Is there a more beautiful time of year than when we get Tuesday and Wednesday night College Football action? It’s one solid argument that maybe the MAC is the best football conference in the country just for the midweek action they deliver to us. Let’s dive into our College Football best bets, Midweek MACtion picks for Week 10.
We have a beautiful five-game slate of MACtion to choose from on this first week of November. First up on Tuesday, we have two games. The Ohio Bobcats will head to Akron to take on the Zips at 7:00 ET on ESPN2. At 8:00 ET, fire the second screen up to ESPN as the Buffalo Bulls take on the Mid-Ohio Redhawks in Oxford. Wednesday brings us Ball State on the road at UMASS; kickoff is set for 7:00 ET on ESPNU. Toledo heads to Sacramento on CBS Sports also at 7:00 ET. MACtion will be capped on Wednesday evening with Central Michigan taking on Eastern Michigan at Ford Field in Detroit. ESPN2 will be the host for the 7:30 ET kick.
Ohio Bobcats -13.5 (-110)
John Houser and his 6-2 Ohio Bobcats head to InfoCision Stadium in Akron to take on the 1-7 Akron Zips. The Bobcats sit atop the MAC, having won their last five games in a row. This is a pretty lopsided matchup, both this season and in recent history. Ohio is atop the league, while the Zips are bottom dwellers. The Bobcats have won seven in a row and nine of the last 10 games against the Zips. But not only have they won, but they’ve also done so in convincing fashion in most of those matchups.
The ground game will be the difference in this one. Ohio averages almost 200 yards per game on the ground. Akron has given up close to that number per game on the ground. Ohio’s game plan should be to pound the ball with Victor Rosa and Duncan Brune. It’ll be hard for Akron to slow it down. Give me the Bobcats to run all over the Zips Tuesday.
Messiah Burch Over 105.5 Rushing Yards (-114)
Messiah Burch is one badass running back. He started the season off with a few alright games when the team played some bigger opponents like the Penn State Nittany Lions. But since they got into conference play in the MAC, he’s been a man on fire. Over the Bulls’ last five games, Burch has 127 carries for 754 yards. That’s an average of 150.8 yards per game, and almost six yards per carry.
He’s gone over this number in all five of those games, including 184 yards against Bowling Green and 172 against UMass. Miami-Ohio has allowed 102.7 rushing yards per game this season. And they haven’t played against Burch yet. Burch is THAT dude. He’ll run all over this Redhawks defense Tuesday.
Eastern Michigan Eagles -1.5 (-110)
“For both programs, it’s a must-win game,” Central Michigan coach Matt Drinkall said. He’s not wrong. It feels like a season slipping away for the Chippewas, who sit at 3-5 overall and just 1-3 in the MAC. The Eastern Michigan Eagles, on the other hand, are just on the outside of the top and looking in. They are 4-5 overall, and 3-2 in the MAC.
If you buy into patterns at all, these cross-state rivals trade off the win each year. Over the last five years, the same team hasn’t won twice. Central Michigan got the better side last year; now it’s Eastern’s time. They are simply the better team this season, and Central Michigan is coming off a heartbreaking loss and starting their backup quarterback.
