by Amedeus Mastrangelo
Thursday, Sep 23, 2021
Game Time: 7:30 pm ET, Saturday, September 25, 2021
Venue: Ohio Stadium, Columbus, OH
Where to Watch: Big Ten Network
Opening Odds at USA Sportsbooks
DraftKings: Point Spread: Akron +48.5, Ohio State -48.5; Over/Under: 66.5 points
Bet365: Point Spread: Akron +48.5, Ohio State -48.5; Over/Under: 66.5 points
BetMGM: Point Spread: Akron +48.5, Ohio State -48.5; Over/Under: 66.5 points
Season Record
Akron Zips: 1-2 (4th place, MAC East)
Ohio State Buckeyes: 2-1 (4th place, Big Ten East)
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Akron Zips vs Ohio State Buckeyes Preview and Analysis
Recent Form
Akron Zips: won at home on Sep. 18 against the Bryant Bulldogs 35-14.
Ohio State Buckeyes: won at home on Sep. 18 against the Tulsa Golden Hurricane 41-20.
Akron Zips Analysis
Akron is coming into this game with a 1-2 record overall and they are 0-1 in road games this season where they will be in this game. Their 2 losses came against the Auburn Tigers in their season opener and the Temple Owls while their 1 win came against the Bryant Bulldogs in their last game. DJ Irons played really well in that game as he completed 19/23 passes for 296 yards and 3 touchdowns. He also led the team in rushing with 136 yards and 1 touchdown on 15 carries. The run game had a very good day as Anthony Williams Jr. also had 103 rushing yards and 1 touchdown on 9 carries. Konata Mumpfield led the team in receiving with 69 yards and 1 touchdown on 5 receptions while Michael Mathison was right behind him with 61 receiving yards and 1 touchdown on 3 receptions. Bubba Arslanian led the defense with 4 solo tackles and 8 assisted ones. Michael Scott led the defense in sacks with 1.5 while Logan Hawkins also had 1 and Jeslord Boateng had 0.5. No one on the defense had an interception in that game though. They have scored 69 points in their first 3 games and they have allowed their opponents to score 119 points against them. Their offense is averaging 362.7 YPG while their defense is allowing 397 YPG.
Ohio State Buckeyes Analysis
OSU is coming into this game with a 2-1 record overall and they are 1-1 in their home games where they will be in this game. They are 1-0 in conference games this season but this will be their last non-conference game of the regular season. Their 1 loss on the year came against the Oregon Ducks while their 2 wins came against the Minnesota Golden Gophers in their season opener and the Tulsa Golden Hurricane in their last game. CJ Stroud struggled in that game as he completed 15/25 passes for 185 yards, 1 touchdown and 1 interception. TreVeyon Henderson had a massive day in the run game leading his team with 277 rushing yards and 3 touchdowns himself on 24 carries. Master Teague also had 62 rushing yards on 14 carries. Garrett Wilson led the team in receiving with 70 yards and 1 touchdown on 6 receptions. Ronnie Hickman led the defense with 7 solo tackles, 2 assisted ones and he also had 1 interception in the game. Cameron Martinez also came away with an interception in that one while Tyleik Williams and Antwuan Jackson Jr. both recorded 1 sack each. They have scored 114 points in their first 3 games and they have allowed their opponents to score 86 points against them. Their offense is averaging 538.3 YPG while their defense is allowing 471.3 YPG.
Akron vs Ohio State Prediction
OSU is coming in as a very large favorite in this game. With the current betting odds they are about a 49 point favorite here. They have not even scored that many points in any of their games this season let alone cover a spread that size. Akron is not a very good team and they will likely not score a lot of points but, Ohio State's defense is not that special either as they allowed Tulsa to score 20 on them in their last game and their offense even struggled to pull away from them at times in that game. The best play in this game is to bet on Akron to cover the spread as OSU is clearly not the team it has been in past years and they will have to show some improvement before buying into a number that size.
Akron Ohio State Prediction: Our NCAAF Pick for Saturday, September 25, 2021 (7:30 pm ET start time) is OSU 49 Akron 14.
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NCAAF Betting Trends
Akron Zips: 3-18 ATS in all games. 1-16 ATS as an underdog.
Ohio State Buckeyes: 204-158 ATS in all games. 172-137 ATS as a favorite.
Key Injuries
Akron Zips: K. Nelson (QB) Ques Sat - Foot injury. T. Dollard (RB) Out indefinitely - Suspension.
Ohio State Buckeyes: Z. Harrison (DE) Ques Sat - Undisclosed injury. C. Stroud (QB) Out Sat - Shoulder injury. M. Williams (RB) Ques Sat - Illness.
Players to Watch
Akron Zips: DJ Irons is one player to watch in this game. He leads his team in passing and in rushing yards. If Akron has any chance of keeping this game a close one, it all starts with him so look for him to make the plays to keep his team in this one.
Ohio State Buckeyes: TreVeyon Henderson is one player to watch here. CJ Stroud will be out for this game so he will have to pick up the slack in the run game here and keep the pressure off the QB. He is also coming off of a massive game with almost 300 rushing yards in that one game. Look for him to keep up his great play in this one.
Notable Quotes
“Expectations to be the best. To be the best that we can be. I mean, it always is, it never changes.” - Tom Arth on his mentality toward every game and season.
"I wasn't expecting something like this, but I have some big goals for myself. I got plenty more, so I got to keep working." - TreVeyon Henderson on having a massive game in their last one.
Starting Lineups
Akron Zips
WR Mathison, Michael
WR Qualls Jr., George
WR Mumpfield, Konata
TE Brank, Tristian
QB Nelson, Kato
RB Norrils, Jonzell
Ohio State Buckeyes
WR Wilson, Garrett
WR Olave, Chris
WR Smith-Njigba, Jaxon
TE Ruckert, Jeremy
QB Stroud, C.J.
RB Henderson, TreVeyon
Statistical Leaders
Akron Zips
Passing: D. Irons Jr. (534)
Rushing: D. Irons Jr. (165)
Receiving: M. Mathison (230)
Touchdowns: D. Irons Jr. (2)
Sacks: M. Scott (2)
Tackles: B. Arslanian (6)
Ohio State Buckeyes
Passing: C. Stroud (963)
Rushing: T. Henderson (346)
Receiving: G. Wilson (267)
Touchdowns: T. Henderson (4)
Sacks: C. Simon (1)
Tackles: R. Hickman (18)
Coaches:
Akron Zips: Tom Arth (3rd season)
Ohio State Buckeyes: Ryan Day (4th season)
Weather Forecast
65 degrees F scattered showers, 69% humidity, 10% chance of rain, up to 11 mph wind speeds SW.
Amedeus Mastrangelo
About the Author:
Amedeus Mastrangelo has been heavily wagering on all sports for years and plays just about everything, including sides, totals, favorites, underdogs, against the spread, alternative spreads, first half, second half, player props, and futures. The bottom line is, if Mastrangelo can see an edge in any way shape or form, then he's going to take advantage.
