Ray “The Razor” Monohan – Last Updated on January 28, 2023 9:43 am
Free Week 1 Prediction: Wildcats vs Boilermakers Odds
Looking forNorthwestern Wildcats vs. Purdue Boilermakers free picks? Week 1 betting sees the Wildcats taking on the Boilermakers Thursday August 30th at Ross-Ade Stadium in West Lafayette, Indiana. Cappers Picks provides complimentary handicapping picks all NCAA football season long so stay tuned for more FREE college football predictions like this Northwestern Purdue free pick.
College Football Handicapping: Week 1
(0-0) Northwestern Wildcats vs. Purdue Boilermakers (0-0)
Date: Thursday, August 30th 2018
Time: 8:00 pm EST
Venue: Ross-Ade Stadium, West Lafayette, Indiana
NCAA Football Spread: Purdue -3
NCAA Betting Total: 49
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The Purdue Boilermakers will play hosts to the Northwestern Wildcats as the Big 10 kicks-off with a solid matchup.
Purdue opened up has -3.5 point favorites while the line has remained pretty steady as the spread currently sits at -3 with about 55% of the public backing Northwestern.
The total opened up at 51.5 points and has since dropped down to 49 points.
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Northwestern Wildcats
Northwestern will be coming off of a double-digit win total from last year where they went 10-3 (9-4 ATS).
They’ll be returning seven starters on the offensive side where they’ll be led by Senior quarterback Clayton Thorson.
Thorson is working back from an ACL injury that he sustained in their bowl game against Kentucky last season so it is not yet 100% that Thorson will play.
If he can’t go then backup RS Junior and son of NFL quarterback Trent Green, TJ Green.
Coach Fitzgerald is also going to have to deal with replacing four season 1,000-yard rusher Justin Jackson.
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They will at least have some stability in the offensive line and wide receiver department as they are returning four linemen and their top-two receivers from last year.
On the defensive side, seven starters will be returning from a defense that ranked 34th in total defense (357 YPG) a season ago.
Purdue Boilermakers
Second-year head coach Jeff Brohm will be looking to improve upon a 7-6 (9-4 ATS) record a season ago, which is pretty good considering that Purdue has only won nine games total in the previous four seasons.
They’ll be returning 13 starters in total, 9 on the offensive side and 4 on the defensive side.
On the offensive side they’ll return two quarterbacks David Blough and Elijah Sindelar who combined for 27 TD and 11 INT last year.
A solid feature of this Purdue team is that they’ll be returning four offensive linemen and a plethora of running backs.
It will be an up-hill battle for defensive coordinator Nick Holt to replace eight defensive players on a defense that ranked 52nd in total defense (375.5 YPG) and 24th in scoring defense.
NCAA Football Handicapping Trends
- NW are 7-1 ATS in their last 8 games overall.
- NW are 19-7 ATS in their last 26 conference games.
- Under is 41-17-1 in NW last 59 games on grass.
- Under is 6-2 in PUR last 8 games overall.
- Over is 14-6 in PUR last 20 games on grass.
- Over is 34-16-1 in PUR last 51 home games.
Under is 10-3 in the last 13 meetings.
Free Week 1 NCAA Football Pick
Purdue’s offense carries them past Northwestern on opening-day.
4* Free NCAA Betting Pick: Purdue -3
Northwestern will be riding an 8-game win streak into this contest, while Purdue is riding on a 3-game win streak, so both teams have got to be feeling good about where they are at.
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Purdue is going to be able to score points, but they aren’t going to be able to always contain opposing offenses.
Northwestern defense should be able to keep them in this contest for most of the game, so all eyes will be on whether or not Thorson plays and how effective will he be if he does play, so expect a lot of pressure from Purdue’s defense.
Opening day at home while its against a Big 10 rival – this young Purdue team has the offense to stay in this contest, while I expect the home-field advantage to get them over the hump.
Week 1 Free Score Prediction: Purdue 27 – Northwestern 23
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