FCS Picks/Playoffs

The Northern Iowa Panthers open up the FCS playoffs on the road Saturday against the Eastern Washington Eagles. Kick off is 4:00 pm ET at Roos Field.

The Panthers (6-5, 4-4 in the Missouri Valley Conference) finished off the regular season with a 41-3 win over Western Illinois. RB Don Williams had 166 yards on the ground, including a 99-yard TD run in the second quarter. The Northern Iowa defense, meanwhile, held the Leathernecks to -46 yards while setting a school record with 12 sacks.

The Eagles (9-2, 6-2 in the Big Sky Conference) closed out the regular season with a 42-28 win at Portland State. QB Eric Barriere threw for 320 yards and 5 TDs to give him 40 TD passes on the season against only 6 INTs.

Dunkel has the Panthers as a slight favorite to pull off the upset as a 3 ½-point underdog while the offenses push the final score over the Vegas total of 60 ½.

Dunkel’s Pick: Northern Iowa (+3 ½); Over

Below are all of Dunkel’s picks for this week’s FCS schedule.

NOVEMBER 27

Sacred Heart at Holy Cross
Time: 12:00 pm ET
Dunkel Ratings: Sacred Heart 53.439; Holy Cross 68.349
Dunkel Line & Total: Holy Cross by 15; 38
Vegas Line & Total: Holy Cross by 18 ½; 40
Dunkel Pick: Sacred Heart (+18 ½); Under

Davidson at Kennesaw State
Time: 2:00 pm ET
Dunkel Ratings: Davidson 41.714; Kennesaw State 73.842
Dunkel Line & Total: Kennesaw State by 32; 61
Vegas Line & Total: No Line
Dunkel Pick: N/A

UC-Davis at South Dakota State
Time: 3:00 pm ET
Dunkel Ratings: UC-Davis 60.560; South Dakota State 85.939
Dunkel Line & Total: South Dakota State by 25 ½; 46
Vegas Line & Total: South Dakota State by 19 ½; 48 ½
Dunkel Pick: South Dakota State (-19 ½); Under

Mississippi Valley State at Prairie View
Time: 3:00 pm ET
Dunkel Ratings: Mississippi Valley State 37.771; Prairie View 55.413
Dunkel Line & Total: Prairie View by 17 ½; 57
Vegas Line & Total: Prairie View by 15; 50 ½
Dunkel Pick: Prairie View (-15); Over

Stephen F. Austin at Incarnate Word
Time: 3:00 pm ET
Dunkel Ratings: Stephen F. Austin 73.703; Incarnate Word 69.271
Dunkel Line & Total: Stephen F. Austin by 4 ½; 68
Vegas Line & Total: Incarnate Word by 3 ½; 60 ½
Dunkel Pick: Stephen F. Austin (+3 ½); Over

Northern Iowa at Eastern Washington
Time: 4:00 pm ET
Dunkel Ratings: Northern Iowa 80.810; Eastern Washington 80.426
Dunkel Line & Total: Northern Iowa by ½; 65
Vegas Line & Total: Eastern Washington by 3 ½; 60 ½
Dunkel Pick: Northern Iowa (+3 ½); Over

UT-Martin at Missouri State
Time: 4:00 pm ET
Dunkel Ratings: UT-Martin 64.545; Missouri State 78.036
Dunkel Line & Total: Missouri State by 13 ½; 66
Vegas Line & Total: Missouri State by 16 ½; 59 ½
Dunkel Pick: UT-Martin (+16 ½); Over

Grambling vs Southern
Time: 5:00 pm ET
Dunkel Ratings: Grambling 40.213; Southern 42.444
Dunkel Line & Total: Southern by 2; 46
Vegas Line & Total: Southern by 4 ½; 47 ½
Dunkel Pick: Grambling (+4 ½); Under

Southern Illinois at South Dakota
Time: 6:00 pm ET
Dunkel Ratings: Southern Illinois 74.845; South Dakota 70.381
Dunkel Line & Total: Southern Illinois by 4 ½; 58
Vegas Line & Total: South Dakota by 1 ½; 56
Dunkel Pick: Southern Illinois (+1 ½); Over

Florida A&M at SE Louisiana
Time: 7:00 pm ET
Dunkel Ratings: Florida A&M 59.693; SE Louisiana 68.392
Dunkel Line & Total: SE Louisiana by 8 ½; 52
Vegas Line & Total: SE Louisiana by 14 ½; 65 ½
Dunkel Pick: Florida A&M (+14 ½); Under