despite missing two games last season. Downfield, Knighten will have several options to choose from with six of the team\u2019s top receivers all coming back. Among them is the tandem of Tres Houston and Dijon Paschal, who combined for 1,327 receiving yards and eight touchdowns last season.<\/p>\n The pressure for Knighten and company to produce against USC is heightened when considering Arkansas State\u2019s defense that was absolutely shredded in the second half of their Red Wolves\u2019 2014 schedule. During that stretch, their opponents rushed for 28 touchdowns and averaged 283.0 yards per game. That said, transferees Robert Mondie, Waylon Roberson and Jake Swalley are all expected to inject life to Arkansas State\u2019s front seven that badly needs reinforcement.<\/p>\n Arkansas is 7-3 in its last 10 road games.<\/p>\n Create a betting account now<\/a> and cash in on all the NFL preseason action.<\/p>\n Cody Kessler has been called a lot of names over the offseason and \u201cunderrated\u201d is one of them. From Sports Illustrated<\/a> to BleacherReport,<\/a> Kessler has been referred to as a quarterback that\u2019s often undervalued. That should change this coming season with the likes of Marcus Mariota and Brett Hundley leaving the Pac-12. The limelight is now all on Kessler, who\u2019ll begin his campaign, along with the rest of the Trojans, against Arkansas State on September 5.<\/p>\n With the aforementioned weakness in the Red Wolves\u2019 defense, Kesler should have his way against Arkansas State. Last season, Kessler ranked 11th<\/sup> in the nation in passing yards (3,826) and fourth in passing touchdowns (39), while throwing just five picks for a solid 69.7 passing percentage.<\/p>\n Despite Nelson Agholor\u2019s decision to turn pro, Kessler will still have enough weapons down field such as JuJu Smith and Steven Mitchell. Smith is set to become Kessler\u2019s top target following a season in which he played in the shadows of Agholor. Last year, Smith amassed 724 receiving yards and five receiving touchdowns on 54 receptions as he was named was named a Freshman All-American.<\/p>\n Mitchell, on the other hand, had 82 receiving yards and a couple of touchdowns on seven catches as a freshman. Expect all those numbers to rise in his sophomore season.<\/p>\n The same situation can be found in the Trojans\u2019 backfield, as tailback Justin Davis looks to capitalize on the departure of top running back Javorius Allen (NFL). Davis rushed for 595 yards and reached the end zone four times in 2014.<\/p>\n USC\u2019s defense, meanwhile, took a couple of big blows with Leonard Williams and Hayes Pullard now plying their trade in the NFL. With those two on board, the Trojans were able to rank 78th<\/sup> in the nation in total defense (407.9 yards allowed per game) and 45th<\/sup> in yards allowed per play (5.30). Nevertheless, there are solid talents remaining on the defensive side with the likes of Su\u2019a Cravens (three interceptions and 17.0 tackles for loss in 2014) and senior nose tackle Antwaun Woods (37 total tackles).<\/p>\n USC is 8-2 SU and 6-4 ATS in its last 10 games as the home team.<\/p>\n USC (-28.5<\/a><\/strong>) wins, 41-17.<\/p>\n[sc:NCAA490banner ]\nBetting on the Arkansas State Red Wolves<\/h3>\n
Betting on the USC Trojans<\/h3>\n
![\"Cody](\"http:\/\/topbet.eu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/08\/Cody-Kessler.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\nWriter\u2019s Prediction<\/h3>\n