Categories
NCAA Football

Wisconsin Badgers vs. Nebraska Cornhuskers Gambling Prediction & Week 5 Preview

Badgers vs Cornhuskers NCAA Football Spread/Handicapping

When the Nebraska Cornhuskers went into Wisconsin last season, they suffered a 48-7 loss against the then-ranked seventh team in the nation. This year’s Badgers have been good—not great—but the biggest question heading into week five’s matchup has to be, will starting running back Monte Ball be in or out?

Wisconsin Badgers (3-1) vs No. 25 Nebraska Cornhuskers (3-1)
Saturday September 29, 2012
Memorial Stadium, Lincoln NE
8:00 PM ET
Moneyline: OFF from GTBets.eu
Spread: Nebraska -12 GTBets.eu
O/U: 51

ATS Matchup Stats | Gambling Insight!Buy Ray’s Picks!

Wisconsin Badgers

The Wisconsin Badgers are 3-1 on the season, and while they came up with a 37-26 victory against UTEP last week, they suffered a big-time loss when Monte Ball went out with his second head injury in less than two months—his first was suffered in an assault on campus. Ball was a Heisman hopeful both last season and early in 2012, but even if he can’t go on Saturday, the team has reliable backs who can step in and take his place.

Melvin Gordon and James White made themselves present last week rushing for 187 yards and three touchdowns between the two of them (23 combines carries).

CLICK TO GRAB OUR Expert CFB Picks for 2012 NCAA FOOTBALL Betting!

Quarterback Danny O’Brien has seemingly lost his starting gig—at least for the time being—and has been replaced by freshman Joel Stave. Stave played well in his first-ever start last week, but with the position in flux, you have to wonder what kind of performance will come against Nebraska on Saturday.

Nebraska Cornhuskers

Nebraska’s running game has been outstanding early this season. The team has 14 scores on the ground from five different players, but the star of the backfield has been Ameer Abdullah with 416 yards and five touchdowns on 69 carries. The Cornhuskers are averaging 48.5 points per game (8th in the country), and they’re allowing just 19.0 (40th).

Nebraska isn’t a one-trick pony, though, as their passing game has been good up to this point as well. The team only ranks 66th in the country for passing yards (224.3 per game), but their quarterback, Taylor Martinez, ranks first by quite a bit in Big Ten quarterback rating (180.9). He has completed 70.7 percent of his passes, has thrown only one interception and has proven to be a true dual-threat quarterback so far this season.

The one loss that the Cornhuskers endured this season was a telling one against the 22nd-ranked UCLA Bruins. Nebraska allowed 653 yards in the matchup (309 through the air and 344 on the ground), so if the Badgers can learn from the blueprint that UCLA set, they’ll stand a chance this weekend. [soliloquy id=”82219″]

Both teams boast the same record heading into the conference opener, but the offensive prowess of the Cornhuskers will make it difficult for Wisconsin to start off interleague play on the right foot. The Badgers have allowed just 17.8 points per game thus far, but they’ve yet to play a team with Nebraska’s offensive abilities.

If the Badgers can slow down the play of Martinez—in both the passing and the rushing games—they’ll stand a chance. If Monte Ball returns Saturday, this could be a closer matchup than the spread indicates; but if he’s out, this team could struggle to keep up.

Trends

  • Cornhuskers are 4-0 ATS in their last 4 home games.
  • Cornhuskers are 4-0 ATS in their last 4 games on fieldturf.
  • Cornhuskers are 20-4-1 ATS in their last 25 home games vs. a team with a winning record.
  • Cornhuskers are 4-1 ATS in their last 5 games in September.
  • Over is 4-1 in Badgers last 5 games following a S.U. win.
  • Over is 4-1 in Badgers last 5 road games vs. a team with a winning home record.

O/U Pick: Over 51
Score Prediction: Nebraska 35 – Wisconsin 21

By Cappers Picks

Articles on CappersPicks.com are written by Q (the Head Honcho) at Cappers Picks or by our resident "in house" handicapper Razor Ray Monohan! Enjoy the free picks folks! "Pad that bankroll one day at a time!"