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Miami (Ohio) vs. Ball State Predictions & MAC Betting Picks

Dan Kilbridge for Bookies.com

Dan Kilbridge  | 

Miami (Ohio) vs. Ball State Predictions & MAC Betting Picks

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It was a glorious college football betting Saturday in the MAC for Week 7.

Four of the six games in conference were decided by one score, including Central Michigan’s 26-23 overtime win over Toledo. We also happened to find ourselves on the right side of the action, going 3-0 on our conference best bets thanks to the Chippewas, as well as Western Michigan’s blowout win over Kent State and Bowling Green’s narrow cover in a 34-26 loss to Northern Illinois.

We’re starting to feel it now as the conference remains totally up for grabs, with a crucial cross-divisional matchup set for this week as Miami (Ohio) travels to Ball State.

Both teams are 2-1 in conference, and sportsbooks have Ball State as a -5 point favorite for the in-state rivalry game. It’s getting interesting with at least eight legit title contenders. We’d recommend getting dialed in on the MAC betting for what’s gonna be a riveting second half of the season.

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Week 8 MAC Best Bets

Miami (Ohio) +5 over Ball State

These teams are almost identical, statistically, with Ball State slightly better on offense and Miami (Ohio) slightly better on defense. We think that RedHawks defense will be the difference-maker in this one.

Ball State has plenty of momentum coming off three impressive wins over Army, Western Michigan and Eastern Michigan. So what changed after a 1-3 start to the season? Cardinals fans won’t like the answer.

This is mostly the same team aside from a drastic change in turnover ratio. The Cardinals had seven offensive turnovers to just two takeaways in their first four games of the season. In the last three wins, they’ve had zero offensive turnovers and nine takeaways. That’s a random, unsustainable factor for the second-worst offense in conference.

This is a very even matchup and Miami (Ohio) has won four of the last five against the in-state rival. We like the college football odds and are definitely taking the points in this one. We’re on Miami (Ohio) +5 at BetMGM.

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Kent State -6 over Ohio

We wouldn’t be comfortable giving more than a touchdown, but this is a good chance to jump on Kent State. The Golden Flashes just got blown out by the Broncos, but they’ve been good against the bottom-tier MAC squads.

Ohio is going to struggle all day to get stops against this balanced Golden Flashes offense – Kent State averages 226.6 yards passing and 223 yards rushing. Can’t do much better than that. The Bobcats have the worst rushing defense in the conference and Kent State should take advantage. The Golden Flashes’ defense isn’t good either, but at least they have an offense capable of lighting up the scoreboard against a weak opponent.

We definitely see value here on the betting apps and like the line at Caesars Sportsbook. We’re on Kent State -6.

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Western Michigan -1.5 over Toledo

Western Michigan is looking to stay hot at the sportsbooks and betting sites by improving to 5-2-1 against the spread with another cover this week.

The Broncos have looked like the best team in the MAC for much of the year, while the Rockets are in trouble thanks to an offense that isn’t producing like it has in year’s past. We’ve beat that drum all season and it’s paid off in the right spots. This is one of those spots.

Western Michigan’s offense is rolling after the Broncos racked up 648 yards last week in a blowout win over Kent State. Defensively, they’ve looked great in conference play and should be able to keep the Rockets grounded in the Glass Bowl. Western Michigan -1.5 over Toledo at FanDuel is the play.

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Week 7 MAC Matchups and Point Spreads

Game Spread Total
Eastern Michigan at Bowling Green EMU -3 48.5
Northern Illinois at Central Michigan CMU -5 57.5
Kent State at Ohio KENT -6 67
Miami (Ohio) at Ball State BALL -5 52
Western Michigan at Toledo WMU -1.5 55
Buffalo at Akron BUFF -11 57.5

Odds via DraftKings and current as of publication. Check out our DraftKings sportsbook review.

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About the Author

Dan Kilbridge for Bookies.com
Dan Kilbridge
Handicapper Dan Kilbridge writes about college football, MLB and other sports for Bookies.com after spending three years covering Tiger Woods’ comeback and the PGA for Golfweek.