Buffalo Bulls vs Ohio Bobcats Prediction, Odds, Line, Spread, and Picks - November 1

Buffalo Bulls vs Ohio Bobcats Prediction, Odds, Line, Spread, and Picks - November 1 | 2022 NCAA Football Season

Modified Nov 01, 2022 18:30 EDT

Coastal Carolina v Buffalo — Coastal Carolina vs Buffalo - HC Maurice Linguist

MACtion is back. On Tuesday (November 1), the Buffalo Bulls (5-3) will clash with the Ohio Bobcats (5-3) for the top spot in the NCAA Mac East division.

Both teams enjoyed a Week 9 bye to prepare for Tuesday's battle. The Bulls have won five straight games, most recently edging Toledo 34-27 to remain undefeated in conference play.

Buffalo quarterback Cole Snyder threw for 245 yards and accounted for two late touchdowns as the Bulls scored the last 24 points in the come-from-behind win. Toledo gained 438 yards on offense, but the Buffalo defense remained opportunistic, turning the Rockets and star QB DeQuan Finn over six times.

Meanwhile, Ohio survived a scare from Northern Illinois with a 24-17 Week 8 win. Junior quarterback Kurtis Rourke completed only 14 of his 26 pass attempts but made them count, throwing for 200 yards and two scores.

Leading receiver Sam Wiglusz hauled in six of his passes for 69 yards and both touchdowns. Unfortunately, Ohio got gashed in the game, allowing a ludicrous 267 rushing yards, albeit finding a way to win.

Buffalo Bulls vs Ohio Bobcats Betting Odds

Team	Spread	Over/Under	Moneyline
Buffalo Bulls	-2.5	060.5	-135
Ohio Bobcats	+2.5	u60.5	+105

All Lines Provided by Caesars Sportsbook

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Tale of the Tape

Ohio is in its second year with Tim Albin as the coach. Albin, who served as the Bobcats OC from 2005-2020, took over for longtime bench boss Frank Solich, who enjoyed a winning season in his last 12 seasons.

However, Albin limped to a 3-9 record last season, with the Bobcats taking a significant step back in offensive production. Nevertheless, Ohio is back to its scoring ways in 2022, largely thanks to the return of QB Kurtis Rourke.

Rourke, the younger brother of former Ohio Bobcat standout QB Nathan Rourke, is having a breakout junior campaign, throwing 16 touchdowns against three interceptions for over 300 yards per game.

The Canadian-born right-hander leads the MAC in all individual passing stats, highlighted by a 159.7 Passing Efficiency Rating. Unfortunately, the Ohio ground game doesn't share the same success, but RB Sieh Bangura keeps them afloat with 70.7 yards per game on 4.6 a pop.

Not to sound mean, but the Bobcats sport one of the worst defensive units in the country. The defense allows 509 yards per game, easily the worst in the FBS. They allow a healthy 4.8 per rushing attempt, yet that's not even their most enormous red flag. The secondary has been picked apart, surrendering an NCAA-worst 335 passing yards while letting opponents complete nearly 70% of their passes.

Like the Bobcats, the Bulls are also in their second year with a new coach. After going 4-8 in his first season as the frontman, Maurice Linguist is sitting pretty at 5-3 and atop the MAC East standings.

Linguist hit the transfer portal hard, bringing in starting quarterback Cole Snyder and leading receiver Justin Marshall. Snyder has 12 touchdowns against five interceptions, while Marshall is pacing for nearly 800 receiving yards and eight scores. Due to their balanced attack, the Bulls sport a middle-of-the-pack offense in both rushing and passing.

The Bulls are a formidable foe on defense. They allow a conference-best 56.8% of passes to be completed and 1.1 touchdowns per game. They tend to allow a decent amount of yards per rushing attempt but fly around and force a MAC-best 2.3 turnovers per game.