Vanderbilt vs Hawaii: College Football Odds, Analysis and Favorites

Former Hawaii quarterback Timmy Chang was one of the most prolific passers in NCAA history, and his first game as head coach at his alma mater is Saturday when the Rainbow Warriors host Vanderbilt of the SEC. The Dores are solid favorites on the NCAAF odds.

How to Bet Vanderbilt at Hawaii NCAA Football Odds & TV Info

When: Saturday, 10:30 PM ET
Where: Clarence T.C. Ching Athletics Complex, Honolulu
TV: CBS Sports Network
Stream: https://www.cbssports.com/cbs-sports-network/
Radio: Tunein.com
Opening NCAAF Lines: Vandy -8.5 (total 53.5)

Why Bet on Vanderbilt?

A blowout loss to FCS foe East Tennessee State in Coach Clark Lea’s first game as Vandy coach in 2021 foreshadowed a difficult campaign, and Vanderbilt displayed how far it must go to compete in the SEC en route to a 2–10 record.

Mike Wright will open the 2022 season as Vandy’s starting QB over Ken Seals. Wright, who took over the starting duties last October after Seals suffered a hand injury, provided a shot in the arm to the ‘Dores offense last year. Vanderbilt took advantage of Wright’s mobility, using him out of the backfield to the tune of 376 rushing yards and one score. He also passed for 1,042 yards, eight touchdowns and six interceptions while completing 53.1 percent of his passes.

Seals regressed in Year 2 as his completion percentage dropped from 64.6 to 56.7 and he threw for 747 fewer yards and seven fewer touchdowns despite playing in only one fewer game.

“We want [Wright] to develop as a total quarterback, which he has, and he has demonstrated leadership abilities too,” Lea said. “So, we’re excited for him to enter the fall as our starting quarterback. He knows that he has to earn that every day. That’s part of our covenant. On top of that, we’re fortunate to have a second quarterback with a ton of game experience and starting experience in Ken Seals.”

One week into fall camp, Lea finally decided to pull the plug on offensive coordinator David Raih and made quarterbacks coach Joey Lynch the new play-caller. The SEC’s worst offensive line took a hit when starting left tackle Tyler Steen entered the NCAA transfer portal and landed at Alabama,

Defensively, Vandy returns its four leading tacklers from a year ago in Anfernee Orji, Ethan Barr, Jaylen Mahoney and Maxwell Worship. Barr led all SEC linebackers in interceptions a season ago. Nick Howell takes over as defensive coordinator and is joined by fellow newcomers Dan Jackson (defensive backs), Nick Lezynski (linebackers) and Larry Black (defensive line).

That defense recently took a bit hit when Miles Capers was ruled out for the season due to a knee injury. A sophomore from South Carolina, Capers was having a strong preseason in which he was in line to start at Vandy’s star position, an outside linebacker spot used to both rush the passer and defend in pass coverage.

It’s the first-ever matchup between these schools.

Why Bet on Hawaii?

The Rainbow Warriors will be operating under a new head coach (Timmy Chang) and a new offensive coordinator (Ian Shoemaker). Shoemaker has never coached at the Football Bowl Subdivision level but did coordinate high-octane offenses at Eastern Washington for the past three years.

Chang, 40, was previously the receivers coach at Colorado State and replaces Todd Graham, who resigned after posting an 11-11 record in two seasons. Chang has spent a decade working in collegiate assistant roles following a professional playing career that included stints in Europe and Canada. A Hawaii native, Chang played quarterback for the Rainbow Warriors from 2000 to 2004, throwing for 117 touchdowns and 17,072 yards. He still ranks second all-time among FBS quarterbacks in yards passing.

For the first time since 2018, UH entered fall camp with the starting quarterback job up for grabs. Six quarterbacks have been in contention for the throne – three of whom have taken collegiate snaps at the FBS level. The battle is among Brayden Schager, Joey Yellen and Cammon Cooper – the latter two are transfers. Yellen served as the backup for NFL first-round pick Kenny Pickett at Pittsburgh the last two seasons, appearing in seven games with two starts. Cooper is a graduate transfer from Washington State.

It likely will be Schager. Last year at Hawaii, he played in six games and started three at quarterback. He went 2-1 as a starter, including a home win over nationally-ranked Fresno State in his starting debut. Schager finished the season with 615 passing yards and two touchdowns while completing 60.1 percent of his passes.

“These guys have taken great strides,” Shoemaker said this week. “What’s nice to see is a lot of the same decisions are being made. All the eyes and the feet and the decision-making are reflecting what is being taught. Now we can make a decision from an arm strength, athleticism, and accuracy standpoint.”

Hawaii’s offensive line unit is among the most experienced in the country, ranking third nationally in number of starts returning with 109, trailing only Pitt (130) and UTSA (118). Hawaii enters the season with 51 newcomers on the roster, including 28 transfers, 16 of which came from Power 5 schools.

This season marks the sixth time UH will play in Week 0 and second time it is hosting a Week 0 game. UH has a 3-2 mark in Week 0 which includes a home win over Arizona (45-38) in 2019. Hawaii is playing an SEC team for the first time since losing at Florida in the 2008 season opener. UH also closed out the 2007 season with a loss to Georgia in the Sugar Bowl. The last time UH hosted and defeated an SEC team was against Alabama in 2003 (37-29) at Aloha Stadium. UH is 3-9-1 all-time against current SEC teams, including a 3-5-1 record at home.

Hawai’i is 63-37-5 (.624) all-time in season openers, with wins in four of the last five since 2017 and five of seven since 2015. UH has won seven straight home openers with the last loss coming against No. 25 Washington (17-16) in 2014.