College Football Betting News and Notes Friday 11/30

MAC Championship Preview: Northern Illinois vs. Kent State
By Otto Sports
Sportsmemo.com

Northern Illinois vs. Kent State
Friday, 4 pm PT, Detroit - ESPN2
CRIS Opener: Northern Illinois -5 O/U 58
CRIS Current: Northern Illinois -6 O/U 58
Rob Veno's Power Rating: Kent State pk

The MAC Championship returns to the fast track at Ford Field this week for what should be an exciting game. Both Kent State (East Division winner) and Northern Illinois (West Division winner) have been on fire this year; both teams are 11-1 SU and both have been a bettor’s dream going a combined 19-4 ATS. So what got these teams here and who can we expect to hoist the trophy at the end of the day?

The secret to the success of NIU and Kent State is simple really; they play solid defense and they employ dominating ground attacks. Looking at the individual teams we see a number of key factors that have sparked this winning formula. For the Huskies, they finished second in scoring defense and third in total defense in the MAC this year. They also were just short of leading the conference in defensive yards per play allowed at a very solid 4.65 which is nearly a full 1.0 yard better than Kent State. For the Golden Flashes, while they were also a solid scoring and total defensive metric team, it’s clear they flourished because of forcing turnovers. Not only did Kent lead the conference in takeaways with 33 but they finished second nationally in that category.

Offensively we’ll get to see two of the most dynamic players in the MAC. KIU’s QB Jordan Lynch led the conference in rushing yards per game averaging over 134 ypg with 16 rushing TDs to his credit. While he’s a better runner than pure passer he still must be considered a true dual threat as he added a rock solid 23 passing TDs on the year compared to just four INTs while boasting the MAC’s best passer rating. On the flip side KSU’s Dri Archer is perhaps the most exciting player in the country. If you haven’t seen him play yet you’re in for a real treat. This kid averages over 15 yards per catch and close to 10 yards per carry as a multi threat scat back. He has run three kickoffs back for TDs this year to go along with 14 rushing TDs, four receiving TDs and a passing TD. To say he does it all is an understatement!

It should be noted that Archer left last week’s win over Ohio briefly with an ankle injury. Upon his return he looked to be hampered a bit and didn’t quite have his typical burst. The coaching staff took it easy on him and by all accounts he’ll be ready to play this weekend. However, projecting him at full health is a stretch right now. Hopefully we’ll get to see the best of him.

The MAC title game has not seen many shootouts of late with game scores of 43, 47 and 30 the past three years. While both teams have explosive players and have scored in bunches this year the unfamiliar environment and inherent pressure that a title game brings may just hold them in check for a bit. In terms of balance NIU is the superior team as Kent’s passing game is well below average and if Archer isn’t 100% it’ll be a difficult task for them to keep pace. But their opportunistic defense could always come up with a game changing turnover which can be a lifeline. I for one am looking forward to watching this showdown.

Of course we also have to mention Kent and NIU have an outside shot of getting into a BCS game should they win and jump a team or two to get into the top 16 of the rankings. I'm not sure how all that will play out and frankly I don't care and don't think the players care at this point. The only thing on their minds is winning this game.

Golden Flashes Close In On Big Payday
By James Patrick
Playbook.com

In an early October article this handicapper stated that the Kent State University Golden Flashes will not only show up in a postseason Bowl Game but may capture the MAC Title as well this season. At (11-1), the Flashes have shattered the 90-year program record for victories in a season set by the (Don) James Gang (9-2) in 1973. In fact, in just the second season under head coach Darrell Hazell, the Golden Flashes have accomplished in two seasons (16 wins) what once took (12) years. In a 12-season span from 1989-2000, Kent State combined for only (16) wins (16-115-1).

Now for the first time since 2003, two ranked teams will meet in the Marathon Mid-American Conference Championship Game Friday night when No. 18 Kent State and No. 19 Northern Illinois collide at Ford Field in Detroit on ESPN 2. Both teams went unbeaten in conference play (a program first for Kent State) and clinched title game spots a week early. The Golden Flashes are seeking their first MAC crown since 1972, while the defending champion Huskies are making their third straight title game appearance.

