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Navy Ball State Spread

Written September 3, 2008 by Jack Jones

You’ll get more Friday night football action this week as the Navy Midshipmen head to Muncie, Indiana and Scheumann Stadium to take on the Ball State Cardinals with the game televised live for football fans around the country on ESPN. The odds makers at Bookmaker have Ball State listed as a 7-point favorite and the total is listed at 59.

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Ken Niumatalolo is in his first season as head coach of the Midshipmen, and he got off to a great start with the team picking up a 41-13 win over the Towson Tigers last week. The Cardinals looked good in their opener as well when they beat up on the Northeastern Huskies, 48-14.

Last year this matchup was a home game for Navy, but the Cardinals went in and stole the win in a close 34-31 game. It was only the second meeting in the history of the two schools, but Navy is yet to pick up a victory.

The Navy offense didn’t waste any time in putting up big numbers, gaining 602 total yards of offense against Towson, with the usual high percentage of which came on the ground, but 558 rushing yards is an astronomical number. When you look at the success the Midshipmen have had running the ball the last six seasons, with four years of over 300 rushing ypg, it’s certainly no surprise. This win was dominant however, with 26 first downs and running back Shun White rolling in the end zone three times and gaining 348 yards.

The problem when you look at this first game against Towson though is the defense. Sure the 30 rushing yards Navy gave up looks good, but not when you see that the secondary was torched for 330 yards. Last year the team had the same problems with defending the pass when they averaged 263 ypg given up through the air. If you like Navy in this matchup then take the +7 spread at Bookmaker and collect a 20% signup bonus on your initial deposit.

Ball State’s offense was proficient as well in their opener, gaining 487 total yards and 26 first downs. The team committed just four penalties and was balanced with both the run and the pass. Quarterback Nate Davis looked incredible against Northeastern, connecting on 21 of his 24 passes for 290 yards and three touchdowns. Dante Love was the main beneficiary with nine receptions, 171 yards, and a touchdown. With those kinds of numbers in the passing game you might not realize how well the ground game performed as well with 190 yards and three touchdowns.

Defensively, Ball State did a better job against their weaker opponent than Navy did. Northeastern had just 93 rushing yards even with 32 attempts. That was a nice surprise for Cardinals fans after the team gave up more than 200 rushing ypg a year ago.

We fully expect this game to be a blowout. Navy can’t stop the pass, and Ball State showed that they could air it out last week. The Cardinals might have done well against the run in their season opener, but their historically weak run defense will cost them mightily against the Midshipmen. If you like scoring then these two offenses should light up the scoreboard on Friday night.

Predicted Score: Ball State 35, Navy 28

Check out the expert college football picks our handicappers are putting out this weekend and profit over your sportsbook.

For more information on the Navy Ball State game, check out this Q & A at BirdDog.

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