College Football Pick Western Michigan at Ball State 10-9-10

Western Michigan Broncos (1-3) vs. Ball State Cardinals (2-3)

Saturday, October 9, 2010 12:00PM EST

Line: Ball State -4

Ball State’s headless offense seemed to have gotten it together last weekend against Central Michigan. Last week the team had a decent game from their quarterback, Keith Wenning. While the running backs both ran for a combined 209 yards. Western Michigan is somewhat led by their quarterback, Alex Carder, who can filled up the stat sheet with passing yards (1,025), touchdowns (9) and interceptions (7). Neither team has looked good this season, both suffering tough losses against a variety of weak and strong ranked teams.

Keys to the Game:

-          Western Michigan’s last game was a bad loss to the Idaho Vandals, where they let the opposing quarterback pass for a staggering 380 passing yards. They do own an efficient passing game, spreading the ball well to a solid receiving core, that’s ranked 25th in the nation, averaging 275 passing yards per game. If only they could handle these turnovers.

-          Ball State is coming off an uplifting, 31-17, win against Central Michigan. Cardinals’ quarterback, Keith Wenning had a wise passing game, completing 12 out of 18 passes for two touchdowns. Their running game also shined, with 306 total rushing yards by the team.

-          Ball State is looking to avoid a three-game losing streak when heading back home on Saturday. Western Michigan will be pressured to execute their passing game without the bad passes from Carder.

Both teams will be cranked for this game, as the competition evens out pretty closely in this one. Western Michigan holds the upper hand with their offense, but Ball State will look to improve their solid defense, which has allowed opponents to score an average of 24.6 points season.

Free Pick: Ball State -4