Kent State vs. Texas Tech Prediction and Picks for – September 6, 2025
The Kent State Golden Flashes will visit the Texas Tech Red Raiders this weekend, and we'll preview the lines and odds in our Kent State vs. Texas Tech prediction. Both teams hosted non-major programs in Week 1—Kent State barely escaped their matchup against Merrimack with a win, while Texas Tech covered a 55-point spread against Arkansas-Pine Bluff. Kickoff for this Saturday's game is set for 12:00 PM ET.
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How Much Can Kent State Improve?
The Kent State Golden Flashes were a notoriously, borderline-comically bad team in 2024. Kenni Burns took over as the team's head coach in 2023, leading the program to a 1-11 record. In 2024, the team managed to regress to finishing 0-12. Their home opener ended in a 17-23 loss to FCS Saint Francis; their home finale, with only 6,768 fans in attendance, ended in a 17-38 loss to Akron. Burns was fired this past offseason, but not until April 11 – weeks after he was placed on administrative leave for yet-undisclosed reasons. Mark Carney, the team's offensive coordinator in 2024, entered the season as the team's interim head coach.
It took Carney only one game to match Burns' career win total at Kent State – a sign of improvement from a program that couldn't feasibly regress further. Granted, the team didn't make their 21-17 win over Merrimack, an FCS team, look easy. The Golden Flashes were only up 7-3 at halftime, and trailed 14-17 in the fourth quarter before Da'Realyst Clark returned a kickoff 100 yards for the go-ahead touchdown. Cade Wolford accounted for both of the team's offensive scores, finishing with a bizarre line of two catches for 109 yards and two touchdowns. Dru DeShields and C.J. Montes split quarterback duty, each throwing a touchdown and averaging over 10 yards per attempt, but only combining for 12 completions on 19 attempts.
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Texas Tech Opens 2025 with Strong Performance
The Texas Tech Red Raiders took care of business in Week 1, defeating the visiting Arkansas-Pine Bluff Golden Lions 67-7 to cover an ambitious 55-point spread. This game wasn't in doubt at any point—Behren Morton threw the Red Raiders' first touchdown to Reggie Virgil with 11:44 left in a first quarter that the team ended up 23-0. By halftime, the lead was 47-0. Texas Tech gained 610 yards while only allowing 175, gained 33 first downs while only allowing 11, and converted five of eight third-down attempts while getting off the field defensively on 11 of 15 third downs. The Golden Lions didn't move the ball effectively until the fourth quarter, when they were down 0-61 and the Red Raiders' starters had left the game.
Quarterback Behren Morton finished his stretch of playing time having completed 16 of 20 passes for 201 yards and four touchdowns – no interceptions, no sacks. Will Hammond and Mitch Griffis both saw the field in relief, combining to go 9-12 for 113 yards and a touchdown each. On the ground, Cameron Dickey and Adam Hill combined for 168 yards and a touchdown on 20 carries, with Hammond and J'Koby Williams (who went for 56 yards on six carries) notching two more rushing touchdowns.
The Red Raiders are in their fourth year under head coach Joey McGuire, who led the team to an 8-5 record in 2024. Behind him are a pair of first-year coordinators: Mack Leftwich on offense, Shiel Wood on defense. Leftwich inherited a unit that saw 2024 coordinator Zach Kittley hired as the head coach at Florida Atlantic. Wood is working to improve a unit that saw coordinator Tim DeRuyter fired at the end of the 2024 season.
Kent State vs. Texas Tech Pick
Spread Pick for Kent State vs. Texas Tech
- Texas Tech -48.0 (-110) (5 Units)
Kent State went only 3-9 against the spread in 2024 and failed to cover as 5.5-point favorites against Merrimack last week. Texas Tech went 7-4-1 against the spread in 2024 and covered as 55-point favorites against Arkansas Pine-Bluff in Week 1. Until Kent State shows signs of life against an FBS opponent – let alone a quality opponent like Texas Tech – they shouldn't be taken to cover anything against anybody. This matchup isn't worth overthinking.
Over/Under Pick for Kent State vs. Texas Tech
- Over 59.0 (-110) (5 Units)
With their 67-7 win over Arkansas Pine-Bluff last week, the Team Total Over is now 8-2 in the Texas Tech Red Raiders' last ten games. They closed the 2024 regular season with a 56-48 win over Oklahoma State and a 52-15 win over West Virginia, and finished fourth overall among FBS teams with 37.6 points per game. Kent State is coming off a season where they allowed 50+ points five times in 12 games, with all but two teams (Saint Francis and Bowling Green) scoring 30+ against them. Anything Kent State scores in this week's game is a bonus; I'd take Texas Tech to hit the over on their own.
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