Miami at Eastern Michigan 10/9/21 - College Football Picks & Predictions

The Miami Ohio Redhawks will hope to move to 2-0 in conference play when they go on the road to Rynearson Stadium to take on the Eastern Michigan Eagles. Eastern Michigan has had an up-and-down start to the year but with a 27-20 loss on the road to Northern Illinois, dropped to 3-2 and 0-1 in MAC play. Miami Ohio has had a tough schedule with road trips to Cincinnati, Minnesota, and Army, but has taken care of business at home with a decisive win over Long Island and a 28-17 win over Central Michigan in their last outing.

Miami-Ohio has had a nice balance on the offensive side of the ball between running the football effectively and moving it through the air. Sophomore Brett Gabbert has struggled in his first four starts completing just 52.2% of his passes for 736 yards but has tossed seven touchdowns to just two interceptions, none of which came in the last two games. 

Freshman Keyon Mozee has been a nice addition to the rushing attack, he broke out against Central Michigan for 83 yards including a 46 yard run to set up a score. Fellow freshman David Afari has seen just 22 caries but is averaging over five yards a carry and has totaled 128 yards on the season.

Eastern Michigan has beaten up on some inferior opponents including 42 points against UMass and 59 against Texas State, boosting their season averages to 32.6 points and 376.8 yards per contest. Senior quarterback Ben Bryant is having a nice first year as a starter, completing 65.8% of his passes for 1,013 yards and six touchdowns to just one interception.

Eastern Michigan has leaned on senior Jawon Hamilton to lead the rushing attack, he carreid the ball just twice against Northern Illinois but has racked up 251 yards and three touchdowns. Freshman Darius Boone Jr. has been a nice change of pace back with 239 yards and three touchdowns, while power back Samson Evans has scored six rushing touchdowns on just 22 attempts. 

Eastern Michigan has forced just four turnovers this season, two forced by David Carter Jr. and one of which was returned for a touchdown. The Eagles have really struggled to stop the run allowing 204.2 rushing yards per contest, and 25 points per game.