CHICITYSPORTS – Chicago Sports  Blog – News – Forum – Rumors – Fans
  • BEARS
  • BULLS
  • BLACKHAWKS
  • CUBS
  • WHITE SOX
  • MESSAGE BOARD
Navigation
  • About Us
  • Chicago Sports Podcasts
  • ChiCity+
  • CHICITYSPORTS – Chicago Sports Blog – News – Forum – Rumors – Fans
  • Get In Touch
  • Join Our Group
  • Newsletter
  • Our Writers
  • Privacy Policy
  • Want to Write for ChiCitySports?
Facebook Twitter Instagram
Trending
  • BREAKING: Chicago Bears Coaching Staff Changes Announced For 2023
  • Great American Football Scholarships in 2023
  • Bears Insider: Pro Bowl OL Most Realistic Option In 2023 Free Agency
  • Patrick Mahomes’ father reveals pre-draft tidbit from Chicago Bears in 2017
  • BREAKING: Chicago Bears Cap Space Changes Drastically For 2023
  • 6 NBA Teams Which Have Won The Most Championships
  • How Do Bonuses Work In The Demo Version Of The Slot?
  • New report suggests Packers are ready to move on from Aaron Rodgers
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Our Writers
  • Want to Write for ChiCitySports?
CHICITYSPORTS – Chicago Sports  Blog – News – Forum – Rumors – FansCHICITYSPORTS – Chicago Sports  Blog – News – Forum – Rumors – Fans
  • BEARS

    BREAKING: Chicago Bears Coaching Staff Changes Announced For 2023

    February 1, 2023

    Bears Insider: Pro Bowl OL Most Realistic Option In 2023 Free Agency

    January 31, 2023

    Patrick Mahomes’ father reveals pre-draft tidbit from Chicago Bears in 2017

    January 30, 2023

    BREAKING: Chicago Bears Cap Space Changes Drastically For 2023

    January 30, 2023

    New report suggests Packers are ready to move on from Aaron Rodgers

    January 29, 2023
  • BULLS

    Chicago Bulls are on the way to the top this 2023

    January 26, 2023

    3 possible trade targets for the Chicago Bulls

    January 19, 2023

    Air Jordan 11 ‘DMP’ to get Holiday 2023 release?

    January 19, 2023

    Chicago Fans’ One Wish for Every Team in 2023

    December 31, 2022

    Zach LaVine trade rumors: 3 possible destinations

    December 30, 2022
  • BLACKHAWKS

    Comparing the Dynamic of Two Rebuilding Clubs

    January 25, 2023

    Chicago Fans’ One Wish for Every Team in 2023

    December 31, 2022

    Blackhawks’ Sam Lafferty returns to line-up vs. Jets

    December 9, 2022

    Blackhawks recall Lukas Reichel from Rockford

    December 6, 2022

    Phillip Danault: A Player Extraordinaire

    November 29, 2022
  • CUBS

    Chicago Cubs still sculpting their bullpen

    January 17, 2023

    Chicago Cubs 2023 prospect watch: Matt Mervis

    January 15, 2023

    Cubs add three shortstops through International Prospect signing day

    January 15, 2023

    Cubs and Trey Mancini agree to a two-year deal

    January 14, 2023

    Cubs hot stove: With Nick Madrigal as the odd man out, could the Cubs trade him?

    January 13, 2023
  • WHITE SOX

    Chicago White Sox 2023 prospect watch: outfielder Oscar Colas

    January 18, 2023

    Chicago Fans’ One Wish for Every Team in 2023

    December 31, 2022

    MLB analyst pitches insane White Sox Yankees trade

    December 22, 2022

    Outfielder Andrew Benintendi signs with White Sox

    December 16, 2022

    Analyst Reveals Poor Grade For White Sox Offseason So Far

    December 12, 2022
  • MESSAGE BOARD
Facebook Twitter Instagram
CHICITYSPORTS – Chicago Sports  Blog – News – Forum – Rumors – Fans
Home»Big Ten Football»Big Ten Football Betting Preview Week 7
Big Ten Football

Big Ten Football Betting Preview Week 7

Riley MagnusonBy Riley MagnusonOctober 14, 20228 Mins Read
Facebook Twitter Reddit Tumblr Email
Big Ten - Michigan
10593065
Share
Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Pinterest Email

Big Ten football shines on center stage with a massive Top 10 matchup that could rock the College Football world.