Kent State's rise to the No. 17 ranking in the BCS Standings is its highest in school history in any poll and has the Golden Flashes within one spot of a multimillion dollar payday as if Friday's winner finishes 16th or higher in the Dec. 2 BCS standings, it earns a trip to a BCS bowl (Rose, Sugar, Orange, Fiesta). The fact that two of the Big East's Conference top two teams, Rutgers (9-2) and Louisville (9-2), are not in the top 25 of the BCS standings has opened the door real wide for Kent State.

BCS rules state that a school not from a "guaranteed bid" conference earns a spot in one of the BCS Bowls if it finishes in the top 16 and is ahead of the top-ranked team from one of the guaranteed bid conferences.

The magical season for the KSU Football Program can take another huge leap with a win on Friday Night in "Motown". Coupled with the MAC Championship in hand the Golden Flashes will need help by the way of potential losses from UCLA, Texas and Wisconsin. This is the closest the MAC has come to a BCS payday since Ball State was undefeated in 2008 until being upset in the final game of the season at the MAC Championship Game.

Look for Darrell Hazell to be moving into a higher tax bracket real soon as the Big Boys will come calling to Kent, Ohio looking for one of the best young talents in the College Football Coaching Profession to turn their schools football fortunes around the same way Hazell has done it at Kent State University.

PAC-12 Championship Preview: UCLA at Stanford
By Alf Musketa
SportsMemo.com

UCLA at Stanford
Friday, 5 pm PT - FOX
CRIS Opener: Stanford -10.5 O/U 51.5
CRIS Current: Stanford -8.5 O/U 44
Rob Veno's Power Rating: Stanford -7.5

Rarely do you see two teams in college football play the same team in the same year let alone in back-to-back games. But that is the situation for Friday’s PAC-12 Championship between UCLA and Stanford.

Stanford has won 19 of its past 20 home games; the only loss was against Oregon last season. They have won 10 games in three straight seasons and are currently on a six-game winning streak. UCLA lost to Oregon State and also at California before winning five straight which is the school's longest winning streak in seven years. They managed to dethrone USC 38-28 two weeks ago in a game that likely meant much more to the program than the last week's Stanford game. Either way it was not a good spot for the Bruins.

The Cardinal defeated UCLA comfortably 35-17 in the Rose Bowl this past Saturday, but as Stanford's head coach David Shaw has publicly mentioned several times, "UCLA will be trying 10 times harder this week and we will be getting their best shot in this game." And for many of us this was the analysis that we were hoping for last week as Stanford was the play. Now, UCLA coming with everything it has, is certainly worth a look as an underdog.

On Sunday Stanford opened -10.5 and has now been bet down to -8.5. If you failed to get plus double-digits with UCLA you missed out because I do not envision this line going back up. I made the line Stanford -12 and was hoping to get plus two touchdowns, but perhaps I was too high with my number and should have taken +10. At this price, this game is a pass for me.

Northern Illinois vs. Kent State: What Bettors Need to Know
By Covers.com

Northern Illinois at Kent State (6.5, 67.5)

For the first time since 2003, two ranked teams will meet in the Mid-American Conference championship game when No. 17 Kent State and No. 21 Northern Illinois meet Friday at Ford Field in Detroit. Recording-breaking seasons have both teams on the brink of program history and the stakes couldn’t be much higher for either team as a possible automatic bid to a BCS game awaits the winner. Although the MAC is not an automatic-bid BCS conference, league champions from mid-major conferences can receive one if they finish the season ranked in the top 16 and above a champion from an automatic-qualifying conference in the final BCS standings. The Golden Flashes enter the game on a school-record 10-game winning streak and have defeated 12 straight conference foes overall. The Huskies, winners of 11 straight, are riding a 16-game conference winning streak – a run that began with a 40-10 victory over Kent State last season.

LINE: Northern Illinois -6.5, O/U 67.5.

ABOUT NORTHERN ILLINOIS (11-1, 8-0 MAC): The Huskies will be seeking their second straight MAC title behind coach Dave Doeren and have already set a school record for victories. The offense is in the capable hands of darkhorse Heisman Trophy candidate Jordan Lynch, who extended his own FBS record of consecutive 100-yard rushing performances by a quarterback to 10 in the Northern Illinois’ 49-7 victory over Eastern Michigan on Saturday. In the same game, sophomore Tommylee Lewis became the first player in school history to score three kickoff return touchdowns in his career.

