Illinois vs Ohio St. Odds & Prediction
Ohio State (9-0) will not be going to any bowls this season with their suspension, but they are still undefeated and the 6th ranked team in the nation. Illinois (2-6) can play in a bowl this season, but to do so they will have to win their last 4 games.
Venue/ Stadium: Ohio Stadium, COLUMBUS, OH
Time/Date: 3:30 PM EST Saturday, November 3, 2012
NFL Odds From: TopBet.eu
Moneyline: OFF
Spread: Ohio State -27.5
Over/Under: 51.5
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Illinois Fighting Illini vs. No. 6 Ohio State Buckeyes Preview
That is a big long shot, as they are 0-4 in Big 10 play and are very weak on both sides of the ball. NCAAF lines have Ohio State as big 27.5-point favorites with a total of 51.5.
In their last games Ohio State beat Penn State 35-23 while Illinois lost to Indiana 31-17.
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On the season Illinois is 2-6 ATS and they have an Over/Under record of 4-3 and Ohio State is 4-5 ATS and they have an Over/Under record of 5-4.
Illinois has lost 4 straight in this series and to snap that streak they will have to try to contain Ohio State QB Braxton Miller. In the win over Penn State he passed fro 143 yards with a 2 and rushed for 134 yards with 2 TD. The duel-threat QB has a good WR corps and is averaging a Big 10 best 121.4 rushing yards, which also ranks 11th in the nation.
Illinois has a decent pass defense ranked 44th in the nation and their run defense ranks 55th in the nation.
The Fighting Illini offense has really struggled in Big 10 play and in their last 4 games, all in conference and all losses, they have averaged 9.5 points per game. QB Nathan Scheelhaase has failed to pass more than 1 TD in any game this season and he has more INT (5) than TD (4). Ryan Lankford (29 rec 413 yards 5 TD) is his main target and will have to play well in this game for Illinois to pull off the big upset. [soliloquy id=”82219″]
Scheelhaase may have to carry the offense and the Buckeyes’ pass defense only ranks 107th in the nation. Will he have time to find his targets? He was sacked 7 times last week against Indiana, who have a weak pass rush while Ohio State has a solid one with 20 sacks on the season.
One bright spot for Illinois last week was the play of Donovonn Young, who rushed for 124 yards. However, he will be facing an Ohio State run defense that ranks 20th in the nation.
In some betting trends for this Big 10 match up Illinois is 0-4 ATS in their last 4 road games, 0-5 ATS in their last 5 games overall, and they have an Under record of 10-4 in their last 14 games.
Ohio State is 1-4 ATS in their last 5 home games, 0-4 ATS vs. a team with a losing record, and they have an Over record of 7-3 in their last conference games.
Jason’s Pick: The Buckeyes have not covered the spread in their last 4 games facing a team with a losing record, but that trend will not continue. Even giving 27.5 points Ohio State will crush Illinois at home and they will cover the spread.
