After 3-0 starts and rising into the top 25 of the AP poll, the Illinois Fighting Illini and Nebraska Cornhuskers will face off in a thrilling Big Ten duel on Friday as they look to keep their respective winning streaks alive.
Last season, the Huskers defeated Illinois in Champaign 20-7.
Can true freshman Dylan Raiola lead the Cornhuskers to a stunning 4-0 start or will the Fighting Illini spoil the party in Lincoln?
Read on to find out my picks for Illinois vs. Nebraska.
Illinois vs. Nebraska odds
| team | Spread | In total | Money line |
|---|---|---|---|
| Illinois | +7.5 (-105) | o42.5 (-115) | +270 |
| Nebraska | -7.5 (-115) | u42.5 (-105) | -350 |
Prediction for Illinois vs. Nebraska
Depending on the bookmaker, the margin in the Illinois vs. Nebraska game is currently between 7.5 and 8.5 points in favor of the Cornhuskers.
Despite a 3-0 start that included a home win over the Kansas Jayhawks and a rise to No. 24 in the AP poll, the Fighting Illini enter this game as pretty clear underdogs.
Why is that?
For one thing, the Jayhawks’ struggles, which included a Week 3 home loss to an unranked UNLV team, made Illinois’ one-point victory seem far less impressive.
In addition, the Fighting Illini’s recent win over Central Michigan (30-9) was unconvincing, especially after the Chippewas lost 52-16 to FIU the previous week.
On the other hand, the Cornhuskers have been downright dominant in their first three meetings, holding a top-class Colorado team to just 10 points and massacring their other two opponents.
Raiola has been fantastic, throwing for 670 yards and five touchdowns with just one interception. He has also completed nearly 74% of his passes, the eighth-best mark in college football this season.
The true freshman played within his capabilities and within the offense, limiting mistakes and picking the spots where he could throw the ball far, which will be crucial for the future of this Cornhuskers team.
Thankfully, there won’t be too many games this season where they’ll have to rely on Raiola’s monstrous stats to win, and this game won’t be one of them.
Nebraska’s defense is one of the best in college football and will be the difference between the two strong, defensive-minded Big Ten teams on Friday night.
This season, Nebraska has the 20th-best defense according to PFF. The Cornhuskers have also limited their opponents to the fewest rushing yards per game, the 10th-fewest total yards per game and the ninth-fewest points per game.
Betting on college football?
Sure, the Cornhuskers have faced terrible offenses thus far, including a Buffs team that refused to give the ball up, but their defensive line of Ty Robinson and Nash Hutmacher is still one of the best units in the country.
It is expected that Illinois will struggle on offense in its first real away test of the season.
Selection: Nebraska -7.5 (-105, BetRivers)
Why you can bet on the New York Post
Andrew Norton evaluates the NBA, WNBA, NFL, college basketball and football, UFC and golf. During the 2022-23 NBA season, he delivered an outstanding 14.1% ROI, collected 60% of his NBA spread picks and led Tallysight in its SportsIQ metric.