ABOUT KENT STATE (11-1, 8-0): The Golden Flashes, who have already locked up their first postseason game since the 1972 Tangerine Bowl, possess two 1,000-yard rushers in Dri Archer (1,373) and Trayion Durham (1,199), and as a result, rank 11th in the FBS in rushing offense. Archer – the school’s single season record-holder in touchdowns with 21 – leads the nation in kick return average, is fifth in all-purpose yards and tied for ninth in scoring. Kent State also ranks second in the FBS with a plus-20 turnover margin and 35 forced turnovers.

TRENDS:

* Huskies are 7-1-1 ATS in their last nine games overall.
* Golden Flashes are 4-0 ATS in their last four vs. a team with a winning record.
* Huskies are 5-0 ATS in their last five meetings.
* Under is 4-1 in the last five meetings.

EXTRA POINTS:

1. Northern Illinois has won five straight games in this series.

2. Only Ohio State and Middle Tennessee have matched Kent State’s six-win increase from last season.

3. The Huskies and Golden Flashes are among five FBS teams to have won 15 of their last 17 games overall.

UCLA at Stanford: What Bettors Need to Know
By Covers.com

UCLA at Stanford (-8, 43.5)

In a game few expected and under very unusual circumstances, No. 8 Stanford will play No. 16 UCLA for the second time in less than a week Friday in the Pac-12 Conference championship game with a Rose Bowl berth on the line. While conference championship games have brought about the possibility of meeting one opponent twice in the same season, it is extremely rare the same two schools could face each other twice over the course of six days. Entering the season, it seemed just as unlikely this game would feature anyone else beside Oregon and USC, but late-season losses to the Cardinal and Bruins, respectively, set the stage for UCLA to clinch its berth in the title game a week early while Stanford needed a win over the Bruins last week in order to hold off the Ducks in the North Division. And the Cardinal took advantage of the opportunity, trouncing UCLA 35-17 in Pasadena.

LINE: Stanford -8, O/U 43.5.

WEATHER: Forecasts are calling for temperatures in the mid-50s with a 95 percent chance of rain. Winds will blow out of the south at 13 mph.

ABOUT UCLA (9-3, 6-3 Pac-12): Running back Johnathan Franklin needs 18 all-purpose yards to break Maurice Jones-Drew's school record and 66 yards rushing to set the Bruins’ single-season mark held by Karim Abdul-Jabbar. However, Franklin will have his work cut out for him against the nation’s top rushing defense – the same one that held him to 65 yards last week. Athletic freshman quarterback Brett Hundley was sacked seven times in the loss to the Cardinal, but is also on the brink of breaking several school records, including single-season total offense (needs 137 yards), passing yardage (236) and completions (27).

ABOUT STANFORD (10-2, 8-1): The Cardinal have won eight straight games and already secured a 10-win season for the third consecutive year – a school-record. Since Kevin Hogan replaced Josh Nunes in the win over Colorado on Nov. 3, the freshman quarterback has directed his team to victories over three ranked teams - Oregon State, Oregon and UCLA - in his first three career starts. Stepfan Taylor raised his career rushing total to 4,134 yards in the victory over UCLA and needs 36 yards in the rematch to break Darrin Nelson’s school record (1977-81).

TRENDS:

* Bruins are 0-4 ATS in their last four meetings.
* Bruins are 1-6 ATS in their last seven meetings in Stanford.
* Over is 5-0 in Bruins’ last five games overall.
* Stanford is 5-0 ATS in its last five November games.

EXTRA POINTS:

1. Stanford has won eight straight and 19 of its past 20 home games.

2. UCLA’s four road wins this season are its most since winning five in 2002.

3. The Bruins and Cardinal will be playing for their first Rose Bowl berth since 1999 and 2000, respectively.

Games to Watch - Week 14
By Christian Alexander
VegasInsider.com

Northern Illinois at Kent State

Northern Illinois vs. Kent State (MAC Championship Game - Friday) - This could actually be a very entertaining game. The Golden Flashes (that's Kent State for you non MAC followers) are going to their first MAC title game ever after piling up the most wins in school history. In fact, Kent State and Northern Illinois both finished the season 8-0 in conference and 11-1 on the year. This is only the 2nd time in the 67 year of existence of the MAC that two teams had 11 wins in the same season. The other was in 2003 which featured Bowling Green and a 13-1 Ben Roethlisberger lead Miami (OH) team. These two teams also combine to average 75 points per game this year. Like I said, if you don't have anything else to do Friday night, this could actually be a very entertaining game.