An undeniably entertaining college football afternoon awaits us with gigantic games across the country this Saturday. At the forefront of that is two Top 10 matchups, Alabama-Tennessee, and in our neck of the woods, Penn State at Michigan. An upset in either of these games could have huge implications on the remainder of the CFB season, and could cause some serious chaos down the road.

If you’re a Big Ten junkie like me, while there is only five games on this week’s slate, two of the meetings are worth watching and could actually prove very significant in the ‘wild west’ that is the Big Ten West division. Cancel your plans and get the gameday recipes rolling, because Saturday’s action could be a contender for best football weekend of the year! Best of luck and let’s get after it.

2022 Big Ten Betting Record: 10-6-1

Minnesota (-7) at Illinois: O/U 39.5 (11:00am CST)

For those of us that have suffered, dreaded and braved the last decade-plus of Illinois football, take a second to rejoice because this team is the best and most likable team that has come through Champaign since 2007.

Now, before we jump off the deep end and take Illinois to pull of the upset, please tread lightly because the starting quarterback status for Illinois is gargantuan in this game. If you watched last week’s win over Iowa, you saw Tommy DeVito leave that game with an ankle injury, setting the stage for Artur Sitkowski. Sitkowski played 5 games for the Illini last year, and while the team itself had some rough outings, Sitkowski was a rough watch for any Illinois fan, or any fan of competent quarterback play in general.

To put this simply, if Artur Sitkowski is the starting QB for Illinois on Saturday, I really am not giving them a puncher’s chance against Minnesota despite how strong the Illini defense has been. Even if we see DeVito suited up and even if by some miracle he is 100% healthy, this would be a tough task to upset the Golden Gophers, but I will at least give them a fighting chance if he can go.

If you haven’t watched Minnesota this year, or maybe you’ve only seen them in their most recent game in a loss to Purdue, I will tell you that when healthy, this team is potentially the best team in the Big Ten West, and zero doubt top five in the Big Ten, maybe even top three. Not only is this team coming off of a bye with extra time to prepare, but they’ve had a bad taste in their mouth for two weeks following their performance at home against Purdue.

I mentioned health for Minnesota, because their stud running back Mohamed Ibrahim unexpectedly missed that loss to Purdue, but is expected to return tomorrow in Champaign. Ibrahim through four games has racked up 567 rushing yards and eight touchdowns, and in my opinion is a dark-horse Heisman contender if he can keep himself healthy.

If DeVito is out, give me Minnesota at just about any number, if DeVito is in, I’ll happily pass and hope the Illini can pull off the upset.

RMags’ Pick: (IF Sitkowski starts) Minnesota -7, (IF DeVito starts) Pass

Penn State at Michigan (-7): O/U 50.5 (11:00am CST)

The game of the day in the Big Ten, and certainly top two on Saturday’s slate, heads to the Big House, for a Top 10 meeting between undefeated Penn State and Michigan. This is a tough one to crack for me, but at the end of the day, this Michigan team feels very similar to last year’s team, and while I’m not saying they are going to upset Ohio State again down the road, it does feel like Michigan has elevated to a tier of their own above the rest of the Big Ten pack, excluding Ohio State.

Of course Penn State rolls in undefeated, but really hasn’t been tested since their opening night win over Purdue, a game in which they caught some great breaks and lucky bounces. In my opinion they should have lost that game, Purdue’s passing offense did just about whatever it wanted to do, and the Nittany Lions really haven’t been tested since.

The lone impressive win stands as the 41-12 beatdown at Auburn, a game that shouldn’t be pushed over completely, but we’ve seen who Auburn is this season, and in contrast to Michigan, really had no passing offense, and this matchup should not be comparable in the slightest.

If Michigan can avoid mistakes, I expect their offense to have a really nice day, and while I lean towards the Wolverines covering the spread, I think the team total is the place to go. Sean Clifford has shown that he is mistake prone in come-from-behind situations, I think this could allow for a short field or two for Michigan.

It would not shock me though if Penn State has a backdoor cover opportunity at the end of this game, and to keep us out of that situation, we’ll go with Michigan’s offense to roll. Give me a 35 spot for the Wolverines.

RMags’ Pick: Michigan Team Total Over 29.5

Maryland (-11.5) at Indiana: O/U 62 (2:30pm CST)

The Maryland hype train has taken a couple of hits over the last few weeks, with gut-wrenching losses to Michigan and Purdue. While wins over either would have brought a great deal of respect to Maryland in Big Ten spaces, this team is still very solid and could very well finish with eight wins, a number they have yet to reach since joining the conference less than a decade ago.

