Utah State vs Kent State 2019 Frisco Bowl Lines & Expert Analysis.

Utah State vs Kent State 2019 Frisco Bowl Lines & Expert Analysis

Written by on December 20, 2019

For the first time since 1974, Utah State of the Mountain West Conference and Kent State of the Mid-American Conference will meet in football. They square off in Friday’s Frisco Bowl from a smallish soccer stadium outside Dallas with Utah State dominating the NCAAF Odds.

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Why Bet on Utah State?

The Aggies closed the regular season with a 38-25 win at New Mexico. Gerold Bright rushed for 113 yards and one touchdown on 19 carries for the Aggies, who gained 368 yards of total offense, including 196 on the ground. The senior running back became the 10th different player in Utah State history to eclipse the 2,000-yard plateau for career rushing yards.

Bright now has 2,051 yards rushing in his career, good enough for 10th place in school history. He now has 27 career touchdowns, which is tied for ninth all-time in school history, while his 21 career rushing TDs are tied for eighth all-time. Junior quarterback Jordan Love completed 18-of-35 passes for 172 yards and three touchdowns. The Aggies have won at least seven games for the sixth time in the past nine years. USU has also won six league games for the fourth time in its seven years in the MW. Overall, it is just the sixth time in school history that Utah State has won six conference games.

Spread the Love

Love is a future NFL quarterback who already has declared for the draft but he will play in this game. Love, who redshirted at Utah State during the 2016 season, has started 31 of the 37 games he has played in over the last three years and is USU’s second-winningest quarterback in school history with a 21-10 (.667) record.

For his career, Love is 659-of-1,086 (.607) passing for 8,283 yards with 57 touchdowns and 28 interceptions, and ranks second all-time in school history in passing yards and attempts, third in touchdown passes, completions and total offense (8,670 yards), and fourth in completion percentage. Love also ranks first all-time in school history with 11-career 300-yard passing games and has four completions of at least 80 yards, which is also a school record.

Utah State posted a 52-13 win against North Texas in the 2018 New Mexico Bowl and will be looking to win back-to-back bowl games for just the second time in school history, joining the 2012-14 teams that won a school-record three-straight bowl games.

Utah State is playing in a bowl game for the eighth time in the last nine seasons and for the 14th time in school history. USU is 5-8 in its previous 13 bowl games, which includes a 3-2 record against teams from the Mid-American Conference.

Team Stats

Offense
  • Points per Game: 28.25
  • Passing Yards: 275.92
  • Rushing Yards: 149.17
  • Yards per Play: 5.76

Defense

  • Points per Game: 29.00
  • Passing Yards: 233.67
  • Rushing Yards: 197.75
  • Yards per Play: 5.55

Why Bet on Kent State?

Any bowl bid is a huge deal for Kent State. This is the school’s fourth ever and it has yet to win one. Kent State is 1-1 all-time against Utah State. The first game played between the two teams was on Oct. 27, 1973, in Logan, with KSU posting a 27-16 road win. USU then posted a 27-24 road win the following season.

The Flashes closed the season with three straight wins to get bowl eligible. Kent State was the only FBS team that won its final three games to become bowl eligible.

They concluded with a 34-26 win at Eastern Michigan. Kent State is led by junior QB Dustin Crum, who is 196-of-287 (.683) passing for 2,336 yards (194.7 ypg) with 18 touchdowns and two interceptions. He led the MAC in completion percentage (68.2%), yards and touchdowns in MAC play this season. His 18:2 touchdown-to-interception ratio is the best in school history and helped him rise to No. 25 in the FBS in passing efficiency (156.1) and the top mark in the Mid-American Conference.

Racking Up the Numbers

Crum also leads the team in rushing with 560 yards on 145 carries (3.9 ypc/46.7 ypg) with five touchdowns, and sophomore WR Isaiah McKoy has caught a team-best 50 passes for 769 yards (15.4 ypr/76.9 ypg) with seven touchdowns.

Kicker Matthew Trickett became the first Flashes player since Dri Archer in 2012 to earn the MAC’s Special Teams Player of the Year. Trickett set a school record for field goals with 24 including three game winners. Trickett is one of just five place kickers this season with at least 24 made field goals.

In three of Kent State’s 2019 wins, the Golden Flashes outgained their opponents on the ground. Since 2012, the Flashes are 26-10 when out-rushing their opponent. Meanwhile, KSU is just 5-54 when the opposition runs for more yards in that span. Kent State is averaging 27.4 points and 393.6 yards of total offense per game (212.6 passing, 181.0 rushing), and allowing 31.1 points and 470.8 yards of total offense (221.4 passing, 249.3 rushing).

Team Stats

Offense
  • Points per Game: 27.42
  • Passing Yards: 212.33
  • Rushing Yards: 181.25
  • Yards per Play: 5.75

Defense

  • Points per Game: 31.08
  • Passing Yards: 221.42
  • Rushing Yards: 249.33
  • Yards per Play: 6.31

Utah State vs Kent State Frisco Bowl Betting Trends

  • Aggies are 16-5 ATS in their last 21 games as a favorite.
  • Aggies are 14-6 SU in their last 20 games
  • The total has gone OVER in 6 of Utah State’s last 7 games played on a Friday
  • Golden Flashes are 7-13 SU in their last 20 games
  • Golden Flashes are 4-1 ATS in their last 5 games this season
  • The total has gone OVER in 4 of Kent State’s last 6 games

Expert Final Score Prediction for Utah State vs Kent State

Utah State 35 – Kent State 28