Ball State Cardinals vs Eastern Michigan Eagles Game Preview and Prediction - 10/16/2021

by Amedeus Mastrangelo

Monday, Oct 11, 2021
Game Time: 2:00 pm ET, Saturday, October 16, 2021
Venue:  Rynearson Stadium, Ypsilanti, MI
Where to Watch:  ESPN+

 

Opening Odds at USA Sportsbooks

DraftKings:  Point Spread:  Ball -2.5, EMU +2.5; Over/Under:  54.5 points
Bet365:  Point Spread:  Ball -2.5, EMU +2.5; Over/Under:  54.5 points
BetMGM:  Point Spread:  Ball -2.5, EMU +2.5; Over/Under:  54.5 points
 

Season Record

Ball State Cardinals:  3-3 (4th place, MAC West)
Eastern Michigan Eagles:  4-2 (3rd place, MAC West)
 
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Ball State Cardinals vs Eastern Michigan Eagles Preview and Analysis

 
Recent Form
Ball State Cardinals:  won on the road on Oct. 9 against the Western Michigan Broncos 45-20.
Eastern Michigan Eagles:  won at home on Oct. 9 against the Miami-OH RedHawks 13-12.
 
 
 

Ball State Cardinals Analysis

Ball State is coming into this game with a 3-3 record overall and they are 1-2 in their road games this season where they will be in this game. This will be their 3rd conference matchup of the year and they are currently 1-1 in their conference games this season. Their 1 loss came against the Toledo Rockets while their 1 win came against WMU in their last game. They won that game 45-20 after falling behind in the 1st quarter, it was all Ball State after that point. Drew Plitt played a great game as he completed 15/25 passes for 310 yards and 4 touchdowns. Carson Steele led the team in rushing with 41 yards on 10 carries but they did not have much of a running game in that one. Yo'Heinz Tyler led the receivers with 93 yards and 2 touchdowns on 5 receptions while Jalen McGaughy right behind him with 75 yards and 1 touchdown on 1 reception. Jayshon Jackson also had a nice day with 3 catches for 61 yards. Overall, it was a great day for the receiving corps. Bryce Cosby led the defense with 10 solo tackles while J.T. Wahee was right behind him with 9 solo tackles. Jaylin Thomas and Clayton Coll also had great games for the defense as they had 8 solo and 7 solo tackles respectively. Cosby, Anthony Ekpe, Jack Sape, and Emeka Jillani all had 1 sack each in that game while Thomas and Coll both had 1 interception each. They have scored 141 points in their first 6 games averaging 23.5 PPG and they have allowed their opponents to score 168 points against them allowing 28 PPG. Their offense is averaging 319.7 YPG while the Ball State defense is allowing 401.2 YPG.
 
 

Eastern Michigan Eagles Analysis

EMU is coming into this game with a 4-2 record overall and they are 3-0 in their home games this season where they will be in this game. This will be their 3rd conference matchup on their schedule and they are currently 1-1 in their conference games this season. They lost to the Northern Illinois Huskies but their 1 win came against Miami-OH in their last game. They had a lead for most of the game in that one but they just squeaked out the win 13-12. Ben Bryant struggled in that game as he completed 21/31 passes for 206 yards, 1 touchdown and 1 interception. Darius Boone led the team in rushing with 36 yards on 9 carries but they did not really get much of a run game going in that one. Dylan Drummond led the receivers with 93 yards on 7 receptions while Hassan Beydoun had 52 receiving yards on 6 receptions. Kempton Shine led the defense with 7 solo tackles and 1 assisted one while Jarrett Paul was right behind him with 6 solo tackles and 1 assisted one. Jose Ramirez, Turan Rush, and Mikey Haney all had 1 sack each in that game but no one on the defense was able to come away with an interception. They have scored 176 points in their first 6 games averaging 29.3 PPG and they have allowed their opponents to score 137 points against them allowing 22.8 PPG. Their offense is averaging 356.8 YPG while Eastern Michigan’s defense is allowing 389.8 YPG.
 

