Akron vs. Florida Atlantic Bowl Pick
Will Lane Kiffin’s Florida Atlantic Owls not only beat the Akron Zips in essentially a home game tonight, but blow them out in the Boca Raton Bowl?
ODDSMAKERS LIKE: Florida Atlantic. According to oddsmakers from online sports book Bovada.lv, the Owls are 22.5-point favorites to beat the Zips, who opened as 17.5-point underdogs. The total, meanwhile, sits at 65.5 points after hitting the board at 61.5.
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THE PUBLIC LIKES: As of early Tuesday afternoon, Florida Atlantic was receiving 64% of the backing from public bettors. Seventy-five percent of the money was also on the Owls to cover the large spread.
INJURY REPORT: Wide receiver Ventell Bryant (leg) and quarterback Logan Marchi (lower body) are questionable for Akron, while Zach Guiser (concussion) and Warren Ball (leg) are out for the season.
On the other side, Ray Ellis (knee) and Matthew Weiner (knee) are both out for the year for FAU and Harrison Bryant is questionable with an undisclosed injury.
WHO WE LIKE: Florida Atlantic. This is a big number and there’s a chance that Kiffin’s squad isn’t well prepared because they believe all they have to do is show up and they’ll hang 50 on Akron. Then again, they probably can. Kiffin’s boys are averaging nearly 50 points per game this season and the Zips rank 98th in total defense…against a MAC schedule, no less.
The Zips are also averaging a paltry 23.6 points per game offensively so if the Owls turn this into a boat race early, they’re going to blow Akron out of the water. Again, motivation is a concern with FAU. Still, this is a massive mismatch and the Owls are playing a freaking home game. If you’re playing this one, lay the 22.5 points and then sit back and watch Kiffin do his thing.
The Owls are 5-1 against the spread in their last six home games, are 7-2 against the number in their last nine games overall, and have covered in six straight games after accumulating more than 450 total yards in their previous game.
BOCA RATON BOWL PREDICTION: FLORIDA ATLANTIC -22.5