Kent State Golden Flashes vs UCF Knights Prediction, 8/31/2023 College Football Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Kent State Golden Flashes vs UCF Knights

Date: Thursday, August 31, 2023

Location: FBC Mortgage Stadium in Orlando, FL

TV: FS1

Odds/Point Spread: Knights (-30)

Total/Over-Under: 58.5

FBC Mortgage Stadium is the location where the UCF Knights (9-5 last year) will try to beat the Kent State Golden Flashes (5-7 last season) on Thursday, August 31, 2023. Kent State is 30-point dogs. The betting total is set at 58.5.

The Kent State Golden Flashes finished the season holding a 5-7 record. The last time they took the field, the Golden Flashes went up against the Buffalo Bulls and went home with a win by a final score of 30-27. Tommy Ulatowski connected on 6/11 with 102 yds through the air and 1 touchdown. He had a quarterback rate of 162.4 and ended the contest without throwing an interception. Marquez Cooper led the offense in rushing for the Golden Flashes with 30 carries for 140 yds (4.7 yards per attempt). The Kent State Golden Flashes rushed the ball a total of 45 times and accounted for 206 yds, earning them an average of 4.6 yards per carry. In all, they had 79 plays which gave them a total of 356 yds. Kent State conceded 20 pass completions on 28 tries for 165 yards, and a completion percentage of 71.4%. On the ground, the Golden Flashes gave up 181 yds on 55 tries, which averages out to 3.3 yds per run allowed.

Regarding getting in the endzone, the Kent State Golden Flashes held an average of 28.4 points per contest. As a team they averaged 202.1 yds on the ground, which ranked them 22nd in college football. The Golden Flashes earned 5,008 total yards for the prior season. Kent State earned 17 passing touchdowns and 23 touchdowns on the ground. Kent State compiled 274 1st downs offensively, and they were hurt by 82 infractions for 658 yds. They turned the football over 13 different times.

The Golden Flashes sat in 92nd in college football concerning team defense, allowing 29.0 PPG. They gave up an average of 3.9 yards per run and 160.1 rushing yards per contest over the course of last season. During the campaign, they gave up 1,921 yards on the ground in 12 games. Regarding passing yards, the Golden Flashes conceded 3,278 yards which ranked them 102nd in D-1. During their 12 games played last season, they gave up 273.2 yards per outing through the air as well as relinquishing a completion percentage of 69.9%. They granted 433.3 yards/contest ranking them 113th in the nation. They gave up 23 touchdowns via the pass as well as 19 touchdowns on the ground.

The Knights wrapped up their season having earned a 9-5 mark. When they last stepped on the gridiron, the Knights took a loss by a score of 30-13 when they played the Duke Blue Devils. John Rhys Plumlee ended the game with 182 yds on 21/34 passing while his quarterback rating was 100.8. He threw 1 pick and his average yards per pass attempt was 5.4. Isaiah Bowser ran the football 11 times for 39 yards, finishing the contest with 3.5 yds per carry for UCF. UCF ran for 3.6 yds per carry, finishing the game with 128 yds on 36 attempts. The Knights finished the game with a total of 326 yds while they ran 71 plays (4.6 yards per play). The Knights passing defense allowed a completion percentage of 65.5%, surrendering 173 yards on 19 out of 29 passing. UCF allowed 40 run attempts for 177 yards (4.4 yards per rush).

In relation to the points being put on the board, the Knights were ranked 31st in college football with an average of 32.9 PPG. Last season, the Knights compiled 3,377 passing yards as well as an average of 241.2 passing yards per outing, which had them ranked 57th in Division 1. The UCF Knights averaged 469.6 yards per contest, which had them ranked 16th in the country. The UCF offense totaled 650 yds of penalties on 69 infractions, which ranked 95th in D-1 in terms of helping out the opposition.

The Knights conceded 23.6 points per game, which put them in 46th in college football. UCF surrendered a total of 2,208 yards on the ground (157.7 yards/game) in addition to 24 touchdowns on the ground last season. Over the course of the season, they gave up 330 total points. They yielded 15 touchdowns via the pass in addition to 222.3 yards/game, ranking them 58th in D-1. The Knights defense was on the field for 942 plays, which ranked them 111th in the country.

Who will win tonight's Golden Flashes/Knights college football game against the spread?

Tony's Pick: Take the Golden Flashes +30

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