Stanford vs. UCLA

Same song, different verse. These two teams just met over the weekend and now go right back at it, only this time in Palo Alto, and this time with a Rose Bowl berth on the line. Stanford might actually be one of the most underrated teams in the country having just beaten former No. 2 Oregon at Auzten Stadium in overtime two weeks ago, and UCLA last Saturday, 35-17. The two losses sustained by The Cardinal are at No. 1 Notre Dame in overtime after a controversial goal-line stand and at Washington 17-13, which is one of the hardest places to play in the country. With that said, UCLA has actually been one of the biggest surprises of the season and these two Pac-12 schools are actually very similar in a number of ways. Each has a top tier running back, an emerging redshirt freshman quarterback, and an NFL caliber tight end. In fact, Stanford only managed to outgain the Bruins by 47 yards (381 to 334) despite winning by 18 points. On top of everything, David Shaw and Jim Mora have done two of the best coaching jobs in the country behind Brian Kelly and Bill O'Brien (in my opinion). The biggest difference is the Stanford defense, specifically their front seven, which might be as good as anyone in the country. The Cardinal rank 10th in the nation in points against at 16.9 points per game, including only allowing 14 points to an Oregon team that averages 51.1 points. Back in August everyone thought for sure this game would be Oregon vs. USC for the PAC-12 title. In fact Stanford was picked to finish second in the North while UCLA was picked to finish third in the South. Instead, these two teams will meet for the Pac-12 Championship on Friday where Stanford comes into this game a 10-point home favorite.

Pac-12 Championship
By Joe Williams
VegasInsider.com

For the second time in six days, the UCLA Bruins (9-3 straight up, 7-5 against the spread) and Stanford Cardinal (10-2 SU, 8-4 ATS) hook up. In an odd and unexpected twist, these two Pac-12 Conference foes met in the regular season finale, and then each clinched a spot in the Pac-12 Championship Game to be played in Palo Alto, Calif.

Freshman QB Kevin Hogan and the Cardinal trucked the Bruins 35-17 in Pasadena last Saturday, and will now have the Bruins visiting their turf at Stanford Stadium. The line opened at 10 points, but bettors are dubious that the Cardinal can dominate for a second consecutive game. The line has dropped to around eight points.

Hogan and the pass game has been solid for Stanford, but watch out for RB Stepfan Taylor, too. He needs just 36 yards in Friday's game to pass Darrin Nelson for the school's all-time rushing yardage record. That's a mark which has stood since Nelson was on campus from 1977-81, so that tells you a little bit about how special Taylor is, especially considering this team has seen the likes of Tommy Vardell and, more recently, Toby Gerhart. Taylor has rumbled for 1,364 rushing yards with 13 touchdowns.

Also keep an eye on TE Zach Ertz when the going gets tough for the Cardinal offense. He is good for a team-leading 818 receiving yards, making plenty of difficult receptions to move the chains this season. Just ask Oregon how clutch Ertz was, as he had 11 grabs for a game-high 106 yards and a touchdown in Stanford's shocking overtime victory at Autzen Stadium against the then-unbeaten Oregon Ducks.

The Bruins have a pretty dominant back of their own in Johnathan Franklin. He was the nation's leader for a while earlier in the season. He needs 18 all-purpose yards to surpass former standout Maurice Jones-Drew for the school record. He is also within reach of the single-season rushing yardage mark, needing just 66 yards to supplant Karim Abdul-Jabbar in the record books.

While Franklin is good for 1,507 rushing yards and 13 touchdowns, he is definitely not the only player for Stanford to be concerned about. QB Brett Hundley has rolled up 3,234 passing yards this season, with 771 yards of those yards going to 6-foot-1, 201-pound WR Shaquelle Evans, who is a nice target for the Bruins. TE Joseph Fauria has logged 11 receiving touchdowns, and is a huge target at 6-foot-7 and 255 pounds. He scored a touchdown last week against Stanford, and has found the end zone at least once in five straight games.

