Nebraska head coach Scott Frost begins his fourth season at the helm with a warming seat. Frost and Nebraska now face an NCAA investigation for excessive workouts. Although the charges won’t amount to much, it's just one more distraction that the Huskers don’t need. Frost is yet to produce a winning season. At the onset of his arrival were dreams of a national championship. Illinois begins a new era on Saturday. Bret Bielema takes over as head coach. Previously, Bielema was highly successful as a Big Ten coach at Wisconsin. Illinois hosts Nebraska on Saturday.
Week Zero college football action features the Big Ten Conference matchup between the Nebraska Cornhuskers at Illinois Fighting Illini. This game takes place at Memorial Stadium in Champaign, Illinois, on Saturday, August 28, 2021. This game will be broadcast live on FOX at 1 p.m. ET. We’ll have college football odds available at Bookmaker.eu for this and every game going on for Saturday’s NCAA Football slate.
College Football Betting at BookMaker.eu
Nebraska Cornhuskers -7
Illinois Fighting Illini +7
Total 55
Odds Analysis
Nebraska opened as a 9.5-point favorite but has been bet down to seven points. Cause by a flood of early money on the Fighting Illini. Much of that is based on the continuing bad news coming out of Lincoln, Nebraska. Meanwhile, there is increased hype regarding the debut of new Illinois head coach Bret Bielema.
Nebraska Cornhuskers
Nebraska senior quarterback Adrian Martinez arrived with Frost as a highly touted recruit. Martinez has shown flashes of brilliance. But he’s also been inconsistent and turnover-prone. Now in his fourth season, Martinez is being counted upon to get Nebraska to a bowl game. In 2020 it was the defense that saved Nebraska from total disaster. Accordingly, the Huskers bring an experienced unit back for their most important season under Frost.
Late on, Nebraska has covered four of their most recent six away games. The Huskers have not gone over the total in their last seven road matchups. Nebraska has paid in only three of their previous 11 games as a favorite. Only two of their last eight games as chalk went over the total. Specifically, in Big Ten away games, Nebraska is 4-2 vs. the odds. Nebraska is 2-8-1 under the number on the Big Ten road.
Illinois Fighting Illini
Bret Bielema takes over a weak Illinois program that never took off under his predecessor Lovie Smith. Specifically at Wisconsin, Bielema went 68-24 and led the Badgers to three Rose Bowl berths. Bielema’s Badgers finished ranked in five of his seven seasons, including three top-10s.
Illinois doesn’t have a full cupboard leftover for Bielema. Thus, he’ll need time to bring in several recruiting classes. But his previous experience in the Big Ten will help those efforts. He is well connected and will be able to locate talent.
Illinois got the cash in only seven of their last 20 Big Ten home games. And then only one of the Fighting Illini’s previous five Big Ten home games went over the total. As an underdog, Illinois is just 3-6 vs. the line. Further, five of the Fighting Illini’s last nine games as a dog went under the total. At Memorial Stadium, Illinois is 4-3 against the spread in the most recent seven matchups. Only one of their previous five home games cleared the total.
Nebraska vs. Illinois Prediction
Illinois has covered the spread in four of their previous six games against Nebraska. At the same time, the last three meetings between the Huskers and Fighting Illini went over the total. At Illinois, the Fighting Illini covered two of their last three against the Huskers. Two of their last three games stayed under the total.
In this situation, taking Nebraska is fading the public with a good contrarian pick. Martinez should prove to be the difference at quarterback.
Bookmaker Pick: Nebraska Cornhuskers
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