Vegas Play of the Day: Navy at Memphis

By Case Keefer (contact)

Saturday, Nov. 7, 2015 | 2 a.m.

We've reset the Play of the Day with fresh bankrolls and turned it into a yearly competition. Our three sports writers have re-started with $10,000 bankrolls to continue using on odds from the South Point.

Navy plus-9 at Memphis: $550 to win $500

It’s not right that the three teams from the American Athletic Conference getting all the praise are Memphis, Houston and Temple, all of which went into last weekend undefeated. Navy deserves a place among the group.

Like Temple, Navy’s only loss of the year came to Notre Dame. Unlike the Owls, the Midshipmen have truly transcendent player leading their team.

Senior quarterback Keenan Reynolds, who tied Montee Ball’s NCAA record with 77 career rushing touchdowns last weekend, is going to give Memphis fits. The Tigers have never faced the Midshipmen in program history or seen a rushing offense this season anything like what they will encounter Saturday.

It’s going to take some time to get used to defending the triple-option, and time is a luxury teams don’t have when facing Navy. The Midshipmen have been undervalued all season, going 5-2 against the spread with the pair of losses by a total of 10 points.

They seem to be underestimated again in their biggest spot of the season, as this number has gotten as high as 9.5 from opening at 7.5. Memphis’ passing attack is a concern and what might ultimately win the Tigers the game, but it’s going to be close.

Navy is every bit as good as its acclaimed set of new conference rivals.

Current Standings (as of July 1): Brewer (20-16, $10,770), Bern (13-19, $7,750), Keefer (13-27-2, $4,401)

Lifetime standings: 2014-15 Champion Bern (94-92-1), Brewer (89-103-2), Keefer (97-111-4)

Case Keefer can be reached at 702-948-2790 or [email protected]. Follow Case on Twitter at twitter.com/casekeefer.