It would only be a complete Thanksgiving week with some midweek MACtion. On Tuesday night, the Toledo Rockets (7-4, 4-3 MAC) travel to Akron, Ohio, to take on the Akron Zips (3-8, 2-5).
The Rockets have secured a bid into bowl season, but the status of quarterback Tucker Gleason is unclear after departing last week's 24-7 loss to Ohio with an injury. Meanwhile, the Zips snapped their losing streak against Kent State, 38-17, and are looking to close the season on a solid note.
Oddsmakers have the Rockets as 8-point road favorites with the over/under set at 49.
Let's take a look at my Toledo vs. Akron predictions and college football picks for Tuesday night's MACtion.
Toledo vs. Akron Predictions, Best Bet
- Toledo vs. Akron Pick: Under 49
My Akron vs. Toledo best bet is on both teams to stay under the total, with the best line currently available at bet365, according to our live NCAAF odds page.
Toledo vs. Akron Odds and Spread
| Toledo Odds | ||
|---|---|---|
| Spread | Total | Moneyline |
-8.5 -115 | 49.5 -105o / -115u | -330 |
| Akron Odds | ||
|---|---|---|
| Spread | Total | Moneyline |
+8.5 -105 | 49.5 -105o / -115u | +260 |
- Toledo vs. Akron Spread: Toledo -8.5
- Toledo vs. Akron Total: Over/Under 49.5
- Toledo vs. Akron Moneyline: Toledo ML -330, Akron ML +260
Toledo Rockets vs. Akron Zips Week 14 Preview
Toledo Rockets
The Rockets are fully locked into bowl season, so this is essentially a meaningless game for them.
They don't have a chance at making the MAC Championship, so there's little to play for them — especially since they're the road team with no Senior Day motivation.
With Gleason's uncertain health status, I wouldn't be surprised to see the Rockets turn to backup signal-caller John Alan Richter. Richter has performed well in limited action, tossing 4 touchdowns and no interceptions with a 66% completion percentage.
Last week, the Rockets turned the ball over six times and lost four fumbles. The offense's performance was disastrous, and it was the type of sloppy performance that signaled a team has mailed it in until its bowl game.
There are many advantages for the Rockets on both sides of the ball, but it's hard to factor those in considering the circumstances.
The coaching staff likely couldn't care less about the matchup, as they'll use the next couple of weeks to get healthy and prepare for their bowl opponent.
Akron Zips
The Zips showed some life against a miserable Kent State team last week, as the offense put up its best performance of the season. It's a little less considering the opponent, but it's worth mentioning heading into Senior Night.
It should be a frigid 31 degrees on Tuesday night with winds of about 15 MPH, which many Midwesterners would consider a mild November evening. The weather will impact this offense given the fact that the Zips throw the ball 56% of the time.
Akron won't be playing in a bowl, game, but this team still hasn't quit. Despite the poor record, it's been clear that this team is putting in effort.
Does anybody want to guess how many games the Zips have lost by 13 points or less? Four. The Zips have played hard all season, and I wouldn't expect them to let up on Senior Night.
They have far more motivation in this spot than the Rockets.
Akron vs Toledo Matchup Analysis
Toggle the dropdowns below to hide or show how Akron and Toledo match up statistically:
Toledo Offense vs. Akron Defense
 | Offense | Defense |  Edge |
| Rush Success | 128 | 54 | |
| Line Yards | 122 | 59 | |
| Pass Success | 56 | 123 | |
| Havoc | 87 | 100 | |
| Finishing Drives | 84 | 119 | |
| Quality Drives | 127 | 103 | |
Akron Offense vs. Toledo Defense
| Offense | Defense | Edge |
| Rush Success | 75 | 25 | |
| Line Yards | 102 | 61 | |
| Pass Success | 119 | 35 | |
| Havoc | 94 | 28 | |
| Finishing Drives | 122 | 54 | |
| Quality Drives | 128 | 40 | |
Pace of Play / Other
| | |
| PFF Tackling | 13 | 133 |
| PFF Coverage | 12 | 131 |
| Special Teams SP+ | 54 | 47 |
| Middle 8 | 26 | 89 |
| Seconds per Play | 24.2 (15) | 26.7 (53) |
| Rush Rate | 51% (88) | 44% (122) |
How to Make My Toledo vs. Akron Best Bets, Pick
Although I lean toward the Zips with the points, attacking the total is the best approach here. There's really no other clear way to play this game except the under.
There are a few significant concerns for the Zips on offense, including that 44% rush rate on what's expected to be a cold, windy evening. They're also 119th in Passing Success Rate and 122nd in Finishing Drives.
Quarterback Ben Finley has been decent for Akron standards, but the offense stalls out when this team reaches the red zone. The Rockets are also 12th in PFF Coverage grade and 35th in Pass Success Rate Allowed, so the Zips won't get anything easy through the air.
Toledo also has nothing to play for, and I don't see why it would care about this game. Either way, it has significant advantages on the defensive side of the ball, including a rank of 28th in Havoc.
Plus, the Rockets struggle to run the ball consistently, which is less than ideal with quarterback uncertainty against an underrated unit.
Akron does a good job of creating Havoc and limiting explosives while also ranking in the 69th percentile in Stuff Rate. The Zips' secondary is an outright disaster, but it still does a decent job on the back end.
The Rockets rank 15th in tempo and rarely run the ball, but I could see them sitting on the ball in the second half if they build a decent lead.
I expect a far better effort from Akron here, which will cause the game to get off to a sluggish start. The Rockets' mental state is unknown, so their offensive woes could carry into Tuesday night.
I also don't expect the Zips to generate much offense despite having the motivation edge. The Rockets do a great job of limiting explosives on defense and come into thos game 66th in Pass/EPA Allowed.
There's no reason to think the Zips will figure out their red-zone offense and special teams issues, so I'll happily take the under at 48 or better.
Pick: Under 49 (Play to 48)
Toledo vs. Akron Channel, How to Watch, Location, Start Time
| Location: | FirstEnergy Stadium, Akron, OH |
| Date: | Tuesday, Nov. 26 |
| Kickoff Time: | 7 p.m. ET |
| TV / Streaming: | ESPN2 |
Toledo travels to Akron on Tuesday, Nov. 26 for a MACtion matchup at 7 p.m. ET on ESPN2.
Toledo vs. Akron Betting Trends
Toledo vs. Akron Weather Forecast
