Free NCAA Football Prediction: Illinois vs. Virginia Odds
Looking for Illinois Fighting Illini vs. Virginia Cavaliers free picks? College football betting sees the Fighting Illini taking on the Cavaliers on Saturday, September 10, 2022, at Memorial Stadium in Champaign, IL. Cappers Picks provides complimentary handicapping picks all NCAA football season long so stay tuned for more FREE college football game predictions like this Illinois Virginia free pick.
College Football Handicapping Analysis: Illinois Fighting Illini vs. Virginia Cavaliers
Illinois Fighting Illini (1-1) vs. Virginia Cavaliers (1-0)
Date: Saturday, September 10, 2022
Time: 4:00 pm EST
Venue: Memorial Stadium
NCAA Football ATS Spread Odds: Illinois -4.5 / Virginia +4.5 (Bet Now!)
NCAA Football Moneyline Odds: Fighting Illini -198 / Cavaliers +160
NCAA Betting Total Odds: Total O/U 57.0
Illinois will look to rebound from a crushing loss at Indiana, while the Cavs look to stay undefeated.
“But it ain’t about how hard you can hit. It’s about how hard you can get hit and keep moving forward.” – Rocky Balboa
Illinois Fighting Illini
It’s difficult to tell exactly what Illinois is at this point. Other than the fact they’ll rely on Chase Brown this season to jumpstart the offense, the Illini haven’t played a hard schedule, but they aren’t undefeated either. Well, they probably should be. Unfortunately for Bielema and his squad, they were the subject of a controversial call in Bloomington that cost them a W.
Tommy DeVito — one of my least favorite college QB’s — posted QBR’s of 43.0 and 66.3 this season. The offense outside of Chase Brown is mostly a, “get it to the wideout and let him run” kind of offense. The Illini do sport receiving weapons in Brian Hightower and Isaiah Williams that will require attention.
RB Chase Brown has crushed it so far this season, with very little surprise. The man with high expectations has not disappointed with 350 rushing yards on 55 carries (6.4 ypc). He gets a tough matchup in this one however in former Air Force and current UVA DC, John Rudzinski. His 2021 Falcons were top-45 in Defensive Line Yards and top 15 in Defensive Rushing Success Rate.
Defensively, the Illini shut down the Indiana rushing attack, but did allow 331 passing yards to Connor Bazelak. The defense posted 6 TFL and 5 PD with one interception.
Virginia Cavaliers
Virginia represents a step up in competition for Illinois. While the Illini have enjoyed Wyoming (114th in SP+) and Indiana (79th), they now deal with the Cavs (61st) and former Clemson OC, Tony Elliott.
The star of the offense is 5th year senior, Brennan Armstrong. After posting 4,449 yds, 31 TD and 10 INT in 2021, Armstrong looks to further build his NFL profile. To go along with his 246 passing yards, 2 touchdowns and 1 interception, Armstrong ran the ball 10 times for 105 yards and a score in a 34-17 win over Richmond.
Perris Jones had an efficient ground game against the Spiders, posting 104 rushing yards on 19 carries (5.5 ypc). The wide receiving corps is also deep, with Lavel Davis Jr, Keytaon Thompson, Dontayvion Wicks and Billy Kemp IV.
The aforementioned change at DC should improve the Cavalier defense over 2021 but they will have their hands full with Brown. They will look to returning starting LB Nick Jackson to lead the charge.
NCAA Football Handicapping Trends
- The total has gone UNDER in 10 of Virginia’s last 14 games
- Virginia is 1-4 ATS in its last 5 games
- Illinois is 4-1 ATS in its last 5 games
- The total has gone UNDER in 9 of Illinois’s last 12 games
4* Free Illinois Fighting Illini vs. Virginia Cavaliers NCAA Betting Final Analysis:
The big question for me is, can Virginia stop Chase Brown?
If they can, Illinois will have trouble putting up enough points in this game.
If they can’t, Virginia will have to lean on their offense throw up points and trade blows.
After a disappointing loss, it’ll be up to Illinois to channel their inner Rocky. I’m betting they can’t. You could look at the UVA ML here, but I’ll reduce my exposure and take the points on the road.
4* Free Illinois Fighting Illini vs. Virginia Cavaliers NCAA Betting Pick: Virginia +4.5
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