In our weekly FCS Spring Football Power Rankings, Weber State stayed at number one, but North Dakota State, Sam Houston State, South Dakota State and even North Dakota are making strong pushes for the top spot. The Wildcats better come out with a strong performance against Northern Arizona tomorrow, or they almost certainly will drop out of the top spot.
As for the two teams in North Dakota? Well, they played over the weekend, and once again (2) North Dakota State beat (6) North Dakota, 34-13. The Bison dominated from the opening whistle to the last. Hunter Luepke, the Bison running back, rushed for 190 yards on the day with three touchdowns. The lone bright spot for the Fighting Hawks was running back Otis Weah, who was a big play threat all afternoon. He had 13 carries for for 129 yards and a touchdown.
Illinois State Cancels Football Season
On Monday, the FCS world was in a bit of shock as Illinois State, who was 1-3 heading into this weekend, cancelled the rest of their season. Illinois State head coach Brock Spack notified his players of his decision on Sunday evening.
“I have wrestled with this decision for a couple weeks now, but I feel like it’s a necessary move to protect our players’ health and safety and their ability to be ready come this fall,” Spack said. “Injuries at key positions, especially on the defensive line where we suffered two more setbacks yesterday, have made it nearly impossible for us to play this week and extremely difficult for us to compete in the remaining four games. “We appreciate all the support and hard work put in by so many in the ISU Athletics Department and on campus to get us to this point during these challenging times.” (Pantagraph)
This means that their game at (3) South Dakota State this weekend has been cancelled. The Jackabbits will have an extra week to prepare for (2) North Dakota State on April 3rd. Even with the Jackrabbits idle, there are still a good amount of great games that will take place this weekend. So let’s take a look at the three best games, along with a betting guide for each.
FCS Spring Football Betting Odds, Predictions and Stream
FCS Spring Football Betting Odds can be found at Bovada Sportsbook
(2) North Dakota State (5-1) vs South Dakota (1-3)
Date: Saturday March 27th, 2021 | Time: 2:00 PM ET
Coverage: ESPN+
Location: The DakotaDome — Vermillion, SD
North Dakota State vs South Dakota Betting
Spread: NDSU -20.5 (-105) | USD +20.5 (-115)
Moneyline: Not Available
Total: 43.5 — Over (-110) | Under (-115)
This is a bit of a trap game for North Dakota State. The Bison are riding high after beating rival North Dakota last weekend. On top of that, they have a huge matchup next weekend versus (3) South Dakota State. It’s unlikely the Bison will look past the Coyotes, but it’s possible. Bison running back Hunter Luepke had a fantastic game against the Fighting Hawks, rushing for nearly 200 yards and three touchdowns.
South Dakota has had a rough FCS Spring Football season thus far. After beating Illinois State in Week 1, they have fallen to North Dakota, Missouri State and a struggling Youngstown State team last weekend. However, their two losses against UND and Missouri State was by a combined 14 points, so they are not getting blown out. Coyote quarterback Carson Camp has been good this year, but he hasn’t been able to seal the deal. He’s thrown for 967 yards, while completing 63% of his passes. However, he’s only thrown three touchdowns to four interceptions. As long as the Bison aren’t focused on the Jackrabbits next weekend, they should leave South Dakota with a victory.
Prediction: (2) NDSU 31, South Dakota 14 (USD +20.5, OVER 43.5)
Delaware (2-0) vs (9) Rhode Island (2-0)
Date: Saturday March 27th, 2021 | Time: Noon ET
Coverage: FloSports
Location: Meade Stadium —Kingston, Rhode Island
Delaware vs Rhode Island Betting
Spread: DEL -9.5 (-110) | URI +9.5 (-110)
Moneyline: Not Available
Total: 49.5 — Over (-105) | Under (-115)
After a disastrous 0-8 season last year, Rhode Island has started the 2021 FCS Spring Football campaign with two straight victories over good opponents in Villanova and Albany. Both games went into overtime and were on the road. It’s an impressive start, to say the least. The QB-RB duo of Kasim Hill and Kevin Brown Jr. have been great this year. Hill has been average through the air, but great with his legs, having two rushing touchdowns. Brown Jr. has 140 yards rushing on 20 attempts. He’s galloped into the end zone four times for the Rams.
On the other sideline, Delaware will look to neutralize Hill and Brown Jr. The Blue Hens defense has allowed three total points in their two wins. The last time the Blue Hens defense was this good was 2010, when they were the FCS runner-ups. On offense, the Blue Hens will strike on the ground with running backs Dejoun Lee and Khory Spruill. The Rams rush defense was last in the CAA in 2019. All in all, look for this to be a close game throughout, and overtime wouldn’t surprise anyone.
Prediction: (9) Rhode Island 17, Delaware 13 ( URI +9.5, UNDER 49.5)
Incarnate Word (3-0) vs Nicholls State (3-1)
Date: Saturday March 27th, 2021 | Time: Noon ET
Coverage: ESPN+
Location: John L. Guidry Stadium — Thibodaux, NO
Incarnate Word vs Nicholls State Betting
Spread: UIW +7 (-115) | Nicholls -7 (-105)
Moneyline: Not Available
Total: 67 — Over (-110) | Under (-110)
If you’re looking for points, points, and yes, more points, this is the game for you this weekend. Both Incarnate Word (48.7) and Nicholls State (47.5) rank second and third, respectively, in the FCS for points per game. Incarnate Ward quarterback Cameron Ward has put up great numbers for the Cardinals. He has 14 touchdown passes and has ran for two more. The young signal-caller has shown maturity beyond his age as a freshman. Ward even won FCS Freshman of the Week twice this season. On top of that, tailback Kevin Brown has averaged 10 yards per carry while having over ten carries in all three games this spring.
As for Nicholls, their offense is fully capable of having a scoreboard-breaking afternoon on Saturday. The Colonels are 18-2 at home since the start of the 2017 season. Nicholls has some big time players on offense, such as Dai’Jean Dixon, a wide receiver with real NFL talent. He caught seven touchdowns dating back to the 2019 season. Quarterback Lindsey Scott Jr. has been a revelation for the Colonels. The one-time LSU commit has thrown for nine touchdowns and only two interceptions, while completing 61% of his passes. All in all the scoreboard should light up on Saturday afternoon.
Prediction: Nicholls 38, Incarnate Word 35 (UIW +7, OVER 67)