On the defensive end, UCLA CB Andrew Abbott is a ball hawk, posting a team-best four interceptions, and Stanford S Ed Reynolds roams the middle of the field, snaring a team-best five interceptions.

RECENT TRENDS

The Bruins are just 5-12 ATS in their past 17 road games, and UCLA is just 2-6 ATS in their past eight road games against a team with a winning record. The good news is that they have won four road games straight-up this season, which is the most since they won five games away from Pasadena back in 2002. The Bruins are 5-2 ATS in their past seven games against a team with a winning record.

For Stanford, they are 4-0 ATS in their past four games against a team with a winning record, and an impressive 17-5-1 ATS in their past 23 Pac-12 tilts. In addition, Stanford has won eight straight and 19 of their past 20 home games overall. Stanford has also covered six of their past seven games overall.

In head-to-head matchups, the favorite is 4-0 ATS in the past four meetings, and the home team is 7-3 ATS in the past 10 meetings overall. UCLA hasn't had much success against Stanford lately, either. The Bruins are 1-6 ATS in their past seven trips to Palo Alto, and 0-4 ATS in the past four meetings overall.

If you're interested in betting the total, the over has come through in five consecutive games for UCLA, and six of the past seven. For Stanford, the over cashed last week, and has hit in two of the past three. However, the over is just 3-3 in the Cardinal's six home games this season. Tonight's total is hovering around 44 points.

MAC Title Game
By Sportsbook.ag

Northern Illinois (11-1) vs. Kent State (11-1)

Line & Total: Northern Illinois -7 (-115) & 58
Opening Line & Total: Huskies -5 & 58

A pair of schools without a loss in conference play will clash for the MAC Championship Friday night when No. 19 Northern Illinois and No. 18 Kent State meet at Ford Field in Detroit.

Both teams are 8-0 in conference play with NIU going 6-2 ATS and KSU going 7-1 ATS. Since re-joining the MAC, the Huskies are 6-1 (SU and ATS) in seven meetings with the Flashes, winning 40-10 last year. Northern Illinois is playing in its third straight MAC Championship game, scoring the final 23 points in last year's 23-20 win over Ohio. NIU QB Jordan Lynch has 39 total TD this season and a streak of 100+ rushing yards in 10 straight games. KSU has two 1,000-yard rushers, Dri Archer and Trayion Durham. Archer injured his ankle in last week's game, but is probable to play on Friday. Not only have the Huskies dominated this series, but they have a borderline Heisman candidate in Lynch who has 4,361 total yards (363 per game, 3rd in FBS). Kent State is a one-dimensional rushing offense, and NIU's run defense has been outstanding in the past six games, allowing just 102 YPG on 2.6 yards per carry. And favorites of 3.5 to 10 points, off a conference road win against an opponent off 2 straight conference wins are 51-21 ATS (71%) in the past 10 seasons.

Lynch has thrown for 16 touchdowns and just one interception over his past eight games, a span of 216 pass attempts. Although he played sparingly in last year's rout of Kent State, he was still able to rush for 46 yards and a touchdown on just eight carries (5.8 YPC) and complete 3-of-4 passes for 22 more yards. But Lynch won't be the only player carrying the football on Friday. Akeem Daniels ran for 112 yards and 4 TD on just 12 carries in last week's 49-7 blowout at Eastern Michigan, and needed only six carries to gain 58 yards against the Flashes last year. NIU's defense has been outstanding late in the year, holding four of the past six opponents to seven points or less. The Huskies' defensive line gets great pressure on the quarterback (2.8 sacks per game, T-14th in FBS) and has tallied 7.2 Tackles For Loss per game (16th in nation). This surge at the line of scrimmage has led to 21 forced turnovers in the past eight games.

