Illinois at Nebraska Preview & Prediction (CollegeFootballNews.com)

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Illinois vs. Nebraska Prediction, Preview and Betting Lines
by Pete Fiutak, CollegeFootballNews.com

It's been a lot of fun to be a fan of these two teams so far.

Nebraska is 3-0 for the first time since 2018, but it's been an easy run -- and yes, that includes the victory over Colorado.

The team is playing well, the defense has been fantastic, and Dylan Raiola is a great young quarterback to build around.

Sometimes as a sports fan, it's a ton of fun when your team is just getting good.

Illinois is also 3-0, easing by Central Michigan last week and with a strong home win over Kansas to get the season going. With a trip to Penn State up next, and with Michigan and at Oregon on the horizon before November, this is a big moment for the Illini.

Illinois (3-0, 0-0) at Nebraska (3-0, 0-0)
Friday, September 20 - 8:00 PM (ET) - FOX

Why Illinois Will Win
Nebraska has yet to face a team that can run the ball.

It's not that Northern Cockeye didn't give it a shot, but that's an FCS team -- the Panthers only averaged 3.6 yards per carry. Colorado can't run and UTEP is UTEP.

Illinois has been decent throwing it, and it got stuffed a bit too easily by Kansas, but it'll start bashing away on the Husker front from the start.

Last year the coaching staff screwed up and only ran a season-low 19 times against Nebraska in the 20-7 loss. This time, the idea will be to keep bashing until something starts to break.

But there's one other key here -- the turnover monster hasn't hit the Huskers yet. They've been far more careful with the ball, partly because they haven't needed to take any chances. Meanwhile, Illinois is +8 in turnover margin over the first three games.

Why Nebraska Will Win
Yeah, about that running the ball for Illinois -- there's a shot it can't do it.

It's been too easy to let veteran Luke Altmyer throw and take over the offense in key situations, and it'll likely stick with the plan to mix it up a bit. He'll have to keep up with the kid on the other side.

Raiola has been brilliant. It's asking WAY too much for a freshman to rise up and carry an entire program, but that's what he's been doing.

He's hitting 74% of his passes with five scores and just one pick. It also helps that the Huskers are protecting their star.

Nebraska has allowed just one sack and 12 tackles for loss so far. Illinois has yet to show enough push into the backfield to matter -- the tackles for loss aren't there on a consistent basis.

Who Will Win
There's a major Prove It factor for Nebraska, and Illinois will provide it.

This is the first time all season the Huskers will have to get physical. It's also the first time they'll have to handle a nasty secondary.

Illinois is great at bringing a big-time attitude on the road, especially when it's not expected to do much. It'll push the Huskers for a full four quarters helped by two takeaways -- just wait; the Illini will dial up the pressure on Raiola.

But unlike past Husker teams, this one won't turtle when it counts.

Prediction
Nebraska 23, Illinois 20

Spread
Nebraska is favored at home by 9.5 points. The Over/Under is set at 43.5 points

 

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Other Big Ten picks for Week #4

BYE WEEK
Oregon
Wisconsin

Charlotte at Indiana (-28.5)
The Indiana defensive plays will come from all sides, the offense continues to be ultra-efficient, and it'll be a 4-0 start for the Hoosiers with relative ease. Charlotte won't be able to move the ball at all on the ground and won't be able to control the tempo or clock. Indiana 41, Charlotte 13

Cockeye (-2.5) at Minnesota
It's Cockeye vs. Minnesota. It'll be low scoring, it'll come down to one weird play, and it'll be close. Four of the last five were decided by five points or fewer, and this will follow suit. Minnesota's defense will match Cockeye's blow for blow, the offense will barrel enough to keep things moving, and .......Cockeye kicker Drew Stevens is 5-for-5 on field goals. Minnesota's Dragon Kesich is 5-of-9. Stevens will nail a 41-yarder for the win. Cockeye 19, Minnesota 17

Villanova at Maryland (-17.5)
The Wildcat offense will be pesky, but it won't be able to bust through. It won't be the sharpest of Maryland performances, but it'll finally start to take over after a rocky first 20 minutes. Maryland 37, Villanova 13

Michigan State at Boston College (-6.5)
The Boston College pass rush hasn't been strong enough to consistently bother Aiden Chiles. Michigan State has to limit the penalties and mistakes, and it has to be better at closing out good drives with points, but its defensive front and pressure in the backfield will come up big when it has to. Michigan State 24, Boston College 23

Northwestern at Washington (-10.5)
Northwestern's defense will hold up for the first half, but the offense won't take advantage of the opportunities. Fresh off the tough loss to Washington State, the Huskies will come out with a major attitude on defense, they'll stuff the Wildcat ground game, and they'll be 1-0 in the Big Ten. Washington 27, Northwestern 16

Marshall at Ohio State (-39.5)
It might take a little while to get going, but Marshall's offense won't do much of anything to be a threat. Like its first two games, Ohio State will settle in and will do whatever it wants. Will Howard will take a few sacks and will make a few more mistakes than he did in the first two games, and it won't matter. Ohio State 48, Marshall 6

Kent State at Penn State (-48.5)
Penn State will call its shot. It'll look strong for three quarters before taking the foot fully off the gas. Kent State scoring would be a win. Penn State 56, Kent State 3

Purdoodoo at Oregon State (-5.5)
Oregon State will run at least 40 times, and it might run 50 if things start to go well. However, Purdoodoo will dink and dunk all game long with Hudson Card coming up with a strong performance. It'll be a far better day for the Boilermakers than a week ago, but Oregon State will have the ball for over 35 minutes and will take the air out of the ball late. Oregon State 27, Purdoodoo 24

Rutgers at Virginia Tech (-3.5)
The Hokie offensive front has been just okay. It's allowing a few too many tackles for loss -- that's partly because QB Kyron Drones runs a lot -- and this is the game Rutgers will turn it loose p front. The Scarlet Knight passing game won't be anything special, but Athan Kaliakmanis will hit the third down throws to pull this off. Rutgers 26, Virginia Tech 23

UCLA at LSU (-24.5)
There's no need for LSU to take any chances in this. Win the field position battle, take advantage of the opportunities that are there, and balance out the attack -- the Tigers can do that. There's no worry about anything UCLA will do on the ground, and the passing attack won't be able to keep up once the home side gets up early. LSU 41, UCLA 16

USC (-5.5) at Michigan
Can Michigan generate any pressure on Miller Moss? It's been one of the strangest things about the Wolverines so far -- they're not very good defensively on third downs, partly because they can't find a pass rush. The bigger problem will be the downfield plays from the offense. There will be a few here and there, but not enough of them to overcome the two Alex Orji turnovers. At some point Michigan will start to look the part again, but it won't be this week against the rested Trojans. USC 26, Michigan 20