Week 2 – Illinois State at Eastern Michigan

Week 2 CFN Fearless Prediction – Illinois State at Eastern Michigan

- CFN Fearless Predictions

Illinois State (1-0) at Eastern Michigan (0-1) Sept. 8, 1:00

Here’s The Deal: This is a dangerous spot for Eastern Michigan – it has to avoid slipping into being Eastern Michigan again. All the promise and all the hope from a strong end to last season went bye-bye with a 37-26 loss to Ball State with the defense reverting back to its old, painful form and the offense unable to keep up. With road games at Purdue and Michigan State up next, beating a dangerous Redbirds team is a must. Illinois State cranked out 510 yards in a 56-14 blowout over Dayton last week. This is ISU’s only game this year against an FBS team.

Why Illinois State Might Win: If the EMU defense played like it did last week, ISU shouldn’t have any problems putting up huge numbers. The running game was dominant with Darrelynn Dunn and Cameron Hunt each rushing for over 100 yards, while Eastern Michigan’s run defense didn’t have a prayer against the Cardinals allowing 329 yards on the ground in the blowout.

Why Eastern Michigan Might Win: The offensive line should hold up. Eastern Michigan came up with a near-perfect balance on offense with 180 yards on the ground and 186 through the air, and while that wasn’t even close to being enough to hold up, the Eagles were able to move a little bit. The O line should be able to neutralize the ISU pass rush and get the running game going.

What To Watch Out For: The Eastern Michigan defense might have been a disaster, but it got a strong game out of linebacker Bryan Pali, who came up with 17 tackles and a tackle for loss, while running mate Kevin Johnson cranked out 16 tackles with a tackle for loss. Illinois State is going to run the ball and run the ball some more, and Pali and Johnson should combine for well over 30 tackles again. Unfortunately, most of the plays will be made down the field.

What Will Happen: The Illinois State offense will be too much for the suddenly porous EMU defense. The Eagles have quarterback Alex Gillett, and that’s it. There aren’t enough weapons to keep up.

CFN Prediction: Illinois State 31 … Eastern Michigan 23
ATS Consultants Line (Click for more lines and picks) No Line O/U: No Line
Must Watch Rating (5 – Phineas & Ferb, 1 – Steve Harvey): 2