Kent State was held to seven yards on 37 carries in the loss to Northern Illinois last year, but its rushing offense has been much improved this year, ranking 11th in the nation with 242 YPG. Not only does Archer have 1,337 yards on a crazy 9.7 YPC with 14 TD on the ground, but he's also KSU's top receiver with 458 yards and 4 TD. Durham has 1,176 yards (5.0 YPC) and 14 scores on the ground and is looking to redeem himself from his paltry 39 yards on 15 carries (2.6 YPC) against NIU as a freshman. The Flashes can't afford to trail in this game because they don't have a good enough quarterback to throw his way back into the football game. Senior Spencer Keith has just 11 TD and 7 INT in a dozen games, and averages a mere 125 passing YPG in the past eight games, failing to reach 200 passing yards in any of these games. His offensive line does a solid job protecting him (1.3 sacks allowed per game, T-29th in nation), which is vital against the Huskies D-Line. Kent State also boasts the best turnover margin in the entire country (+20), with an astounding 35 takeaways and just 15 giveaways. This ratio has helped make up for a subpar defense allowing 410 total YPG (75th in FBS), including 282 passing YPG, which is the 10th-most yards allowed through the air in the nation.

NCAAF Week 14

Kent State is going to bowl this year for first time in 40 years, and only second time ever; this is their first winning season since 2001- their only loss this year was 47-14 at Kentucky Sept 8; Golden Flashes won last 10 games, but lost last five games with Northern Illinois by average of 20 points, losing 40-10 LY in DeKalb LY. Northern Illinois lost MAC title game two years ago, then won it LY, rallying back from down 20-0; they are 11-1, with only loss 19-17 to Iowa in season opener on neutral field in Chicago. Huskies then had close games with Army (41-40), Kansas (30-23) but have only one MAC win by less than 14 points.

Stanford (-2) hammered UCLA 35-17 last week in Pasadena, now meet Bruins again for Pac-12 title. Cardinal outrushed UCLA 221-73, led by 11 at half- Bruins had 12 penalties for 135 yards. Stanford was held to 13 points in both its losses this year (@ Washington/@ Notre Dame in OT); they're 6-0 SU at home, but 1-4 as home favorite, with only one home win by more than 7 points. UCLA allowed 99 points in last three games. Both teams had emotional wins two weeks ago, its a short week playing third straight big game in bad weather. Rain/20 mph winds are expected in Bay Area all day Friday.

Armadillosports.com

Kent State vs. Northern Illinois — MAC Championship Game
By: The Linemakers
Sportingnews.com

Two red-hot MAC teams collide tonight when favored Northern Illinois takes on Kent State at Ford Field in Detroit (7:00 p.m. ET, ESPN2), with the winner staying in the hunt for the conference’s first BCS Bowl berth.

Northern Illinois (11-1, 9-3 ATS) has won 10 straight games since an opening-game loss against Iowa. Kent State (11-1, 10-2 ATS) has won 10 straight games since a Week 2 loss at Kentucky.

Line: 7

Total: 58

Line movement: Northern Illinois opened as a 5-point favorite at the LVH SuperBook, but was bet up to as high as -7.5 on Thursday. The line sits at -7 throughout Vegas as of Friday morning. The Huskies are 19-1 straight-up in their last 20 games as a favorite and have covered the spread in eight of their last nine games when favored.

The total was sitting at 58, right where it opened, on Friday morning.

The Huskies average 40.5 points and allow 17.5 points per game. The Golden Flashes average 34.4 points and allow 23.5 points per game.

Weather: Dome

Recent meetings:

Oct. 8, 2011, in DeKalb, Illinois: Northern Illinois (-14.5) 40, Kent State 10

Nov. 18, 2008, in Kent, Ohio: Northern Illinois (-1.5) 42, Kent State 14

Notable Trends:

Huskies are 18-7-1 in their last 26 conference games.

Huskies are 3-8 ATS in their last 11 neutral-site games.

Golden Flashes are 14-3 ATS in their last 17 games overall.

Huskies Outlook: Considered the most talented team in the MAC over the last several seasons, Northern Illinois can put up huge offensive numbers in a hurry. Quarterback Jordan Lynch is one of the top duel threats in the nation. He’s thrown for 24 touchdowns and run for another 16. The Huskies rank No. 1 in the MAC in rushing offense, total offense and scoring offense.

Huskies' key injuries:

RB Leighton Settle (ankle) doubtful

CB Marckie Hayes (ankle) probable

Golden Flashes Outlook: Kent State managed just 64 total yards in last season’s loss to Northern Illinois. The Golden Flashes are a one-dimensional offense, relying on the ground game. Kent State averages 241.5 yards rushing, but only 160.7 yards through the air. Kent State’s pass defense is suspect, allowing 281 yards and ranking 111th in the nation. Leading rusher Dri Archer hurt his ankle in last week’s win over Ohio. He’s expected to play, but may not be 100 percent.

