The Eastern Michigan Eagles will travel to take on the Kent State Golden Flashes in a Wednesday night MACtion college football matchup in Ohio. Let’s continue our college football odds series and make our Eastern Michigan-Kent State prediction and pick.
Eastern Michigan has gone 6-4 this season, including a 3-3 record in MAC play. The Eagles won their last game 34-28 over Akron on Election Day. Surprisingly, head coach Chris Creighton's squad is actually better on the road, going 4-1 away from home.
Kent State has struggled to a 4-6 season, going 3-3 in conference play. The Golden Flashes enter this matchup with some momentum following a 40-6 drubbing of Bowling Green last week. This will be the last home game of the season for head coach Sean Lewis' squad, where they have a 3-1 record.
Here are the Eastern Michigan-Kent State college football odds, courtesy of FanDuel.
College Football Odds: Eastern Michigan-Kent State Odds
Eastern Michigan Eagles: +7.5 (-118)
Kent State Golden Flashes: -7.5 (-104)
Over: 60.5 (-110)
Under: 60.5 (-110)
Why Eastern Michigan Could Cover The Spread
Austin Smith has completed 57.6 percent of his passes for 774 yards with six touchdowns and four interceptions, filling in admirably for Taylor Powell. On the ground, Smith has also added two rushing touchdowns. Samson Evans leads the team with 855 rushing yards and 11 touchdowns. Darius Boone Jr. is second on the team with three rushing touchdowns. The Eagles have totaled 1,410 rushing yards and 19 touchdowns as a team. Kent State has surrendered 159.6 rushing yards per game, so Eastern Michigan has an opportunity to rack up yards on the ground.
Kent State has also surrendered 279.1 passing yards per game for a total of 438.7 yards allowed per game. Eastern Michigan has averaged 27.7 points and 342.9 yards of offense per game, so there is plenty of reason for optimism for the Eagles' offense.
Eastern Michigan's defense has struggled as well, though, allowing 30.0 points and 381.7 yards of offense to opponents. Eastern Michigan has totaled 16 and a half sacks as a team, led by eight from Jose Ramirez. Kent State has surrendered 16 sacks. Eastern Michigan has picked off seven passes while Kent State has also thrown seven.
Why Kent State Could Cover The Spread
Collin Schlee has completed 59.6 percent of his passes for 1,945 yards with 12 touchdowns and five interceptions. Schlee is second on the team with four rushing touchdowns. Marquez Cooper leads the team with 1,106 rushing yards and nine touchdowns. Kent State has totaled 2,103 rushing yards and 18 touchdowns, while Eastern Michigan has allowed 162.0 rushing yards per game and 17 touchdowns. Just like on the other side, there's an opportunity for damage on the ground.
Dante Cephas leads the team with 744 receiving yards, hauling in three touchdown catches. Devontez Walker leads the team with 10 receiving touchdowns, ranking second with 716 receiving yards. The Golden Flashes have scored 28.7 points per game on 429.4 yards of offense per game, so their offense will be crucial in a potential shootout.
While Kent State's defense has struggled, the Golden Flashes have totaled 23 sacks as a team, led by five and a half from Saivon Taylor-Davis. Eastern Michigan has allowed 27 sacks as a team, so perhaps Kent State can get some pressure on the quarterback and make life difficult for Austin Smith.
Final Eastern Michigan-Kent State Prediction & Pick
Two solid quarterbacks and two lackluster defenses should mean a lot of points. Eastern Michigan being such a big underdog makes no sense to me.
Final Eastern Michigan-Kent State Prediction & Pick: Eastern Michigan +7.5 (-118), over 60.5 (-110)
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