Akron Zips (2-5) vs. Ball State Cardinals (2-4)
October 18, 2025 3:30 pm EDT
The Line: Ball State Cardinals -1.5; Over/Under:
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The Akron Zips and the Ball State Cardinals meet Saturday in college football action from Scheumann Stadium. Here’s a Ball State vs Akron prediction. We will look at this from a betting perspective and determine the best Ball State vs Akron pick.
Akron Zips Betting Preview
Akron isn’t having the greatest season so far, but they’ve been able to get some wins here and there thus far. The Zips opened the year on a skid though, falling to Wyoming, Nebraska and UAB in succession before finally posting a victory over Duquesne 51-7 in game four. That was followed by a 45-3 blowout loss to Toledo and a tight 28-22 win over Central Michigan in the next two outings. In the win over the Chippewas on October 4, the Zips managed 417 yards with 20 first downs and a solid 9-of-15 effort on third-down conversions. The defense gave up 238 rushing yards but did hold CMU to just 4-of-12 on third downs themselves.
In last weekend’s matchup with Miami-Ohio, the Zips were only down by a field goal heading into the second half but coughed up a couple of touchdowns in the third quarter on the way to a 20-7 loss. QB Ben Finley was 21-of-39 for 211 yards, one TD and one pick, while Jordan Gant led the rush on 14 carries for 35 yards total. Tops in receiving was Kyan Mason with five catches for 52 yards. Israel Polk had the TD among his five grabs for 28 yards as well.
Ball State Cardinals Betting Preview
Over on the Ball State side, they’ve also had their fair share of losses so far this year—mostly due to some tough competition in the early-going. The Cardinals were demolished by Purdue 31-0 and Auburn 42-3 in their first two outings, but then powered out a 34-29 win over New Hampshire in game three. That was followed by a 31-25 loss to UConn and a 20-14 win over Ohio in the next two weeks. In the win over the Bobcats, the Cardinals offense collected 357 total yards with 20 first downs and no turnovers. The defense gave up 356 on the other side along with 18 first downs and 7-of-14 on third-down tries.
Last weekend versus Western Michigan, the Cardinals didn’t look very good. Ball State gave up points in every quarter (including 14 in both the second and fourth) on the way to a 42-0 blowout road loss. QB Kiael Kelly finished 13-of-22 for just 68 yards and Qua Ashley led an anemic rush with six totes for 17 yards. Qian Magwood was the team’s top receiver with three catches for 26 yards during the losing effort.
Akron Zips @ Ball State Cardinals Betting Trends: Week 8
Ball State Cardinals Player Prop Facts
- Heading into Week 8, Nathan Voorhis ranks 5th amongst FBS players for sacks (7.0) this season.
Akron Zips Player Prop Facts
- Heading into Week 8, Elijah Reed leads the Mid-American Conference for interceptions (2) this season.
Matchup/League Facts
- Ball State has suffered the equal-most road losses by a margin of 20+ points of any FBS team this season (3).
- Ball State has suffered the equal-most road losses by a margin of 25+ points of any FBS team this season (3).
- Akron ranks 135th among FBS teams for 1st downs against this season (156).
- Akron ranks 134th among FBS teams for H2 points per game this season (6.0).
Ball State vs Akron Prediction
I’ll likely just stick with Akron, but there’s not a lot to get excited about here with both teams coming off pretty rough losses. The Zips posted just 273 total yards (62 rushing) against Miami-Ohio last weekend along with 17 first downs and 6-of-14 on third-down tries. The 10 penalties didn’t help matters, either. On defense Akron gave up 350 yards with 5.2 yards per play and 20 first downs but did pretty well on third-down stops (4-of-12) for what it’s worth. The Zips have been at seven points or below in two of the last three games, so it’ll be important for them to attack the scoreboard early in this one.
As for Ball State, they gained just 88 total yards and five first downs against a decent-but-not-great Western Michigan team in their latest loss. The Cardinals had a couple of lost fumbles and went a dismal 1-of-13 on third downs as well. The defense gave up 219 rushing yards in the shutout. I’m not jazzed about the Cards these days but anything will be an improvement.