Golden Flashes' key injuries:

RB Dri Archer (ankle) probable

DB Darius Polk (foot) questionable

The Linemakers’ Take: Kent State was expected to be a middle-of-the-pack team in the conference but has far exceeded expectations under promising second-year coach Darrell Hazell. But Northern Illinois appears to have separated itself from the rest of the conference talent-wise. The Don Best/Linemakers Power Ratings have the Huskies rated more than seven points higher than the Golden Flashes. The opportunity to lay just a a touchdown with the more-talented and more-balanced team is hard to ignore

UCLA vs. Stanford Point Spread, Las Vegas Betting Line and Analysis
By: The Linemakers
Sportingnews.com

The UCLA Bruins (9-3 SU, 6-3 ATS) and Stanford Cardinal (10-2 SU, 8-1 ATS) meet Friday night at Stanford Stadium (8:00 p.m. ET, FOX). Here is point spread information and trends from The Linemakers on Sporting News. For updated college football lines, visit our live odds page.

John Avello, executive director and head oddsmaker at the Las Vegas Wynn sports book, said the rematch between Stanford and UCLA was one of the more difficult lines to set this week.

Stanford ran over UCLA as a small favorite Saturday in Los Angeles. Six days later, the Bruins get a shot at redemption in Palo Alto. But this time they’re much bigger underdogs.

“That game was tough for me,” said Avello. “I saw Stanford beat UCLA easily (35-17) as a 3-point favorite, and now the game’s at Stanford. I give Stanford some home field, maybe four points. I don’t know what to expect out of UCLA.”

Line: Stanford -9

Total: 44.5

Line movement: Avello opened Stanford as a 10-point favorite on Sunday, but the line was down to 9 at several Vegas shops as of Friday morning after dipping as low as 8 earlier this week. The total opened as high as 45 in Vegas, has been as low as 43.5, and sits at 44.5 as of this writing.

UCLA is averaging 36.0 and allowing 25.8 points per game. Stanford is averaging 28.6 and allowing 16.9 points per game.

Weather: 70 percent chance of rain with temperatures in low 50s. Gusty daytime winds are expected to calm in the evening.

Recent meetings:

Nov. 24, 2012, Los Angeles: Stanford (-3) 35, UCLA 17

Oct. 1, 2011, Palo Alto, Calif.: Stanford (-23) 45, UCLA 19

Sept. 11, 2010, Los Angeles: Stanford (-6.5) 35, UCLA 0

Notable Trends:

Cardinal is 4-0 ATS in last four meetings vs. UCLA.

Cardinal is 23-10 ATS in their last 33 home games.

Bruins are 3-1 ATS as an underdog this season under first-year coach Jim Mora.

Under is 8-3 in last 11 meetings.

Bruins Outlook: UCLA was vanilla in its offensive scheme last week against Stanford. That should change tonight. Freshman QB Brett Hundley has been terrific for the Bruins. He’ll need to contribute to the running game against Stanford’s top-ranked rushing defense. Hundley had two rushing touchdowns in the Bruins’ win over USC, but was held to zero yards on eight attempts against the Cardinal. His ability to move in the pocket will aid UCLA’s inconsistent pass protection (118th in sacks allowed).

Bruins' key injuries:

LB Dalton Hilliard (shoulder) doubtful

WR Devin Lucien (collarbone) doubtful

DE Ellis McCarthy (knee) questionable

Cardinal Outlook: Stanford is as hot as anyone in the country. The Cardinal have won six straight since falling in overtime on a questionable call at Notre Dame. Freshman QB Kevin Hogan has jumpstarted the Cardinal offense since taking over in early November. He’s led Stanford to wins over ranked teams in his first four starts. The Cardinal defense limited the Bruins to just 2.2 yards per carry last week.

Cardinal's key injuries:

P Daniel Zychlinski (shoulder) doubtful

The Linemakers' take: The mental edge is with UCLA in this odd rematch situation. Last year, the underdogs in conference title games went 5-1 against the spread. The Don Best/Linemakers’ Power Ratings have Stanford rated three points above UCLA, so the 9-point spread is a little heavy, even with the home-field advantage. Take a good look at the Bruins and keep an eye on the weather. The total feels a little low, too.