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2013 GoDaddy.com Bowl: Kent St. vs. Arkansas St. Free Gambling Prediction & Preview

Golden Flashes vs Red Wolves NCAA Football Spread/Handicapping

This year’s GoDaddy.com Bowl features a talented Sun Belt Conference team locking horns with a MAC outfit coming off a memorable campaign.

GoDaddy.com Bowl
Kent State Golden Flashes (11-1) vs. Arkansas State Red Wolves (9-3)
Sunday, Jan. 6, 2013, 9 pm EST
Ladd-Peebles Stadium, Mobile AL
Betting Information Courtesy of Sportsbook.ag
Kent St +150, Arkansas St -150
Kent St +3.5, Arkansas St -3.5
Over/Under: 61

ATS Matchup Stats | Gambling Insight!

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The Arkansas State Red Wolves hope to use thriving skill-position players to find success in coastal Alabama. Quarterback Ryan Aplin and RB David Oku – a transfer from Tennessee – spearhead the Wolves’ offensive attack. The two players are two of the conference’s premier offensive threats; Aplin is a two-time Sun Belt Player of the Year and Oku finished second in the Sun Belt with 1,024 yards and 15 TDs. Aplin will be playing in the last game of his collegiate career.

For Kent State’s part, January 6th is a special opportunity, as the Golden Flashes have never won a bowl game. Kent’s last appearance was in the Tangerine Bowl in 1972, when current Alabama head coach Nick Saban played defensive back for the Flashes.

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Coincidentally, both head coaches of these programs are bolting for new jobs in 2013; Arkansas State’s Gus Malzahn is off to Auburn, while Kent State’s Darrell Hazell is going to Purdue. But this game is important enough for Hazell to hang around and try and procure the Flashes’ their first ever postseason victory.

If the Flashes are going to do it, they’ll need to ride the fantastic running duo of Dri Archer and Trayion Durham. The pair have combined for 2,600 rush yards and 29 TDs. Senior pivot Spencer Keith – a native of Little Rock, Arkansas, as it turns out – has led Kent State responsibly, if not prolifically. Hazell and Kent State recognize where it finds success, and it’s with the ground game. The Flashes finished the season ranked 16th in the nation in rush yards (228.3 yards per game) and that effectiveness has led to them finishing in the top third in the country in points for. [soliloquy id=”82219″]

It was almost a dream season for Kent State, but the Flashes lost a two-OT heartbreaker to Northern Illinois in the MAC title game. The Huskies finished with a #15 ranking and a spot in a BCS bowl, but the Flashes must simply look at the positives of an excellent overall season. The Flashes were undefeated in regular season MAC play; a bowl victory in the GoDaddy.com Bowl would certainly erase the depressing memories from the conference championship.

The Red Wolves also run and score with the best of them, with their only real slip-ups on the year coming against big boys like Oregon and Nebraska. A fluky loss to Western Kentucky left the Wolves with three losses on the campaign and one conference blemish. Clearly, the Flashes will have to do everything they can to bottle up Aplin and Oku.

This should definitely be a competitive game, but I just see too much enthusiasm coming from the Kent State sideline – given the circumstances and historical implications – for the Flashes to let this opportunity slip by the wayside.

Score Prediction: Kent State 31, Arkansas State 28 (OT)

By James Hayes

James has been naming every player on the EA Sports video game rosters for half a decade now, he’s finally putting his knowledge to better use writing for us here at CappersPicks.com. Your comments are welcome below…Give Us Your Take!