Free NCAA Football Prediction: Wildcats vs. Blue Devils Odds
Looking for Northwestern Wildcats vs. Duke Blue Devils free picks? College football betting sees the Wildcats taking on the Blue Devils on Saturday, September 18th at Wallace Wade Stadium in Durham, North Carolina. Cappers Picks provides complimentary handicapping picks all NCAA football season long so stay tuned for more FREE college football game Week 3 predictions like this Northwestern Duke free pick.
College Football Handicapping Analysis: Week 3
(1-1) Northwestern Wildcats vs. Duke Blue Devils (1-1)
Date: Saturday, September 18th, 2021
Time: 4:00 pm EST
Venue: Wallace Wade Stadium, Durham, North Carolina
NCAA Football ATS Spread Odds: Wildcats -2.5, Blue Devils +2.5
NCAA Football Moneyline Odds: Wildcats -150, Blue Devils +125
NCAA Betting Total Odds: O/U 50
The Duke Blue Devils will host the Northwestern Wildcats for the second ACC/Big Ten matchup of the weekend. Both teams picked up wins last weekend after dropping their first contests.
HISTORY: These two schools have surprisingly met twenty times. This sporadic rivalry began in 1985, and both Duke and Northwestern have ten wins apiece.
Northwestern Wildcats
The Northwestern Wildcats traded their first two home games of the season. They opened with a 17-point loss to division foe Michigan State, but they responded with a win over Indiana State. The Wildcats failed to cover the lofty spread and they didn’t gain over 300 yards. They enter their first road bout with a few question marks.
Senior quarterback Hunter Johnson started with a strong performance out of the game, before regressing a bit last week. Northwestern leaned on the run game a bit, but he missed a lot of easy throws. He went 30-43 for 283 yards and three touchdowns in the opener, and that’s the QB the Wildcats will need this weekend.
Evan Hull matched his 2020 total through two weeks after a physical performance against Indiana State. After gaining 110 all-purpose yards versus the Spartans, the sophomore back ran for a career-high 126 yards on 22 carries against Indiana State. Freshman back Anthony Tyus III had a big game as well, running for 71 yards on ten carries.
Through two weeks, KU transfer Stephon Robinson Jr. leads the team nine receptions for 95 yards. Sophomore Bryce Kirtz caught seven passes for 80 yards against Michigan State, while senior tight end Trey Pugh also caught a pair of touchdowns versus Sparty.
Northwestern gave up a whopping 326 rushing yards to Michigan State in the opener, so they will need to shore up their play against Duke’s respectable run game this weekend.
Duke Blue Devils
The Duke Blue Devils opened their season on the wrong side of an upset to the in-state Charlotte 49ers. They were down after one quarter to FCS school N.C. A&T before cleaning things up, cruising to victory, and covering the managable 22-point spread.
Gunnar Holmberg has been solid through the first two weeks of the season. He went 20-29 for 228 yards and a touchdown in the unexcusable loss to Charlotte, but he protected the ball. He was accurate again last weekend, going 20-27 for 270 passing yards and two rushing touchdowns.
Mataeo Durant has been a workhouse early. The senior back is the only runner with more than ten touches, and he’s turned 44 carries into 296 yards and a nation-leading six rushing touchdowns. He’s scored three in each games, and he’s going to be a big part of the Blue Devils gameplan at home.
Jake Bobo has established himself as the number-one option. The senior wideout leads the team with 16 catches for 178 yards. Jalon Calhoun has caught eight passes for 123 yards. Sophomore back Jordan Waters caught Holmberg sole touchdown pass in the opener.
Duke nearly gave up 500 yards of total offense in the loss to Charlotte, before giving up over 200 yards on the ground to NC&T.
Free Week 3 NCAA Football Pick
Non-conference season always brings out the sneaky matchups. There’s a bit of history between these two teams, and one of these programs is bound to pick up their second win of the season.
4* Free Week 3 NCAA Betting Pick: Duke ML (+130)
With stadiums returning to near-full capacity, the home underdog has looked appealing through two weeks. Although Duke loss to Charlotte, they fall in line here, as a strong run game could potentially give Northwestern a lot of trouble. The Michigan State loss pointed out a glaring red flag, and we like the home team exploiting that Saturday with explosive running back Mataeo Durant.
This could very well come down to the last position, as their isn’t much that separates the two teams. We like the Blue Devils this weekend, so take a safe chance with Duke’s moneyline at home.
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