KENT ST GOLDEN FLASHES vs BUFFALO BULLS
When: 7:30 PM ET, Tuesday, November 6, 2018
Where: UB Stadium, Buffalo, New York

TV: 7:30 PM
LINE: -20
PREDICTION: BUFFALO , KENT ST

Oddsmakers currently have the BUFFALO listed as -20 point favorites versus the KENT ST, while the game’s total is sitting at 41.5.

Overall Team Offense

• The Buffalo Bulls are ranked 53 on offense, averaging 421.9 yards per game. The Bulls are averaging 173.2 yards rushing and 248.7 yards passing so far this season.
• The Kent State Golden Flashes are ranked 75 on offense, averaging 392.9 yards per game. The Golden Flashes are averaging 177.7 yards rushing and 215.2 yards passing so far this season.

Home and Away

• The Buffalo Bulls are 4-1 at home this season, 5-0 against conference opponents and 7754-7754 against non-conference opponents.
• At home the Bulls are averaging 34.2 scoring, and holding teams to 25.6 points scored on defense.
• The Kent State Golden Flashes are 1-5 while on the road this season, 1-4 against conference opponents and 7754-7754 against non-conference opponents.
• On the road, the Golden Flashes are averaging 19.3 scoring, and holding teams to 40.5 points scored on defense.

The post KENT ST vs. BUFFALO 11/6/2018 Free Pick & CFB Betting Prediction appeared first on IdealCapper.

KENT ST vs PENN ST
When: 12:00 PM ET, Saturday, September 15, 2018
Where: Beaver Stadium, University Park, Pennsylvania

TV: 12:00 PM
LINE: -34
PREDICTION: PENN ST , KENT ST

Oddsmakers currently have the PENN ST listed as -34 point favorites versus the KENT ST, while the game’s total is sitting at 65.

Penn State eased some concerns following an uneven home opener by thrashing a state rival on the road last week. The 10th-ranked Nittany Lions will try to give the home fans a better showing Saturday when they host Kent State in their final non-conference tune-up prior to Big Ten play.

After needing overtime to get past Appalachian State two weekends ago, Penn State overcame a slow start at Pittsburgh in primetime Saturday night to crush the Panthers 51-6. Trace McSorley threw for two touchdowns and ran for another for the Nittany Lions, who forced three turnovers and held Pitt to 55 yards passing. “I’m proud of how we played,” coach James Franklin said at his weekly press conference. “I think we took a step in the right direction, cleaned up some things. Played aggressive. Played fast. Thought we really did well at the line of scrimmage, both the defensive line and offensive line.” The Golden Flashes will be playing their second Big Ten opponent, having already lost at Illinois 31-24 after taking a 14-point lead into halftime.

TV: Noon ET, Fox Sports 1. LINE: Penn State -35

ABOUT KENT STATE (1-1): Sophomore quarterback Woody Barrett has three passing TDs and two rushing scores through the first two games while tossing three interceptions. He is one of three Golden Flashes with over 100 yards on the ground, including Justin Rankin (team-high 199) and Jo-El Shaw, who had 12 rushes for 105 yards and three TDs in last week’s 54-14 win over Howard. Senior linebacker Matt Bahr had 11 tackles and forced a fumble in the victory as Kent State held the Bison to 270 total yards while forcing four turnovers.

ABOUT PENN STATE (2-0): McSorley lost some weapons from last year but he has a new one in redshirt freshman wide receiver KJ Hamler, who has three touchdowns – including one on a 32-yard run at Pitt – through the first two games. Junior Miles Sanders rushed for a career-high 118 yards against the Panthers while averaging 7.4 yards per carry. McSorley needs 12 rushing yards to become the second Nittany Lions quarterback with 1,000 for a career and he is 257 passing yards away from becoming the second to throw for 8,000.

EXTRA POINTS 

1. McSorley threw for 209 yards and two scores and ran for 47 yards in a 33-13 win over Kent State in his first career start Sept. 3, 2016.

2. Rankin had 82 rushing yards in the 2016 loss at Penn State, which was a career high until he recorded 147 last week.

3. The Nittany Lions have won all five meetings by a combined margin of 144-29.

PREDICTION: Penn State 52, Kent State 17

The post KENT ST vs. PENN ST 9/15/2018 Free Pick & CFB Betting Prediction appeared first on IdealCapper.

KENT ST vs ILLINOIS
When: 12:00 PM ET, Saturday, September 1, 2018
Where: Memorial Stadium, Champaign, Illinois

TV: 12:00 PM
LINE: -15.5
PREDICTION: ILLINOIS , KENT ST

Oddsmakers currently have the ILLINOIS listed as -15.5 point favorites versus the KENT ST, while the game’s total is sitting at 55.5.

Two teams looking to bounce back from ugly two-win seasons face off when Illinois hosts Kent State on Saturday afternoon in a non-conference season opener for both squads. Coach Lovie Smith is in his third year at the helm of the Illini, and he’ll look for his first winning season at the school with a team that has only eight seniors — the least of any team in FBS.

One of those seniors will start under center as Smith named AJ Bush Jr. as his quarterback days before the opener. Another player in his final season at Illinois, wide receiver Mike Dudek, is hoping to recapture the form that he had as a freshman (76 catches, 1,038 yards) before injuries limited him to seven games over the last three seasons. Smith will need to find some defense to keep the Illini in games after they allowed 31.5 points last season, and Smith is looking at another senior, linebacker Del’Shawn Phillips (85 tackles), to lead the way. Sean Lewis, the youngest head coach in FBS at 32, brings the fast-paced offense he ran as offensive coordinator at Syracuse to his first year with the Flashes, promising a much more uptempo attack than years past.

TV: Noon ET, Big Ten Network. LINE: Illinois -16.5

ABOUT KENT STATE (2017: 2-10): Lewis is trying to bring a new attitude to Kent State, looking to ignite the program with his offense that topped FBS in snaps per game with 87.8 at Syracuse a season ago. The Golden Flashes didn’t know who their starting quarterback would be days before the opener — sophomores Woody Barrett and Dustin Crum were the top candidates — but whoever starts at each of the offensive positions on the field had better be ready to play, because Lewis doesn’t like substitutions that slow down his offense. Kent State scored only 12.8 points per game a season ago — second-fewest in FCS to UTEP (11.8), including five contests with three points or fewer, but Lewis is banking on that changing quite a bit in 2018.

ABOUT ILLINOIS (2017: 2-10): Though he’s a senior, Bush Jr. doesn’t have a lot of playing experience at the collegiate level, having played at three other schools before making his way as a graduate transfer to Champaign for his final campaign. Bush spent two years at Nebraska without seeing the field before spending a season at Iowa Western, which led to a season at Virginia Tech, where he played in five games and attempted 11 passes. Smith likes Bush’s experience, though, saying that he trusts the dual-threat signal caller in his first collegiate start because he’s learned how to handle himself throughout his time in college, even if he hasn’t spent a lot of it on the field.

EXTRA POINTS

1. Illinois WR Ricky Smalling ranked fourth in the Big Ten with 16.5 yards per catch as a freshman, finishing with a team-high 510 receiving yards.

2. Kent State LB Jim Jones leads the team’s defense, coming off a junior season in which he paced the Flashes with 98 tackles and six sacks.

3. Illinois has won 20 consecutive home openers, the fourth-longest active streak in the nation.

PREDICTION: Illinois 35, Kent State 21

The post KENT ST vs. ILLINOIS 9/1/2018 Free Pick & CFB Betting Prediction appeared first on IdealCapper.