East Carolina vs NC State Military Bowl Pick For 12/28/2024

The East Carolina Pirates are set to battle the NC State Wolfpack in the 2024 Military Bowl on December 28, 2024. The NC State Wolfpack is favored by 6.5 points according to DraftKings Sportsbook. The total for this game has been set at 58.5. Fans can expect an exciting matchup between these two teams as they go head-to-head in a highly anticipated game. Stay tuned to see which team will come out on top in this thrilling showdown between these teams based out of the Carolinas.

Before kickoff in this East Carolina vs NC State matchup, bettors can continue reading to get our full preview of this contest. You will find my keys to this game, along with my best bet for this contest between teams from the American Athletic Conference and the ACC. Using my successful college football betting model, I have generated a prediction for this game that is backed by data, which you can trust.

East Carolina Looks to Upset Power Conference Opponent

The East Carolina Pirates are 7-5 heading into bowl season. They ended their regular season with a 34-20 loss to Navy, a loss that snapped a four-game winning streak. Here, East Carolina will look to get back into the win column to close out their season, though sports betting sites have the Pirates as underdogs in this matchup against NC State in the Military Bowl.

Going into bowl season, it has been announced that interim head coach Blake Harrell has been made the permanent head coach of the Pirates. It will be interesting to see how that decision plays into this game, as his team could respond positively to playing for a coach that they played into a permanent head coaching job. But no matter how the Pirates are doing emotionally, they will have their hands full against an opponent from the ACC, even if they are a middling program like NC State.

NC State Looks to Finish Above .500

Going into the Military Bowl, which doesn't feature a service academy this year, the NC State Wolfpack are 6-6 this college football season. They got a win in their season finale against North Carolina to reach the six-win mark on the season. Here, they will look to build on that victory, looking for a second win in a row to finish their year with a 7-6 record. To do that, the Wolfpack will need to overcome a significant loss in the transfer portal.

NC State wide receiver KC Concepcion has entered the transfer portal and is being linked to rival North Carolina. Concepcion caught 53 passes this season and had six receiving touchdowns. Without him, an NC State passing attack that has undergone countless changes this season will have to deal with one more significant loss.

East Carolina vs NC State Pick & Prediction

We are going to take the points with the East Carolina Pirates in this East Carolina vs NC State matchup in the Military Bowl. The Wolfpack come from the superior conference going into this game, but they haven't been all that impressive in 2024, conference pedigree aside. Look for the Pirates to keep this game close, as we don't expect a ton out of the NC State passing attack in this matchup from Annapolis, MD.