Akron vs Kent State 11/19/24 Game Information

Akron vs Kent State Preview

This Mid-American Conference game of the dregs sees Kent State (0-10, 0-6 in MAC) hosting Akron (2-8, 1-5 in MAC) in the battle of the Wagon Wheel. The Golden Flashes lead the all-time series, 36-28-2 while the Zips lead the trophy series, 27-25-1. The Wagon Wheel trophy is a blue-and-gold painted—the colors of Akron and Kent State—wagon wheel and this rivalry was first played in 1946 when the series was resumed after World War II. Akron won the last meeting, 31-27 on November 1, 2023. In their last game, Akron lost to Northern Illinois, 29-16 while Kent State fell to Miami (Ohio), 34-7. Over the past two seasons, the Zips (4-14) and the Golden Flashes (1-21) have gone a combined 5-34 SU (12.5%).

Akron Rarest Spot as a Double-Digit Favorite

Akron (4-6-0 ATS, 7-3-0 O/U) has beaten Colgate and Eastern Michigan but lost to everyone else it has played this season, so the Zips will be thrilled to see Kent State in this MACtion battle of the bad teams in Kent, Ohio on Tuesday night in the first game on the Week 13 schedule. Akron has been a strong Over team this season (7-3-0), and against Kent State’s porous defense, the visitors should be able to top the 30-point mark in this one. Even though the series is tied 5-5 in the last 10 meetings and the Golden Flashes have won 4 of the last 5 meetings, Kent State has devolved into one of the worst teams in FBS over these last two seasons, and with the oddsmakers making the Road team aa 10-point Favorite, you can see how bad the Golden Flashes are. The only other game this season where Akron was favored came against FCS school Colgate in Week 3 (-14).

Akron Betting Trends

• Akron is 2-7-1 ATS in the last 10 series meetings
• Last year’s Wagon Wheel meeting saw Akron win 31-27 in a Push (AKR -4) 
• Akron is 1-4 ATS in the last 5 Home series meetings 
• The Totals range in this series is from 38 (2015) to 72 (2021) in the L10
• The Zips have been outrushed in this series the last 7 years
• Akron allowed 69 Points and 750 Total Yards vs KSU in 2020

Kent State May Win One By Christmas (2026)

Kent State (3-7-0, 5-5-0 O/U) has one of the worst ATS records in NCAA Football and the Golden Flashes have been outscored 191-79 over their last 5 games. The last time Kent State won a football game (September 26, 2023), Julie Andrews, Quincy Jones, Mitzi Gaynor, Richard Simmons, Donald Sutherland, Toby Keith, and James Earl Jones were all still alive and with this date vs Akron and at Buffalo (Nov. 26), it’s likely this team won’t win another game for quite some time and could very well go two years without a win. The Golden Flashes did muster a cover vs Miami (Ohio) in Week 12, scoring first and then allowing 34 straight points to the Redhawks but still getting the butter. Kent State (6-16-1 ATS in its last 23) is actually 3-2 ATA in its last 5, but still has a horrific defense and QB Tommy Ulatowski (7 Interceptions) and the offense is very poor at protecting the ball.

Kent State Betting Trends

• Kent State has the worst Scoring Defense in FBS (44.8 ppg)
• The Golden Flashes are 4-11-0 in their last 15 games ATS 
• KSU has allowed most Total Yards (5,219), Yards Per Game (521.9) in FBS
• The Golden Flashes defense allows 7.11 Yards Per Play
• Kent State has a Turnover Margin of -1.00 per game (#133) 

Akron vs Kent State Pick and Prediction

This Week 13 MACtion game and free NCAAF pick and Akron vs Kent State prediction is for the visitors to win by 10 or more with QB Ben Finley (2,160 passing yards) and WRs Adrian Norton (724 receiving yards, 7 TD, 19.1 ypc) and Bobby Golden (424 receiving yards, TD, 14.6 ypc), and TE Jake Newell (225 receiving yards, 2 TD, 7.3 ypc) all having big games vs Kent State with the Zips likely scoring at least once (and maybe twice) in each quarter at Dix Stadium. The Weather will see Scattered Showers and Temperatures in the 55° to 60° range, so perfect northeastern Ohio football weather. Last year in the Wagon Wheel game in Akron, Kent State held a commanding 27-10 lead with just 10 minutes to go in the Fourth Quarter and had a 99% chance of winning before the Zips scored three TDs in the last 9:12—the winner with just 26 seconds left—to win 31-27 and keep the Golden Flashes winless in the MAC.

Kevin’s Pick: Akron -10