Lane Kiffin and the Florida Atlantic Owls will travel to take on Mike Neu's Ball State squad on Saturday at 2 p.m. ET and both teams could use a win as they shoot for bowl eligibility. It's a Conference USA vs. MAC matchup with Conference USA holding a 49-33 edge over the MAC historically in football. However, it was Ball State who got the better of Florida Atlantic the only time these two teams have played back on Sept. 24, 2016, when the Cardinals won 31-27 on the road. This time around, the Owls (0-2) are listed as 2.5-point favorites over the Cardinals (1-1) with the total listed at 64.5 in the latest Florida Atlantic vs. Ball State odds. But before you make any college football predictions, be sure to check out the FAU vs. Ball State picks from the proven computer model at SportsLine.
The SportsLine Projection Model simulates every FBS college football game 10,000 times, and those who have followed it have seen massive returns. Over the past four years, this proprietary computer model has generated a jaw-dropping $4,530 profit for $100 bettors on its top-rated spread picks. The model enters Week 3 of the 2019 college football season on a blistering 18-6 run on its top-rated picks. It also called Colorado's (+158) upset of Nebraska and was all over Army (+23) against No. 10 Michigan in a game the Black Knights pushed to overtime and covered with plenty of room to spare. Anybody who has been following it is way up.
Now, it has simulated Ball State vs. FAU 10,000 times and the results are in. We can tell you that the model is leaning over, and it's also generated a point-spread pick that is hitting in over 60 percent of simulations. You can only see the pick at SportsLine.
The model knows that the Cardinals are riding high off a 57-29 win over Fordham last week. Ball State put up 596 yards of offense in that win with quarterback Drew Plitt throwing for an impressive 436 yards and six touchdown passes. Plitt hit 10 different receivers on the day with Justin Hall, Riley Miller and Antwan Davis combining to catch 17 passes for 295 yards and five of those scores.
Against Indiana the week prior, Ball State lost 34-24 but covered the 18-point spread courtesy of another strong day from Plitt and a couple of timely turnovers forced. Plitt threw for 298 yards and two scores in that contest and even pulled Ball State to within a score when a 36-yard touchdown to Yo'Heinz Tyler with 6:28 remaining made it 31-24. Look for the Ball State offense to be key for the Cardinals to earn their third consecutive cover to start the season.
Meanwhile, Florida Atlantic went down hard 48-14 against UCF last week, marking its second-consecutive loss in that in-state rivalry. It also dropped the Owls to 0-2 on the season, dropping their two games by a combined score of 93-35. FAU now ranks 110th in the nation in scoring and 128th in scoring defense. However, that was against two ranked opponents and Lane Kiffin's offense should be in a much better position to produce this week against a Ball State defense that has given up 31.5 points per game.
So who wins Ball State vs. FAU? And which side of the spread is hitting in over 60 percent of simulations? Visit SportsLine right now to see which side of the spread you need to jump on, all from the computer model that has crushed its college football picks.
