.jpg "College Football ATS Picks – Florida Atlantic at Wisconsin")
Camp Randall will be jumping around on Saturday afternoon when the Florida Atlantic Owls come to town. Florida Atlantic was blown out in Lane Kiffin’s debut with the Owls, but there was a lot to be optimistic about. Meanwhile, the Wisconsin Badgers took care of business in their home opener against the Utah State Aggies. This is the first meeting between these two teams and the Owls will be looking for their first win against a Big Ten opponent since beating Minnesota in 2007.
This contest in Week 2 of the regular season will go down Saturday, September 9, 2017, at 12
p.m. ET at Camp Randall Stadium in Madison, Wisconsin. This game will be broadcast on the Big Ten Network.
College Football Opening Odds at BookMaker.eu
Florida Atlantic +31.5
Wisconsin -31.5
Odds Analysis
Florida Atlantic didn’t come close to covering in its season opener against Navy. The Owls were on the back foot against Navy’s triple option offense the whole game as quarterback Zach Abey lit up the Owls defense for 235 yards and two scores on the ground. The game failed to go over the total despite Florida Atlantic having a decent performance on offense.
The Badgers overcame a shaky start in their season opener against Utah State to dominate the Aggies 59-10. Alex Hornibrook was solid in his first start as a sophomore, averaging 10.5 yards a pass attempt. Wisconsin had secured the cover in the third quarter but kept adding to the lead to push the game over the total in the fourth.
Matchup to Watch
Wisconsin’s running backs have to be licking their chops after seeing what Navy’s offense did to this front seven last week. The Badgers took some time to get going on the ground against the Aggies, but will be able to maul this front if they are able to lock in early. Every starter up front for Wisconsin is at least 300 pounds and all of their running backs are 200-pound bruisers.
That front has a massive size advantage against Florida Atlantic. The Owls have bigger defensive lines than some Conference USA squads, but this unit gave up 5.5 yards per carry last season and over six yards per carry against Navy. Defensive coordinator Chris Kiffin will have to find some way to stop this offense.
Coaching Angle
Speaking of a Kiffin, let’s be honest. The main reason to tune in this one is to see what Lane Kiffin is up to. There’s no denying that Kiffin has a great offensive mind. He modernized Alabama’s offense, had good numbers with his units at USC and Tennessee, and had some success in the NFL despite not having much talent when he was with the Raiders.
So far he has kept a low profile in Boca Raton, but people are waiting to pounce if he makes a mistake. Both he and the school know that Kiffin will only be there for a season or to, but he will be able to turn around this team while he’s there.
Free ATS Pick
Wisconsin DC Jim Leonhard is in his first season as the Badgers defensive coordinator and looks to be a rising star in the coaching ranks. The former safety has been praised for his defensive intellect and has some pretty big shoes to fill considering how good Wisconsin’s defense has been over the past few seasons. It will be interesting to see how his 3-4 scheme does against Kiffin’s offense.
The Badgers are huge favorites in this game and should get the cover. Florida Atlantic won’t be able to stop the Wisconsin running game and you have to be able to at least limit the Badgers. FAU’s front seven is going to be bruised after facing 67 rushing attempts from Navy last week and Wisconsin will wear them down even more.
College Football Odds: Badgers 48, Owls 14
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