MACtion has become a staple of college football during the week and Thursday brings MAC play between Ohio and visiting Ball State. With Ohio at 4-3 and Ball State at 3-5, both teams need to rack up wins in order to keep bowl eligibility within sight. The Bobcats are 10.5-point home favorites with the total at 64 in the latest Ohio vs. Ball State odds. Before you try locking in your Ohio vs. Ball State picks and predictions, you’ll need to see what SportsLine’s advanced computer model is saying. 

The SportsLine Projection Model simulates every FBS game 10,000 times, and those who have followed it have seen massive returns. Over the past three years, this proprietary computer model has generated a jaw-dropping $4,210 profit for $100 bettors on its top-rated point-spread picks. 

The model made some huge calls against the spread last week, including nailing LSU (-6) over Mississippi State, Washington State (-3) over Oregon and Alabama (-29.5) over Tennessee. And when it comes to top-rated picks against the spread, it finished Week 8 on a strong 5-1 run. Anyone who has followed it is way up. 

Now, the model has simulated every possible play for Ohio vs. Ball State. The results are in with a strong against-the-spread pick that’s hitting nearly 70 percent of the time. You can only see it at SportsLine. 

The model knows Ohio will need to establish itself on the ground if it’s going to cover. The Bobcats are 2-1 against the spread as favorites in conference play and in their two covers they averaged 393 yards rushing with seven touchdowns on the ground.

To cover against Ball State, they’ll need to get their three-headed monster going early. Running backs A.J. Ouellette and Maleek Irons have combined with quarterback Nathan Rourke for 1,340 yards and 13 touchdowns, with every player rushing for at least 400 yards and four touchdowns this season. 

Just because Ohio can run the ball doesn’t mean it’ll cover Thursday. 

Ball State has proven itself in a tight loss at Notre Dame and in another one-possession loss to Northern Illinois, which is undefeated in MAC play. The Cardinals can be prolific offensively, averaging nearly 440 yards this season and 540 in their three wins.

Quarterback Riley Neal leads that charge for the Cardinals, with nearly 2,200 yards of total offense and 15 total touchdowns on the season. And Ball State’s three wins all have one thing in common: Neal has accounted for at least three total touchdowns in each of them. 

So, which side of Ball State vs. Ohio spread hits in nearly 70 percent of simulations? Visit SportsLine now to see the pick for Ohio vs. Ball State on Thursday, all from the model that has returned over $4,000 in profit to $100 bettors over the last three seasons.

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