Ohio has won five straight, but its latest escape showed how much work can hide behind a good record. The Bobcats needed a late kickoff-return touchdown and a defensive stand to beat Eastern Michigan. Now they visit an Akron team that has lost six straight, with a different challenge attached: covering a substantial spread calls for a more comfortable margin than Ohio managed last time.
A winning streak with some close calls
Ohio is a 12.5-point favorite in the DraftKings lines. The Bobcats are 6–2 outright and 4–4 against the spread, a useful distinction when weighing a team that has kept winning without always pulling away.
Ohio’s last five wins include a 13–10 result at Kent State and its most recent 24–20 victory over Eastern Michigan. Both fell short of the spread. There have been convincing wins, too: the Bobcats beat Central Michigan 31–14 and Sacramento State 48–7 during the same stretch.
The Eastern Michigan game on October 24 was particularly tight. Darren James-Hamilton’s 100-yard kickoff return put Ohio ahead with 3:40 remaining, and the defense held up on the Eagles’ final scoring threat. Those were decisive plays, but they’re a difficult formula to rely on for building a comfortable road margin.
Ohio’s ground game offers a steadier route
Our rushing projections put Ohio at roughly 230 rushing yards, compared with about 140 for Akron. That makes the Bobcats’ running game a central part of the matchup to watch. Productive rushing would give Ohio a way to build offense throughout the game rather than depend on another late special-teams swing.
Nick Poulos also showed what he could provide through the air against Eastern Michigan, completing 19 of 29 passes for 266 yards. His touchdown pass to Dom Dorwart went for 78 yards, and Poulos added a rushing score. Ohio has a recent example of a big passing play helping its offense, even in a game it struggled to finish.
The projected yardage comparison is closer overall: about 385 total yards for Ohio and 370 for Akron. So the ground-game difference is the more distinctive feature of our projections. The useful question is whether Ohio can turn that rushing production into sustained scoring drives.
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Akron has a rushing threat of its own
The Zips are 1–7 and 3–5 against the spread, but their last game offered an offensive bright spot. Jordan Gant ran for 162 yards and two touchdowns on 28 carries in the 35–20 loss at Kent State on October 24. Kyan Mason added seven catches for 129 yards.
Akron led until late in the third quarter before Kent State moved ahead for good. Gant’s production gives the Zips something concrete to build around at home, while the finish shows why generating offense alone hasn’t been enough. Their defense allowed four passing touchdowns in that loss.
That combination also matters for the 50.5 total. Gant gives Akron a way to contribute to the scoring, while those passing touchdowns allowed offer encouragement for Ohio after Poulos’ big play to Dorwart. Ohio’s return touchdown is also a reminder that offensive yardage alone won’t account for every scoring swing. Three of Ohio’s last four games have stayed Under their totals, while three of Akron’s last four have gone Over, leaving two different recent patterns to weigh.
Ohio brings the stronger results and a projected rushing advantage. Akron’s counter is Gant’s recent workload and production, plus evidence that the Zips could compete into the second half of their last game. For the Bobcats, the clearest sign of progress would be an offense that builds a lead through repeatable drives, giving its defense less late-game rescuing to do.
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