Bruins vs Fighting Illini NCAA Football – Kraft Fight Hunger Bowl Odds
A lot of things have changed since the Bruins and Illini met over five seasons ago.
And now what in the past would have been a matchup of two very good teams, has turned into a meeting of the worst that college football has seen in a bowl meeting in the past several seasons.
While Illinois is the first team in FBS history to end a season 0-6 after starting 6-0, the Bruins are the first team in a decade to reach a bowl with a losing record.
Bowl Game Title : Kraft Fight Hunger Bowl
UCLA (6-7, 5-5 Pac-12) v ILLINOIS (6-6, 2-6 Big Ten)
Date: Saturday, December 31, 20111, 3:30 PM EST
Venue: AT&T Park, San Francisco, CA
Broadcast: ESPN ESPN/ESPN3
Betting Lines: from ***.com:
Money Line: OFF
Spread: +2.5 UCLA
Over/Under: 47
The Bruins did however did put forth a solid effort before falling 49-31 at Oregon in the inaugural Pac 12 championship game, but it was a product of USC’s probation.
UCLA enters this one as a slight underdog while the total of this game is slightly lower than the average amount of points scored in these two teams’ games. It appears that the odds makers are expecting the Bruins to come up a couple of points short from their usual output against the Illinois defense.
If UCLA want to get back to an even record, their defense is going to have to step up. They are allowing an generous 32.2 points per game and are in the bottom half of the country in nearly every single defensive statistic this season.
The one thing this team does possess though, is an above average running game. The team features a dynamic running back duo in Johnathan Franklin (947 yards, five touchdowns) and Derrick Coleman (726, 11). If the Bruins can get that going, they can hide their defensive shortcomings with ball possession.
If UCLA is able to get an early score plus a crucial stop or two. Look for them to sit on the ball as long as possible. If the Bruins get it their way, this game will be played in the teens because they do not want to get into a shootout with anyone the way their defense has been playing. [soliloquy id=”82219″]
On the other hand, you have an Illinois team that doesn’t really want to get into a shootout either.
This is an Illinois team that relies on their defense to get their wins, and you can’t blame the them for Illinois’ embarrassing finish. The unit ranked seventh nationally in total defense (291.8), fourth against the pass (159.1) and tied for 11th with 36 sacks. The problem is the Illini rely on their defense little too much at times. If you look at their previous six games entering this one, well, the offense just has not shown up, especially after the half.
If Illinois is going to win this one, what they have to do is simple. They have to figure out a way to drive the ball on what is a very below average Bruin defense. I think we can all agree that Fighting Illini quarterback Nathan Scheelhaase’s best days are in front of him, but a win in this game would get the turnaround started a little earlier than people anticipated. He needs to avoid the costly turnovers if he is deemed healthy enough to play.
I fully expect this to be a knock down drag out fight that will end well under the score predicted, and I give a slight edge to the Illini based solely on the fact that they have the more dominant defense.
Matt’s Prediction: Illinois 20, UCLA 14
Welcome to the CappersPicks.com college football weekly predictions pages! We KNOW you will find our FREE weekly college football picks, tips, betting advice, strategies, CFB gambling articles and more to help you become the best College football bettor on your block!!
