It is a Big Ten battle as Illinois faces Maryland. It is time to continue our College Football odds series with an Illinois-Maryland prediction, pick, and how-to-watch.

Illinois enters the game at 4-3 on the season and 0-3 in conference play. They won the opening game of the season on a field goal with five seconds left to defeat Kent State 30-28. The next two weeks were both losses though, as they fell to Kansas and Penn State in back-to-back weeks. They would rebound with a win over FAU. Illinois would control the game with FAU, but still come away with just a six-point game. Then, they would move back to Big Ten play, losing to Purdue and Nebraska in back-to-back weeks.

Meanwhile, Maryland comes in with a 5-1 record on the season. Maryland starts with wins over Towson, Charlotte, and Virginia before Big Ten play. They started with a win over Michigan State, 42-14. Then they took out Indiana 44-17 before facing Ohio State last week.  In that game, Maryland had a 10-0 lead overall but would be tied at half 10-10. Maryland would take the lead back in the third quarter with a Taulia Tagovaila touchdown but would end up down 20-17 going into the fourth. In the fourth quarter, Ohio State would score 17 unanswered to win 37-17.

Here are the college football odds, courtesy of FanDuel. 

College Football Odds: Illinois-Maryland Odds

Illinois: +13.5 (-110)

Maryland: -13.5 (-110)

Over: 51.5 (-104)

Under: 51.5 (-118)

How to Watch Illinois vs. Maryland Week 7

Time: 3:30 PM ET/ 12:30 PM PT

TV: NBC

Stream: FuboTV (Click for free trial)

Why Illinois Will Cover The Spread

Luke Altmyer is the leader of the Illinois offense. This year he has completed 122 of 191 passes for 1,359 yards and six touchdowns. While Alter has nine big-time throws this season according to PFF, he has had some issues with accuracy this year. Altmyer has seven turnover-worthy passes this year and eight interceptions this season. On the ground, Altmyer has run for 269 yards, and while he has three scores, he has also fumbled four times this year.

While Altmyer is the team's leading rusher, they have three running backs with over 100 yards this year. Reggie Love III has 261 yards this season and a touchdown on the ground this season. Josh McCray has 156 yards and two scores, but he does have two fumbles this season. Finally, Kaden Feagin has 148 yards on the ground but has not scored. Overall, they are getting over 2.4 yards before the first contact this year.

Isaiah Williams is the top receiver for Illinois this year. He has 503 yards this year, with 281 yards after the catch this season. He is averaging over seven yards after the catch per reception. Still, he has not found the endzone this year. Pat Bryant has found the endzone this year. He has brought in 20 of 31 targets this year for 231 yards and four touchdowns this season.

Still, on defense, they have not been at the same level as Illinois was last year. In the run game, Jer'Zhan Newton leads the way. He has 22 tackles with 19 tackles for offensive failures this year. He has missed just four tackles this season as well. Further, