Why Fading Kent State is the Best Bet in College Football: NCAA Win Total Picks

Last Updated: August 29, 2025 7:00 AM EDT • 4 minute read X Social Google News Link

If you're looking to spice up your college football Saturdays this season, boy, do I have a bet for you. My best sweat this college football season features a pick that fades the most hapless football program in the country: Kent State.
I'm betting the Golden Flashes to go Under 1.5 wins in the 2025 season as the favorite of my college football picks on the futures market. Kent State boasts a 1-23 record over the past two seasons, so let's break down the value of betting the Under for a third consecutive campaign.
⚡️ Kent State win total prediction: Under 1.5
Kent State isn’t projected to win any of its 12 games this season, according to TeamRankings.com. I know what you’re thinking: “Gabe, they might not be favored in many, but they’ve got to eke out a couple of wins, right?” That hasn’t been the case in either of the last two years.
The Golden Flashes are, as I alluded to earlier, 1-23 straight up over the past two seasons. They’ve cemented themselves as the worst college football program during that timeframe, bringing their tally to 13 campaigns with fewer than two wins across the last 57 years.
Take a second to digest that statistic.
Kent State has already seemingly thrown in the towel for the season, too, relieving Kenni Burns of his head coaching duties in April due to bizarre contract violations. Interim Mark Carney is taking time away from being the Canadian Prime Minister to do some charity work, coaching up a roster that returns just two starters from last season’s 0-12 team.
I could gush ad nauseam about the holes in the Golden Flashes’ roster. Instead, I’ll defer to FOX Sports betting analyst Sammy Panayotovich, who had this to say on a recent appearance with the Bear Bets podcast:
“I think it's one of the worst power-rated teams I've ever had, guys. The NIL stuff is really bad. They're trying to pick guys off the street to play college football at Kent State.”
In addition to a myriad of question marks across the board on Kent State's depth chart, the Golden Flashes have one of the toughest non-conference schedules in the country. This run includes trips to Florida State, Oklahoma, and Texas Tech.
Merrimack - the team's FCS opener - is one of just two games on Kent State's schedule that TeamRankings gives the Golden Flashes at least a 40% chance to win (49.4%) with UMass (41.7%) as the other. If the hosts slip up against either team, Under 1.5 wins would be a near-lock for bettors barring a miracle for the MAC team.
Bettors can play Under 1.5 wins at plus money at many of the best college football betting sites. However, FanDuel boasts the market's best price at +152. A $10 wager would return $15.20 if Kent State fails to win two-plus games for a third straight season.
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📊 Live Kent State futures odds
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📆 Kent State schedule 2025
Track the latest college football scores for line movement and matchup info.
- Week 1 (Aug. 30): Merrimack at Kent State, Noon ET (CBSSN)
- Week 2 (Sept. 6): Kent State at No. 23 Texas Tech, Noon ET (TNT)
- Week 3 (Sept. 13): Buffalo at Kent State, Noon ET
- Week 4 (Sept. 20): Kent State at Florida State, TBD
- Week 5 (Sept. 27): OPEN
- Week 6 (Oct. 4): Kent State at No. 18 Oklahoma, 4 p.m. ET
- Week 7 (Oct. 11): UMass at Kent State, 2:30 p.m. ET
- Week 8 (Oct. 18): Kent State at Toledo, TBD
- Week 9 (Oct. 25): Bowling Green at Kent State, TBD
- Week 10 (Nov. 1): OPEN
- Week 11 (Nov. 5): Kent State at Ball State, TBD
- Week 12 (Nov. 11): Kent State at Akron, 7:30 p.m. ET
- Week 13 (Nov. 19): Central Michigan at Kent State, 7 p.m. ET
- Week 14 (Nov. 28): Kent State at Northern Illinois, Noon ET

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Each betting site featured on SBR has been meticulously researched and selected by our team of experts. If you sign up through our links, we may get a commission.

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