Week 3: Ball State vs Murray State 9/17/22 College Football Picks, Predictions, Odds

The Ball State Cardinals and Murray State Racers clash Saturday night in week 3 college football action at Scheumann Stadium. The Murray State Racers need a win to avoid an 0-3 start. The Ball State Cardinals look to avoid their first 0-3 start since the 2009 season.

The Murray State Racers have lost 5 of their last 7 road games. DJ Williams is completing 50 percent of his passes for 207 yards, 1 touchdown and 0 interceptions. Jacob Bell and LaMartez Brooks have combined for 142 receiving yards and 1 touchdown, while Dylan Appleton has 1 reception. The Murray State Racers ground game is averaging 113.5 yards per contest, and Jawaun Northington leads the way with 63 yards on 16 carries. Defensively, Murray State is allowing 48.5 points and 586.5 yards per game. Eric Samuta leads the Murray State Racers with 16 tackles, Lawaun Powell has 1 sack and Quinaz Turner has 2 interceptions.

The Ball State Cardinals have lost 4 of their last 6 home games. John Paddock is completing 60.2 percent of his passes for 560 yards, 3 touchdowns and 0 interceptions. Jayshon Jackson and Amir Abdur-Rahman have combined for 277 receiving yards and 1 touchdown, while Yo’Heinz Tyler has 10 receptions. The Ball State Cardinals ground game is averaging 115 yards per contest, and Carson Steele leads the way with 174 yards and 1 touchdown. Defensively, Ball State is allowing 48 points and 503 yards per game. Jaquan Amos leads the Ball State Cardinals with 16 tackles, Jordan Riley has 1 sack and Amechi Uzodinma II has 1 interception.

The Racers are 0-7 ATS in their last 7 vs. MAC and 5-11 ATS in their last 16 non-conference games. The Cardinals are 16-35 ATS in their last 51 home games and 1-7 ATS in their last 8 games overall. The under is 4-1-1 in Racers last 6 vs. MAC. The under is 8-2 in Cardinals last 10 home games.

The Murray State Racers have shown nothing on either side of the ball through 2 games, and they had issues playing up to their competition last season. The Ball State Cardinals aren’t anything special, but there’s no doubt they’re the more talented team here, and their most recent effort against Western Michigan was encouraging. There’s just a clear talent gap between these teams. I’ll lay the touchdowns. Murray State is that awful.