by Chuck Sommers
Monday, Oct 31, 2022
Time: 7:30 p.m. ET
Venue: Peden Stadium, Athens, OH
Where to watch: ESPN2
Opening Odds at USA Sportsbooks
DraftKings: Buffalo -3
FanDuel: Buffalo -3
BetMGM: Buffalo -3
Caesars: Buffalo -3
Season record
Buffalo: 5-3 (4-0 MAC)
Ohio: 5-3 (3-1 MAC)
We're coming down to the wire in what should be an exciting final month of the college football season. The conference championship chases are on, bowl games are to be decided, and who gets into the College Football Playoff is anybody's guess to this point. If you're still trying to figure out who's the best to play at this point of the year, look no further than our champion handicappers leading the way in the college football world. Our own Kyle Hunter is 23-8-0 over the last month, while Brian Bitler is 21-13-0 in the run. Kyle's reeled in a net profit of over $14,000. Now you feel like you should be getting on the action, huh? Make sure you go check out bigal.com to see all of the work our champion handicappers are trying to do to get money in YOUR pocket with our selections. Make sure to hit up our Best Bets page for more!
Buffalo - Ohio preview, analysis and prediction
Last week
Buffalo: won 34-27 vs. Toledo
Ohio: won 24-17 vs. Northern Illinois
I said this last year, and the same rings true here: There is nothing like mid-week MACtion. We’re back baby, and what a way to ring in the November MACtion with a stellar conference matchup between the Buffalo Bulls and Ohio Bobcats, a matchup that’s going to be a fun one for all of us who enjoy Tuesday football.
I said this last year, and the same rings true here: There is nothing like mid-week MACtion. We’re back baby, and what a way to ring in the November MACtion with a stellar conference matchup between the Buffalo Bulls and Ohio Bobcats, a matchup that’s going to be a fun one for all of us who enjoy Tuesday football.
The Bulls are coming into this matchup winners of five straight and are 4-0 in conference play in what’s been an unreal start to the year. Buffalo is coming off a 34-27 win at home over Toledo in what was a return to Buffalo after two straight wins on the road; a 38-7 win at Bowling Green, and a 34-7 win over UMass. The offense has gotten on track with three straight games of at least 34 points, and four of the last five posting 50 points. In the win over Toledo, Bulls quarterback Cole Snyder threw for 245 yards and a touchdown, while running back Ron Cook Jr. ran for 118 yards and a touchdown to pace an efficient running game. But more importantly, the Bulls came back from down 27-10 down in the fourth quarter. Snyder ran from 5 yards out, threw his 32-yard strike to Jamari Gassett, and Cook ran for 30 yards out all in the span of five minutes to take the lead. Alex McNulty added a 42-yard field goal for the added insurance. Perhaps the Bulls needed this kind of game to at least ensure that hope is not at all lost. Whether Buffalo can keep this up the rest of the way remains to be seen, but they’re facing a red-hot team of their own.
The Bobcats are also coming in on a winning streak, having won three in a row following a 24-17 win over Northern Illinois last week, which would be good any other week if not for Northern Illinois having a down year. But the Bobcats are also 5-3 and have found a groove halfway through conference season. For as long as Kurtis Rourke is throwing the football, the Bobcats are going to have a chance. Rourke threw for 200 yards and two touchdowns, including the game-winning 22-yard toss to Sam Wiglusz with 7 minutes to go, and that was all the Ohio defense needed (especially from the home crowd) in the final quarter. Ohio had just 354 total yards of offense while Northern Illinois was held to 377. Northern Illinois had 267 rushing yards and just one touchdown, while NIU quarterback Justin Lynch was held to 110 yards on 9 of 18 passing. You give Ohio’s defense that kind of help, a unit that’s given up 509 yards of total offense to this point, you better find a way a win. But if you look at Ohio the last month, they’ve given up 34 points or fewer in each of these last few games. They gave up 31 to Kent State on Oct. 1, but it took overtime. Against Akron the defense gave up 34 but the offense scored 55. Then the last two weeks, against Northern Illinois and Western Michigan, they gave up 17 and 14 points, respectively. That’s a good look to have for this program trying to right the wrong from earlier in the year.
Prediction
I’m not sure what form of Ohio we’re getting right now. It’s hard to pinpoint if this offense really has enough to outscore opponents if the defense continues to falter, or if this is all fraudulent. I trust Buffalo and its defense, which has had a long history of being good. Maybe not Khalil Mack good, but it’s right up there. If Buffalo can control Rourke and do enough on the ground to keep Ohio off the field, this should be a two-score win for the Bulls. Buffalo by 10
Betting trends
Buffalo is 14-11 ATS in all games the last three years, 6-1 this year.
Buffalo is 6-6 ATS on the road the last three years.
Buffalo is 9-8 ATS in its last 17 conference games.
Ohio is 8-6 ATS as an underdog the last three years.
Ohio is 10-5 ATS in its last 15 conference games.
Statistical leaders
Buffalo:
Passing: Cole Snyder -- 1,907 yards, 12 TD, 5 INT
Rushing: Ron Cook Jr. -- 496 yards, 3 TD
Receiving: Justin Marshall -- 497 yards, 5 TD
Ohio:
Passing: Kurtis Rourke -- 2,408 yards, 16 TD, 3 INT
Rushing: Sieh Bangura -- 495 yards, 7 TD
Receiving: Sam Wiglusz -- 579 yards, 7 TD
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Chuck Sommers
About the Author:
Chuck Sommers has camped outside of sportsbooks since he can remember, learning the tricks and nuances of the trade. He still has nightmares of betting $5,000 on the Raiders in the Tuck Rule game but has since turned that to 25 years of veteran handicapping greatness. You can find him mostly in the shadows at the Red Rock or Aliante casinos wondering if the over is cashing on any given Sunday.
