Wednesday MACtion Odds, Predictions and Best Bets – Central Michigan vs NIU, Western Michigan vs Bowling Green
- NIU is a four-point home favorite over Central Michigan on Wednesday night in MACtion
- Bowling Green is also a four-point pick over Western Michigan in the MAC
- A look at the odds and matchup for both games is below with predictions
Two games are on tap for the first Wednesday night MACtion of the season as Central Michigan visits Northern Illinois at Huskie Stadium in DeKalb and Bowling Green hosts Western Michigan at Doyt L. Perry Stadium.
Both games kick off at 7 p.m. ET. ESPNU will televise Central Michigan vs NIU and Western Michigan vs Bowling Green will be shown on ESPN.
Central Michigan vs NIU Odds
| Team | Moneyline | Spread | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Central Michigan | +145 | +4 (-110) | Over 55.5 (-110) |
| NIU | -182 | -4 (-110) | Under 55.5 (-110) |
Odds as of November 2nd at Barstool Sportsbook. Get the Barstool Sportsbook promo code to bet on MACtion.
NIU is favored by four points and a -182 choice on the moneyline in the college football odds, giving the Huskies an implied win probability of 64.54%.
Both teams are struggling.
Central Michigan Betting Outlook
Central Michigan (2-6/1-3 MAC/1-3 road) has lost four its last five games, including dropping a 34-18 decision to Bowling Green on Oct. 22 at home. The same day, NIU (2-6/1-3 MAC/1-2 home) lost at Ohio 24-17 for its sixth defeat in the last seven games.
Central Michigan has a decision to make at quarterback after redshirt freshman Jase Bauer replaced Daniel Richardson at the start of the second half against Bowling Green.
✍️ Jase Bauer is officially a member of the CMU Football family‼️
Congratulations and welcome to Central Michigan University!#FireUpChips 🔥⬆️ 🏈|| #TIME21GNITE pic.twitter.com/La3g0eqkiw
— CMU Football (@CMU_Football) December 16, 2020
In his first extensive collegiate action, Bauer was 18-of-25 passing for 181 yards and one touchdown with one interception. He also rushed for a team-high 109 yards on 16 carries.
Richardson has completed 56% of his 284 passes this season for 1,734 yards, 13 TDs and four interceptions.
Lew Nichols III is the Chippewas’ top rusher with 454 yards and six scores on 133 carries. Carlos Carrier has 39 receptions for 448 yards.
Central Michigan was plagued by four turnovers against Bowling Green, including three lost fumbles. Richardson and Bauer were sacked a combined six times.
NIU Betting Outlook
Justin Lynch made his first start at QB for NIU against Ohio and completed 9 of 18 passes for 110 yards. The Temple transfer is the brother of former Huskies quarterback Jordan Lynch, who was a Heisman Trophy finalist in 2012.
Harrison Waylee is third in the conference in rushing with 727 yards and five TDs on 131 carries. However, Antario Brown had a breakout game in Athens as he carried 16 times for 160 yards.
#CFB's Top 5 Fastest Ball Carriers from Week 7
3️⃣ NIU RB Harrison Waylee (@hwaylee02) 20.8 mph@NIU_Football | #TheClimb pic.twitter.com/P54Aw4UFbk
— Recruiting Analytics (@RAanalytics) October 17, 2022
John Richardson kicked three field goals for NIU, which is giving up 33.0 points a game to rank 121st among the 131 FBS teams.
Central Michigan leads the all-time series 31-25-1 but NIU won 39-38 last season on the road, Nichols rushed for 192 yards and two scores and had 234 all-purpose yards in the loss while Richardson passed for 289 yards and three touchdowns.
While Lynch is still growing into his role as NIU’s QB1, the running back tandem of Waylee and Brown will be tough for Central Michigan to stop.
Pick: NIU -4 (-110)
Western Michigan vs Bowling Green Odds
| Team | Spread | Moneyline | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Western Michigan | +4 (-110) | +170 | Over 47 (-110) |
| Bowling Green | -4 (-110) | -205 | Under 47 (-110) |
Odds as of November 2nd at Caesars Sportsbook. Claim the Caesars Sportsbook promo code.
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Bowling Green is a four-point choice at home and has a 67.21% implied win probability as a -205 favorite on the moneyline.
Both teams enter the game off winning efforts Oct. 22.
Western Michigan (3-5/2-2 MAC/2-2 road) downed Miami (Ohio) 16-10 on the road after back-to-back losses. Bowling Green (4-4/3-1 MAC/2-2 home) notched its second straight victory with the win at Central Michigan.
Western Michigan Betting Outlook
Western Michigan has a bit of quarterback controversy. True freshman Treyson Bourguet subbed for Jack Salopek (knee) against Miami and led the Broncos to victory while going 16-of-33 passing for 123 yards.
True freshman QB @treysonbourguet will make his first career start today for the Broncos! He is the third true freshman QB to start for WMU since 2005, joining Tim Hiller ('05) and Kaleb Eleby ('18). #LetsRide | #BroncosReign pic.twitter.com/EmTQvWlkSS
— Western Michigan Football (@WMU_Football) October 22, 2022
Salopek has had a rough season, completing just 50.8% of his 191 attempts for 1,231 yards with seven touchdowns and 10 interceptions. Miami is 117th in the nation in scoring offense (20.8) and 126th in total offense (305.5).
Sean Tyler had 110 yards and a touchdown on 22 carries against the RedHawks. For the season, he has carried 121 times for 529 yards and four scores.
Palmer Domschke made three field goals in the win but also missed two attempts.
Corey Crooms has 35 receptions for 469 yards and three scores.
Bowling Green Betting Outlook
Bowling Green forced four turnovers and had six sacks in beating Central Michigan. Kari Brooks registered three sacks and Demetrius Henderson returned a fumble 45 yards for a touchdown.
Matt McDonald had an efficient day as he completed 18 of 21 passes for 253 yards and two touchdowns, both to Tyrone Broden. McDonald is second in the MAC with 16 TD passes and has been intercepted just three times in 240 attempts while completing 58.3% of his attempts for 1,620 yards.
Jaison Patterson has rushed for 386 yards and one score on 81 carries. Four Falcons receivers have at least 22 catches and Odieu Hiliare leads the team with 26 for 375 yards and four scores.
LOOK AT THIS TOUCHDOWN FROM ODIEU HILIARE!!! His other arm was being grabbed so he reached around and caught the TD with his other hand off the corner's back! INSANE!!!!🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥 https://t.co/Wg024d5oVX pic.twitter.com/aBqOmmw4DL
— 𝗙𝗢𝗟𝗟𝗢𝗪 @𝗙𝗧𝗕𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗱𝟳 (@FTBeard7) September 17, 2022
Hiliare caught four balls for 105 yards against the Chippewas. Patterson carried 18 times for 101 yards.
Bowling Green is 129th in scoring defense (34.6) and 115th in total defense (431.1). However, it has allowed a total of 31 points while winning the last two games.
Western Michigan has won of its last seven games against Bowling Green, but the Falcons lead the series 32-20-3.
Look for Bowling Green to reverse the recent trend against Western Michigan and keep rolling.
Pick: Bowling Green -4 (-110)
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John Perrotto has been covering and writing about sports for various outlets for over 40 years. His work has appeared in the likes of USA TODAY, ESPN.com, SI.com, Forbes.com, The Associated Press, Baseball Digest, and more. John is based out of Beaver Falls, PA.
