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The Akron Zips take on the Kent State Golden Flashes in Kent, Ohio. Kickoff is set for 1:00 p.m. EDT on ESPN+.
Kent State is favored by -3 points on the spread with a moneyline of -151. The total is set at 46.5 points.
Here’s our Akron vs. Kent State prediction and college football pick for Saturday, October 24, 2026.
Akron vs Kent State Prediction
- Akron vs. Kent State Pick: Akron +3
Our Kent State vs. Akron best bet is on Akron to cover the spread. Find the best line available on our live NCAAF odds page.
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Akron vs Kent State Odds
| Akron Odds | ||
|---|---|---|
| Spread | Total | Moneyline |
+2.5 +102 | 46.5 -106o / -114u | +126 |
| Kent State Odds | ||
|---|---|---|
| Spread | Total | Moneyline |
-2.5 -124 | 46.5 -106o / -114u | -152 |
- Akron vs Kent State point spread: Kent State -3 (-108 ), Akron +3 (-115)
- Akron vs Kent State over/under: 46.5 (-108o / -113u)
- Akron vs Kent State moneyline: Akron +125, Kent State -151
Akron vs Kent State College Football Preview
Akron Zips Betting Preview
Akron has lost five straight and faces Kent State as a short underdog, a different assignment from the lopsided road games it has played so far. The Zips have been outscored 154-54 in four road games, with losses of 38-16 at Wake Forest, 41-7 at Minnesota, 41-17 at Central Michigan and 34-14 at Miami (Ohio) last Saturday.
That last game got away from them quickly. Brayden Roggow went 22-of-38 for 234 yards and a touchdown but threw four interceptions, one of which Blayne Myrick returned 34 yards for a score that made it 27-7 in the third quarter, and Rodney Nelson ran for a career-high 142 yards and two touchdowns.
The Zips' best result of the season came two weeks earlier in a 25-23 home loss to Eastern Michigan, which they covered as a 4.5-point underdog.
Akron averages 18.9 points per game and allows 32.4, and its only win came against FCS Robert Morris (45-10).
The Zips are 3-3 against the spread this season, but it's worth noting that Kent State won last year's meeting 42-35 in overtime.
Kent State Golden Flashes Betting Preview
Kent State is coming off its third straight loss, a 29-2 defeat at South Florida that looked worse on the scoreboard than it played in the first half. The Golden Flashes held the ball for more than 11 extra minutes in the first half and drove to the USF 3 before a fourth-and-2 stop, then reached the 1-yard line only for Dru DeShields to lose the ball on a third-and-goal sneak, which C.J. Hicks returned 96 yards for a touchdown.
The second half was a different story. Kent State managed 31 yards and turned the ball over on downs three more times. That's the bigger concern for a unit that averages 12.0 points per game and has scored nine points combined in its last two games.
Kent State's two wins came at home against Wofford and Ball State, and it lost 13-10 to Ohio on a missed game-tying field goal. The Golden Flashes are 3-4 against the spread, they're allowing 32.0 points per game.
Akron vs Kent State Pick, Betting Analysis
This is a solid fit for a "Bounce Back Fade" system play.
The system targets a conference game with a spread between three and sixteen points, in which the team to fade just lost by more than three, and this one checks each of those boxes. Kent State is the bounce-back candidate, having lost 29-2 at South Florida, and the market is clearly leaning toward a rebound at home, laying a field goal to a one-win opponent.
The system's logic, that a motivated rebound effort doesn't fix the weaknesses that caused the loss, applies directly to a team whose problem is a stalled offense.
The numbers say that offense is the issue. A 46.5 total with Kent State at -3 implies roughly 25 points for the Golden Flashes, a number they've reached in just two of seven games, both against Wofford and Ball State at home, and a far cry from their 12.0-point average and nine total points over the last two weeks. Laying a field goal with that offense means paying for a scoring output Kent State hasn't shown in a month.
Akron, by contrast, has scored 14 or more in five of its seven games, and it only needs its typical output to be in position to cover. The Zips also catch Kent State's defense reeling, as they allow 32.0 points per game and gave up 38 to Western Michigan two weeks ago.
Pick:Akron +3
