Florida Atlantic at Michigan State Pick & Prediction – 8/30/2024

The Florida Atlantic Owls will take on the Michigan State Spartans on August 30, 2024, at 7:00 pm ET. The DraftKings Sportsbook odds have the Owls as 14 point underdogs on the road. Currently, 32% of spread bets are on Florida Atlantic, while 68% are on Michigan State. The total is set at 47.5, with 26% of bets on the under and 74% on the over. It will be an exciting non-conference matchup to watch as both teams battle for a victory on the football field to open their 2024 seasons.

Transfer QB Starts Tenure at FAU

Florida Atlantic finished last season with a 4-8 record, ending up in the bottom-five in the American Athletic Conference standings with a 3-5 conference record. This season, they are set to look different at the quarterback position, with Marshall transfer Cam Fancher set to start at quarterback in 2024. The question going into this season will be whether or not Fancher can do more to help FAU than he did Marshall after the Thundering Herd finished with a 6-7 record a season ago.

Fancher threw for 2,162 yards and had an even touchdown to interception ratio with 11 touchdowns and 11 picks. He had some very good moments last year, but also had some struggles such as a game where Marshall nearly lost to FCS UAlbany in their season opener. Against a power conference opponent here, it will be baptism by fire for Fancher and the rest of the FAU offense to kick off their 2024 campaign.

Can Michigan State Deliver Behind New Quarterback?

Michigan State will also be looking for a transfer quarterback to help them deliver a result to start their season. Aidan Chiles sat behind DJ Uiagalelei at Oregon State last season and has since transferred to Michigan State after being a highly-touted player at his position in the transfer portal. Chiles has already made headlines going into this game by telling those who bet to bet the over on this contest, promising some offensive fireworks from his team in Week 1.

That kind of confidence is great to see from a quarterback, especially one who doesn't have a ton of experience as a collegiate player just yet. But there are also dangers associated with having so much confidence, specifically that his words could motivate the defense of FAU. While the Owls struggled on offense last season, they weren't terrible defensively, giving up 25.5 points per game. It will be interesting to see how Chiles performs against them in this game after making such a bold proclamation.

Florida Atlantic vs Michigan State Best Bet

As tempting as it is to bet the over in this game at the behest of Chiles, we are going to go the other way in this matchup. We don't expect a ton from the FAU offense, while their defense should be able to hold their own just enough to keep this game competitive. Look for this matchup to stay under the total and for Chiles to fall to 0-1 in his career in providing sports betting predictions.

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