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It is time to continue our college football odds series with an Eastern Illinois-Illinois prediction and pick. Find out how to watch Eastern Illinois-Illinois.
Illinois moves forward into another season under head coach Bret Bielema. The Illini endured an agonizing 2023 season, finishing 5-7 and one win short of a bowl game. The crusher for the Illini came against the school Bielema formerly coached in the Big Ten, the Wisconsin Badgers. Illinois dominated the first three quarters at home, taking a 21-7 lead into the fourth quarter. Then everything fell apart, and Illinois allowed 18 points to Wisconsin in a 25-21 loss. That was the big fish which got away, costing Illinois a bowl. The Illini had one more chance to make a bowl game but fell 45-43 to Northwestern in the season finale.
Illinois lost close games, and its offense didn't generally finish games well. Illinois lost twice last year in games in which the defense did not allow more than 20 points. That can't recur this season. The Illini have to be more consistent on offense and score in the high 20s to low 30s on a more regular basis. We will see if Illinois can achieve that. Here is a first test drive for the Fighting Illini against Eastern Illinois of the FCS. The game is a night kickoff on Thursday, so there won't be a punishing, hot sun in late August. The increased comfort level for the game — an 8 p.m. local time start in Champaign — might be conducive to more offense. Illinois hopes the offensive gains are on its side of the ledger and not Eastern Illinois' side. Bielema needs to make a bowl game this year, or else the noise within the Illinois program will grow louder. Winning this game is an obvious priority for Bielema, but he also needs to walk away from this game knowing his team can grow and evolve into a robustly competitive group in a new and expanded 18-team Big Ten Conference.
Here are the Eastern Illinois-Illinois College Football odds, courtesy of FanDuel.
College Football Odds: Eastern Illinois-Illinois Odds
Eastern Illinois: +27.5 (-105)
Moneyline: +2500
Illinois: -27.5 (-115)
Moneyline: -10000
Over: 45.5 (-110)
Under: 45.5 (-110)
How to Watch Eastern Illinois vs Illinois
Time: 9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT
TV: Big Ten Network, Big Ten Plus
Stream: fuboTV (Click Here for free trial)
Why Eastern Illinois Could Cover The Spread/Win
The spread is huge. Illinois is almost certain to win, but are we sure that the Illini can score the amount of points which will be needed to win the game? Keep in mind that the over-under total for this game is 45.5 points, so it's not as though a lot of points are expected to be scored to begin with. Let's say, as a hypothetical, that the total becomes an accurate forecast for how many total points are actually scored in this game. So, 45 or 46 points are scored. What would the final score look like? Let's say Illinois wins 35-10, in a 45-point game. Eastern Illinois covers. Illinois would need to win 37-8 in a 45-point game to cover the spread. This basically means Illinois cannot allow more than eight points if it expects to cover the spread, and it has to score in the upper 30s if not more. That's a narrow box for the Illini. The margins seem to favor Eastern Illinois covering the spread.
Why Illinois Could Cover The Spread/Win
Illinois should manhandle Eastern Illinois to the extent that it can score in the 40s and pile up enough points to cover the spread.
Final Eastern Illinois-Illinois Prediction & Pick
It all comes down to whether you trust the Illinois offense to score in the 40s. We are skeptical, but this is also a cupcake game. It could be that Illinois can just ram the ball down Eastern's throat and win a blowout. Ultimately, we think you should pass on this game.
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Final Eastern Illinois-Illinois Prediction & Pick: Eastern Illinois +27.5