 

Ball State vs Eastern Michigan Prediction

Eastern Michigan has not started their conference schedule out on the right foot with a loss to NIU and then a close 1 point win against Miami-OH right after. Ball State is starting to pick up some steam here as they have won their last 2 games straight beating Army and then blowing out WMU, who was the best team in the conference coming into that game, by 25 points. Ball State has been playing much better on offense as they have scored over 25 points in each of their last 2 and their defense is playing better as well as they have not allowed more than 20 points in their last 2 games. EMU has failed to score more than 20 points on offense in 2 straight games now and both were against conference opponents. Ball State is coming into this game as a 2.5 point favorite with the current betting odds according to Draftkings sportsbook. The best bet to place in this game is on Ball State to cover the spread here as they are playing much better right now and have the momentum on their side.
 
Ball State Eastern Michigan Prediction:  Our NCAAF Pick for Saturday, October 16, 2021 (2:00 pm ET start time) is Ball State 27 EMU 20.
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NCAAF Betting Trends

 
Ball State Cardinals: 40-31 O/U as a favorite. 81-61 ATS in road games. 21-14 ATS in a road game where the total is between 49.5 and 56. 67-61 O/U against conference opponents.
Eastern Michigan Eagles: 120-138 ATS in all games. 29-40 ATS when the total is between 49.5 and 56. 100-109 ATS as an underdog. 33-42 ATS as a home underdog. 46-65 ATS in home games. 86-92 ATS against conference opponents.
 

Key Injuries

 
Ball State Cardinals:  D. Koch (TE) Ques Sat - Undisclosed injury. K. Slaven (OL) Ques Sat - Undisclosed injury. B. Martin (LB) Out indefinitely - Knee injury. T. Evans (RB) Out indefinitely - Leg injury.
Eastern Michigan Eagles:  None.
 

Players to Watch

 
Ball State Cardinals: Carson Steele is one player to watch in this contest. He leads his team in rushing yards and in touchdowns scored this season. He had a quiet game in their last one so he will be looking to get more involved in their offense here. Look for him to get a lot of touches and find the end zone with some good runs in this game. 
 
Eastern Michigan Eagles: Hassan Beydoun is one player to watch here. He leads his team in receiving yards this season. He had a quiet game in his last one and will be looking to make up for that here as he is a big part of this offense. Look for him to make some big catches down the field and help his team score some points in this game. 
 

Notable Quotes

 
"We knew we were going to take shots. All week in practice we were taking shots, we knew we could run the ball or push the ball down the field in the air. I read something that said we couldn’t throw the ball, we didn’t have a deep threat and I think we proved that wrong this week.” - Drew Plitt on their big win over WMU in their last game.
 
 
 
"Championship defense with a tremendous swagger. They believe in each other. Coach Stockton is a very passionate, unbelievable motivator, great leader. ... Credit to our defense. Credit to our players being bought in, working hard all week long in practice, perfecting their assignment, taking it over to the football field and delivering." - Mike Neu on their win against WMU in their last game.
 

Starting Lineups

 
Ball State Cardinals
WR Tyler, Yo'Heinz 
WR Justin Hall
WR Jackson, Jayshon 
TE Koch, Dylan 
QB Plitt, Drew 
RB Jones, Will 
FB Rudy, Cody 
 
Eastern Michigan Eagles
WR Westmoreland, Zach 
WR Drummond, Dylan 
WR Beydoun, Hassan 
TE Odukoya, Thomas 
QB Bryant, Ben 
RB Boone Jr., Darius 

Statistical Leaders

 
Ball State Cardinals
Passing: D. Plitt (1157)
Rushing: C. Steele (241)
Receiving: J. Hall (416)
Touchdowns: C. Steele (4)
Sacks: B. Cosby (3)
Tackles: B. Cosby (34)
 
Eastern Michigan Eagles
Passing: B. Bryant (1219)
Rushing: J. Hamilton (279)
Receiving: H. Beydoun (412)
Touchdowns: S. Evans (6)
Sacks: T. Rush (3.5)
Tackles: T. Myrick (19)
 
Coaches:
Ball State Cardinals: Mike Neu (6th season)
Eastern Michigan Eagles: Chris Creighton (8th season)
 

Weather Forecast

60 degrees F scattered showers, 67% humidity, 40% chance of rain, up to 13 mph wind speeds NW.


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.

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