MAC Championship Prediction
Which MAC team will grind out a win in the 2018 MAC Championship tonight as Buffalo faces Northern Illinois at 7PM ET?
Game Snapshot & Odds
303 Northern Illinois at 304 Buffalo
Friday, November 30, 2018
7PM ET – Ford Field
TV: ESPN2
Public Betting Trends
According to oddsmakers at BetNow.eu, Buffalo is the slight favorite in this game, as the Bulls are getting odds of -3.5 points against NIU. The over/under total for the contest is currently listed at 51 points. The public betting currently has 74 percent going on Buffalo in this contest.
Buffalo coming off big win
Buffalo is coming off a 44-14 win at Bowling Green last week. The Bulls are 10-2 on the season and 7-1 in the MAC. They are 9-3 against the spread and 8-4 with the over. The Bulls have covered the spread in six of their last seven.
The Bulls have been able to win mostly with defense this year, allowing just 24.2 points and 344.6 yards per contest. Their passing defense ranks 13th nationally, allowing just 174.9 yards per game. Offensively, Buffalo put ups 35.2 points and 419.9 yards per contest. Jaret Patterson is leading the offense with 874 rushing yards and 12 touchdowns while Kevin Marks has 733 yards and 11 scores. Quarterback Tyree Jackson has thrown for 2,605 yards and 25 touchdowns and also has seven rushing touchdowns. Anthony Johnson is the leading receiver with 45 catches for 820 yards and nine touchdowns.
Huskies lose two straight
Northern Illinois has lost its last two games entering this game, falling to Miami-Ohio and Western Michigan over the last two weeks. The Huskies are 7-5 overall, 6-2 in the MAC, 6-6 against the spread and 9-3 with the under. They failed to cover the spread in their last two games as well.
NIU has struggled on offense this year. The Huskies rank 122nd nationally in scoring (19.9 ppg) and 125th in total offense (318 ypg). Tre Harbison has led the offense with 950 rushing yards and four touchdowns while quarterback Marcus Childers has thrown for 1,696 yards and 11 touchdowns while also rushing for 438 yards and six touchdowns. Marcus Jones has added 527 rushing yards and four scores. Defensively, the Huskies are pretty strong. They allow just 20.9 points and 344 yards per game. Their run defense ranks 13th nationally by giving up only 107 yards per contest.
College Football Betting Trends
Buffalo
Buffalo is 8-1 against the spread in their last nine conference games and 8-2 ATS in their last 10 games following a win.
Northern Illinois
Northern Illinois is just 4-16-1 against the spread in their last 21 neutral site games and 4-1 ATS in their last five games after allowing less than 100 yards rushing in their previous game.
Prediction:
This game should come down to consistency. It’s probably going to be an ugly game because NIU relies heavily on its defense. Still, the Huskies haven’t looked sharp for nearly a month while Buffalo has looked better and played tougher competition week-to-week in the East Division. The Bulls have shown a lot of consistency to cover the spread while the Huskies can’t say the same. With the spread so low, I will gamble on the Bulls tonight.
MAC Championship Prediction: Buffalo -3.5
Related: MAC Championship Total Prediction