Georgia Southern vs. Sam Houston prediction, odds: 2024 New Orleans Bowl picks from college football model

The Sam Houston Bearkats (9-3) will make their first-ever bowl appearance when they face the Georgia Southern Eagles (8-4) in the 2024 New Orleans Bowl on Thursday night. Sam Houston won four of its final five games down the stretch of the regular season, finishing in third place in Conference USA. Georgia Southern finished third in the Sun Belt, closing the regular season with a 29-20 win over Appalachian State. The Eagles are going to a bowl game for the third straight year under head coach Clay Helton, while the Bearkats are playing under an interim coach after K.C. Keeler took the Temple job. 

Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. ET on Thursday at Caesars Superdome. Georgia Southern is favored by 6 points in the latest Sam Houston vs. Georgia Southern odds, while the over/under is 48.5 points, per SportsLine consensus. Before entering any Georgia Southern vs. Sam Houston picks, you’ll want to see the college football predictions from the model at SportsLine.

The model simulates every FBS game 10,000 times. Since its inception, it has generated a betting profit of well over $2,000 for $100 players on its top-rated college spread football picks, and it went a profitable 43-34 on all top-rated picks this season. Anyone following at sportsbooks and on betting apps has seen impressive returns.

The model has set its sights on Georgia Southern vs. Sam Houston. You can head to SportsLine to see its picks. Here are several college football betting lines for the game:

• Sam Houston vs. Georgia Southern spread: Georgia Southern -6
• Sam Houston vs. Georgia Southern over/under: 48.5 points
• Sam Houston vs. Georgia Southern money line: Georgia Southern -221, Sam Houston +180
• Sam Houston vs. Georgia Southern picks: See picks here
• Sam Houston vs. Georgia Southern streaming: FuboTV (Try for free)

Why Georgia Southern can cover

Georgia Southern has been a mainstay in bowl games over the past decade, as it gets set for its seventh bowl appearance in 11 seasons since making the move to the FBS level. The Eagles are playing under a proven head coach, which has resulted in three straight bowl games. They finished second behind Marshall in the Sun Belt East, and they had 10 players named to all-conference teams. 

Senior linebacker Marques Watson-Trent was named the defensive player of the year in the Sun Belt after leading the conference in tackles per game (10). They had three all-conference honorees along their offensive line, who have provided protection for quarterback JC French all season. He has 2,619 passing yards and 16 touchdowns, while Jalen White has 654 rushing yards and 12 touchdowns. See which team to pick here. 

Why Sam Houston can cover

The Bearkats have had more than a dozen players enter the transfer portal, including defensive back Caleb Weaver and defensive end Chris Murray, who were both named first-team All-Conference USA members. However, almost all of those players are still listed on the depth chart for the bowl game. They should have a strong performance on that side of the ball, as they led the conference in defense and ranked second in yards allowed per game. 

Quarterback Hunter Watson leads the offense with 1,598 yards and 11 touchdowns. Watson also rushed for 623 yards and seven scores, so he will be difficult for Georgia Southern’s defense to slow down. Jay Ducker leads the rushing attack with 719 yards and seven touchdowns, while Simeon Evans has 44 receptions and five touchdowns. They play behind an offensive line that is led by second-team all-conference picks Ethan Hagler and James Dawn II. See which team to pick here. 

How to make Sam Houston vs. Georgia Southern picks

The model has simulated Georgia Southern vs. Sam Houston 10,000 times and the results are in. The model is leaning Over, and it’s also generated a point-spread pick that is hitting in almost 60% of simulations. You can only see the pick at SportsLine.

So who wins Sam Houston vs. Georgia Southern in the 2024 New Orleans Bowl, and which side of the spread hits almost 60% of the time? Visit SportsLine now to see which side of the spread to jump on, all from the advanced model that is up well over $2,000 on top-rated spread picks since its inception, and find out.