Central Michigan at Kent State Odds
Written by Jack Jones - Google +
There’s not much more than pride on the line Thursday when the Central Michigan Chippewas visit the Kent State Golden Flashes in MAC play. The Chippewas are in last place in the MAC West division, while the Golden Flashes are in fifth place in the East. Since they are in opposite divisions, these teams rarely face each other. They have only squared off three times since the turn of the century, with CMU winning the last two. Central Michigan has won eight of the last 10 in this series, including a 41-32 road victory in their last meeting in 2007.
Taking a look at the Week 10 college football spreads, I find a line of Kent State -1 over Central Michigan and a total set of 43 points.
Kent State
It has been a painful season for the Golden Flashes, but they come in with some momentum after beating Bowling Green last Saturday by a final of 27-15. Kent State (2-6, 1-3 MAC) saw their only other win come against South Alabama by a final of 33-25. This is certainly a team in rebuilding mode, and one that struggles to put the ball in the end zone.
They easily had their best performance of the season last week against the Falcons despite getting outgained 445-319. While they gave up a ton of yardage, the Flashes really buckled down in the red zone. They came up with four turnovers, and benefited from two missed field goals by Bowling Green. Spencer Keith had a solid game at quarterback, completing 16 of 23 passes for 179 yards with a touchdown and no interceptions.
Kent State ranks just 117th in the country in total offense (197.9 yards/game) and 119th in scoring offense (12.8 points/game). Their stop unit has kept them somewhat competitive, though, as the Flashes rank 31st in the FBS in total defense (334.7 yards/game) and 60th in scoring defense (26.4 points/game). Keith is completing only 48.4 percent of his passes for 853 yards with four touchdowns and eight interceptions. Trayion Durham is their leading rusher with 321 yards and a touchdown, while Sam Kirkland is their leading receiver with 25 grabs for 223 yards.
Central Michigan
Things have not gone much better for the Chippewas this season. Central Michigan (3-6, 2-3 MAC) has suffered three-game losing streaks on two separate occasions, and they have yet to win back-to-back games. They have home wins over South Carolina State and Northern Illinois, and they finally came up with their first road win of the season last week.
Central Michigan beat Akron 23-22 last Saturday despite getting outgained 383-407. They didn‘t commit any turnovers, but nearly blew a 20-0 lead. The Zips almost stole away the win as they went 56 yards and scored as time expired on a 9-yard pass from Clayton Moore to Marquelo Suel. Their two-point conversion attempt failed, and CMU could breathe a collective sigh of relief. Anthony Garland had a big day on the ground, rushing for 141 yards and a touchdown to lead the Chippewas to victory.
This team ranks 61st in total offense (389.3 yards/game) and 80th in total defense (409.4 yards/game). They are also 93rd in scoring offense (22.8 points/game) and 96th in scoring defense (32.1 points/game). Ryan Radcliff is having a decent season at quarterback, completing 57.5 percent of his passes for 2,375 yards with 17 touchdowns to 12 interceptions. His favorite target is Cody Wilson, who has 47 receptions for 522 yards and three touchdowns. Six different receivers have caught at least two scoring passes from Radcliff this season.
Betting Trends
Central Michigan is just 3-14 ATS in their last 17 games overall, including 0-7 ATS in their last 7 road games. However, the Chippewas are 29-13-3 ATS in their last 45 games following a S.U. win.
Kent State is 3-9 ATS in their last 12 games overall, and 0-5 ATS in their last 5 vs. a team with a losing record.
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