Frisco Bowl Picks & Odds: Kent State Is 5-0 ATS in Last Five Games as Underdog
- Utah State plays Kent State in the Frisco Bowl on Dec. 20
- The Golden Flashes are 5-0 ATS in their last five games as an underdog
- Read below for the odds and how to bet on Friday’s matchup
Kent State (6-6, 5-3 Mid-American) and Utah State (7-5, 6-2 Mountain West) will be facing off in the Frisco Bowl on Dec. 20 (7:30 PM EST). The Golden Flashes are being listed as 7-point underdogs.
Kent State is playing in its first bowl game since 2012, while the Aggies will be playing in their eighth bowl game in the last nine years.
Should you side with the Aggies in the Utah State vs Kent State odds or bet on the Golden Flashes to pull an upset?
Utah State vs Kent State Odds
| Team | Spread | Moneyline | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kent State | +7.0 (-110) | +220 | O 65.0 (-115) |
| Utah State | -7.0 (-110) | -270 | U 65.0 (-105) |
Odds taken Dec. 16
Two Evenly Matched Teams
The Aggies are favored by seven points in this game, but this is a fairly even matchup. Utah State has been slightly better on both sides of the ball, but Kent State has put up respectable numbers.
.@USUFootball ? @KentStFootball
Let's do this.
?️: https://t.co/fXAnr18TqY pic.twitter.com/ejNSsmqYSN
— Tropical Smoothie Cafe Frisco Bowl (@FriscoBowlGame) December 9, 2019
The Aggies are averaging 425.1 yards on offense per game, while the Golden Flashes are averaging 393.6 yards per game. Utah State is allowing 431.4 yards per game, while Kent State is giving up 470.8 yards per game.
Both these teams run well-balanced offenses that can do damage in the air and on the ground. Utah State QB Jordan Love is a promising NFL prospect, but he’s struggled at times in his junior season with 17 interceptions to go with just 16 TD’s.
Golden Flashes Riding High
Kent State will enter the Frisco Bowl on a three game winning streak. The Golden Flashes took down Buffalo, Ball State and Eastern Michigan in the final three weeks of the regular season to gain bowl eligibility.
The Golden Flashes have covered the spread in four straight games (all as an underdog) and are 8-4 ATS on the season. The Aggies haven’t been quite as good when it comes to covering, posting a 7-5 record ATS this season.
The strong play of QB Dustin Crum all season and the emergence of the run game are big reasons Kent State is finding ways to cover. Crum has completed 68.2 % of his passes and thrown 18 TD passes with just two interceptions, while the rushing attack has exploded for over 250 yards on the ground in each of their last two games.
Utah State is allowing almost 200 rushing yards per game and has weak secondary, so as long as Kent State builds off their recent success, they should be able to stay within the spread against a susceptible defense.
Utah State’s Prior Bowl Experience
Not only does Utah State enter this game with the better record this season, but they also enter the matchup with significantly more bowl experience than their opponent. The Aggies will be playing in their eighth bowl game in the last nine years, while Kent State is going bowling for just the fourth time in its history.
BREAKING: It's official: @KentStFootball is going bowling for the first time since the 2012 season. Flashes will meet Utah State in the Frisco Bowl Dec. 20 in Frisco, Tex.
— Allen Moff (@AllenMoff_RC) December 8, 2019
While the Aggies have played more bowl games, they only have a 5-8 record in those games. They won the New Mexico Bowl over North Texas in 2018, but lost to New Mexico State in the Arizona Bowl in 2017 and to Akron in the Famous Idaho Potato Bowl in 2015.
Kent State is playing in a bowl game for the first time since the 2012 season when they lost to Arkansas State in the GoDaddy.com Bowl. The Golden Flashes should be hungry for victory on Friday after watching bowl games from the sidelines for the past six seasons.
Betting Advice
These are two evenly matched teams, and neither holds a significant advantage over the other. Utah State has more bowl experience, but Kent State’s long dry spell is just going to make them hungrier.
Neither team is great defensively, but the strong play of Kent State QB Dustin Crum and the recent emergence of the Golden Flashes run game is reason to take the points with the underdog.
Pick: Kent State +7 (-110)
Brady is the lead NHL and College Football editor at Sports Betting Dime, where he specializes in betting odds and data-driven analysis. Brady has over 10 years experience working in sports media, with work published by outlets such as ESPN, CBS Sports, Yahoo! Sports and Fox Sports.
