The James Madison Dukes hope to return to their winning ways when they host the Coastal Carolina Chanticleers in a Sun Belt Conference matchup at Bridgeforth Stadium in Harrisonburg, Va. on Thursday. James Madison (4-1, 0-1) began the season with four consecutive victories before dropping a 21-19 decision to UL Monroe last weekend in its first conference game of 2024. Coastal Carolina (4-1, 1-0) bounced back from its first loss of the year by topping Old Dominion 45-37 this past Saturday. 

Kickoff is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. ET. The Dukes are 7.5-point favorites in the latest James Madison vs. Coastal Carolina odds from SportsLine consensus, while the over/under for total points scored is 60.5. The Dukes are -295 (risk $295 to win $100) money-line favorites, while the Chanticleers are +236 underdogs. 

Before making any Coastal Carolina vs. James Madison picks or CFB predictions, you need to see what the SportsLine Projection Model has to say.

The model simulates every FBS college football game 10,000 times. Since its inception, it has generated a profit of well over $2,000 for $100 players on its top-rated college football picks against the spread. It also is 8-4 on top-rated picks over the past two weeks of this season. Anyone who has followed it has seen STRONG returns!

The model knows James Madison has completely dominated Coastal Carolina in their last three meetings, outscoring the Chanticleers 148-31 during that span. Prior to last week's defeat, the Dukes racked up 133 points in victories over North Carolina and Ball State, with quarterback Alonza Barnett III throwing for 668 yards and 10 touchdowns while also running for 143 yards and three scores. The redshirt sophomore, who has made 12 TD passes against one interception during his first year as a starter, trails running back George Pettaway (298 yards) for the team lead in rushing and tops the club with four touchdown runs.

The model also has taken into account that Coastal Carolina quarterback Ethan Vasko is coming off the best performance of his career. Also a redshirt sophomore, Vasko threw for 367 yards and three TDs in the win against Old Dominion. Senior running back Braydon Bennett is third on the Chanticleers in rushing with 145 yards but leads the team with five touchdown runs after recording two - in addition to a TD reception - versus the Monarchs. Coastal Carolina also is dangerous on the other side of the ball, as its defense has scored four touchdowns already this season.

The model has simulated James Madison vs. Coastal Carolina 10,000 times and the results are in. We can tell you the model is leaning Over on the total, and it also says one side of the spread hits nearly 70% of the time!

Who wins Coastal Carolina vs. James Madison, and which side of the spread hits almost 70% of the time? ... Join SportsLine right now to find out which side of the spread you should be all over, all from the model that is 8-4 on top-rated CFB picks over the past two weeks!