I’m ultimately going to pass on this game because I think the numbers are spot on for this game, but I do expect Maryland to win this game fairly handily. The concern that I do have is that Indiana’s offense can do enough to hang around. Indiana ranks second in the country in pass attempts thrown per game, and while it’s not necessarily an efficient unit, against this Maryland defense, they may be able to find a few spots given a high volume of attempts. I’ll give Maryland the definite win here, but I’ll save my money.

RMags’ Pick: Pass

Wisconsin (-7) at Michigan State: O/U 49.5 (3:00pm CST)

You may be disinterested in this game given the recent showings from each of these teams, but this game and its’ odds are at least interesting to consider and breakdown. On one hand you have a team with an interim coach that despite the 42-7 massacre over Northwestern, probably isn’t getting a ton of national respect, up against a team who’s public perception is almost unanimously through the floor.

To put it simply, this Michigan State defense is brutal. Across their four game losing streak, they’ve allowed a range between 27 and 49 points, and on the season rank 112th in yards per pass attempt allowed. I really don’t think this number is an overreaction to Wisconsin’s win over Northwestern, I think it has everything to do with Michigan State’s struggles. This would lead me to a potential play on Wisconsin, and I think that is the right side, but if you’ve followed Graham Mertz and this Wisconsin team, you may be hesitant to back the Badgers and I can’t blame you.

The success of Wisconsin in my opinion will completely rely on the accuracy of Mertz. If he’s on and playing well, Wisconsin will put up 30-plus, if not, it’s anybody’s ball game. I’ll pass and grab the popcorn.

RMags’ Pick: Pass

Nebraska at Purdue (-14): O/U 56.5 (6:30pm CST)

If you’ve followed along with me during the Big Ten season, you probably know how highly I view this Purdue team. After winning last week, the path is in front of them to win out and represent the Big Ten West in the Big Ten Championship. Following this game their schedule plays out with Wisconsin, Iowa, Illinois, Northwestern and finally Indiana. Barring any health issues they should be favored in all five of those games, and really don’t play any dangerous offensive competition after Nebraska.

I do expect them to win this game, but, somehow someway, Nebraska at 2-1 in conference play is not dead yet, and while I’m not saying they will or can do it, I do fear that Purdue could be looking past this game a bit, and that fear is ultimately keeping me away from a play on this game. Having said that, unless Nebraska’s offense reverts back to the early success they had in 2022, and the defense plays it’s best game, Purdue’s offense, on paper, should have zero issues moving the ball up and down the field.

If you have no concerns about a potential trap spot, look ahead spot, whatever you want to call it, then by all means, take Purdue over 35.5 points, but despite how bad they’ve been you have to remember Nebraska’s ability to keep games close. Aside from the Oklahoma beatdown a few weeks ago, they have again managed to lose their games by less than one score.

I’ll keep my belief in Purdue and say that they roll, but I’m keeping my money far away from this one.

RMags’ Pick: Pass

 

For More Great Chicago Sports Content

Follow us on Twitter at @chicitysports23 for more great content. We appreciate you taking time to read our articles. To interact more with our community and keep up to date on the latest in Chicago sports news, JOIN OUR FREE FACEBOOK GROUP by CLICKING HERE

big ten College Football Sports Betting
Share. Facebook Twitter Pinterest LinkedIn WhatsApp Reddit Tumblr Email
v7sFaQAP 400x400
Riley Magnuson
  • Twitter

Sports insights & analysis, covering Sports Gambling, Bulls, White Sox, NFL, NBA, MLB, Big Ten Football & Basketball, and the PGA Tour. Big Ten unders make the world turn.

Related Posts

Around the NFL January 16, 2023

Chicago Bears NFL draft scouting report: Illinois CB Devon Witherspoon

Bears January 13, 2023

Chicago Bears NFL Draft scouting report: Illinois RB Chase Brown

Bears January 12, 2023

Chicago Bears NFL draft scouting report: Northwestern OT Peter Skoronski

Bulls December 28, 2022

Milwaukee Bucks at Chicago Bulls: 1 Best Bet

Nortre Dame December 27, 2022

Report: Notre Dame set to land big name QB out of portal

Other December 21, 2022

Sport Betting in Illinois – Is It Legal and How It Works?

Leave A Reply

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Instagram
  • YouTube

Team Message Boards

bears TP
bulls TP
cubs TP
sox TP
hawks TP
we want you to write
Facebook Twitter Instagram YouTube
  • Home
  • Message Board
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Our Writers
  • Want to Write for ChiCitySports?
© 2023 ChiCitySports. Designed by Dope Guys Who Run ChiCitySports.

Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.