Ohio Bobcats vs. Eastern Michigan Eagles Predictions, Odds, Picks

VegasInsider Staff Sports Betting Expert

5 minute read

Nov. 9, 2021

Dan Dobish
VI Betting Expert
VegasInsider.com

The Ohio Bobcats (2-7, 2-3 MAC) square off against the Eastern Michigan Eagles (6-3, 3-2) at Rynearson Stadium in Ypsilanti, Mich. for a Mid-American East-West affair Tuesday night at 8 p.m. ET. The game will be televised on ESPN 2.

Score Prediction

Eastern Michigan 45, Ohio 27

Best Bets

Eastern Michigan -7.5 (-105)

Over 60.5 (-110)

Ohio Bobcats vs. Eastern Michigan Eagles Predictions

Ohio hasn’t shown any quit despite the fact it is no longer eligible for a bowl. The hard work paid off with a 35-33 victory over Miami-Ohio last week. The Bobcats opened the season 0-4 SU/ATS, but Ohio has picked up two wins in the previous five outings while hitting the number in four of the past five outings.

Eastern Michigan flexed a little muscle last week in Toledo, rolling up a 52-49 victory as nine-point underdogs as the OVER hit. In fact, both teams nearly took care of the OVER on their own. The Eagles racked up 55 points in the previous game at Bowling Green on Oct. 23, hitting the OVER on its own prior to the bye. Defensively, EMU has struggled a little bit lately, so this one could be a fun game in the later window Tuesday.

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Ohio Bobcats vs. Eastern Michigan Eagles Betting Odds

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Ohio Bobcats vs. Eastern Michigan Eagles Betting Resources

Matchup: MAC
Date: Tuesday, November 9, 2021
Venue: Rynearson Stadium
Location: Ypsilanti, Michigan
TV-Time: ESPN2 - 8:00 p.m. ET

Ohio Bobcats Betting Analysis

Straight Up - SU, Against the Spread - ATS, Over-Under (O/U)

SU: 2-7
ATS: 4-5
O/U: 3-6
ATS - Home: 2-3
ATS - Away: 2-2

The Bobcats registered 125 rushing yards last week with 288 passing yards. The Redhawks gashed the Bobcats for 492 passing yards in the 35-33 win, but Miami couldn’t stop RB De’Montre Tuggle. He posted 69 rushing yards with two touchdowns, while posting 50 receiving yards and a score. QB Kurtis Rourke was good for 288 passing yards and three touchdowns while running for 44 yards.

Ohio built a 28-0 lead before Miami crawled back into the game with 26 unanswered points. But Tuggle answered the bell with a 46-yard touchdown run with 1:35 to go in regulation to secure the team’s second win. He’ll be the team EMU needs to focus on the most, although Rourke can do good things through the air.

Defensively, Ohio has allowed 442.6 total yards per game to rank 111th, and the Bobcats are 118th out of 130 FBS teams with 208.3 yards per game allowed through the air. Ohio has coughed up 31.3 PPG, too.

Eastern Michigan Eagles Betting Analysis

Straight Up - SU, Against the Spread - ATS, Over-Under (O/U)

SU: 6-3
ATS: 4-5
O/U: 5-4
ATS - Home: 2-2
ATS - Away: 2-3

The Eagles were outstanding on offense, going for 130 rushing yards and 360 passing yards, including four passing scores. QB Ben Bryant passed for 354 yards and three touchdowns in Toledo, with WR Hassan Beydoun the biggest beneficiary with 197 yards and two scores.

EMU has an electric offense, going for 268.1 passing yards per game to rank 32nd, and it has posted 34.9 PPG to rank 26th in the nation. Like most MAC teams, the Eagles have struggled a bit on defense, allowing 27.6 PPG to rank 76th, and they’re not particularly good stopping the run.

Eastern Michigan has picked up 107 total points across the past two outings, while yielding 111 total points across the past three. It’s no surprise that the OVER is 3-0 in the previous three outings.

The Ohio Bobcats have lost seven of their last nine games. (AP)

Inside the Stats - Ohio Bobcats

Record: 2-7
VI Ranking: 120
Points Scored: 204
Points Allowed: 282
PS/G: 22.7
PA/G: 31.3

Inside the Stats - Eastern Michigan Eagles

Record: 6-3
VI Ranking: 86
Points Scored: 314
Points Allowed: 248
PS/G: 34.9
PA/G: 27.6

Key Players to Watch

OHIO: Kurtis Rourke - QB (128/183, 1,250 yards, 10 total TD, 4 INT)
OHIO: De'Montre Tuggle - RB (102 rushes, 617 yards, 7 TD)
EMU: Ben Bryant - RB (178/257, 2,190 yards, 13 TD, 5 INT)
EMU: Hassan Beydoun - WR (64 catches, 730 yards, 3 TD)

Ohio Bobcats vs. Eastern Michigan Eagles Betting Conclusion

The Bobcats lead the all-time series 19-12-1, and Ohio won 27-20 in the most recent meeting in Ypsilanti on Sept. 23, 2017. Ohio has won seven of the past eight meetings in this series, too, including four straight meetings at Eastern. Overall, the Bobcats are 5-1 ATS in the past six meetings.

While they’re not winning a lot of games straight up, the Bobcats have covered five of the past six inside the conference. Ohio is also 16-6 ATS in the past 22 as an underdog, and 12-5 ATS in the past 17 as a road ‘dog. They’re showing a lot of fight, but Eastern Michigan might be more than they can handle this season.

Eastern is playing its best football of the season, and the offense has been prolific. A single-number spread is a rather small number. EMU has covered five of the past six appearances on Tuesday, and five of the past seven in conference. If this game were in Athens, I’d be conference, but I love EMU at home here.