Ball State - Central Michigan
Ball State - Central Michigan With first place in the Mid-American Conference on the line Wednesday night the Ball State Cardinals travel to Mount Pleasant to take on the Central Michigan Chippewas. Odds makers are calling the Cardinals road favorites as they head into Kelly/Shorts Stadium. NCAA betting lines have Ball State at -7 with the total sitting at 54.5.

At 10-0 overall and 6-0 in the Conference, coach Brady Hoke and the 17th ranked Cardinals look to record an eleventh victory for the first time in school history.  Hoke, a linebacker on Ball State's first 10-win team in 1978, hopes this team can become the first eleven win Cardinals squad and take home a conference title.

"It is an accomplishment, but we've got to win the conference championship," Hoke said. "We've weathered 10 storms. We've got two more to go. Believe me, those will be the biggest challenges."

The Cardinals
are 12th in the nation with 461.0 yards of offense per game and 15th in scoring with 37.6 points.

Central Michigan, 8-2 overall and 6-0 in the MAC, is having a fine season of their own and can clinch its third straight West Division title and a spot in the conference championship game with a victory. The Chippewas, though, dodged a bullet last Wednesday as they blew a 24-point lead against Northern Illinois before winning 33-30 in overtime.

"We made some mistakes that will get corrected, but with all the adversity we had in the second half, no one stopped believing," said Chippewas coach Butch Jones. "Every game has been like this, but it shapes you, it molds you. Sometimes a win like this is better than winning big because our kids have been tested."

This one should be a tough hard fought game and a touchdown is a lot to give on the road against a good team. Take the Chippewas getting the 7 points at home, this game will be close.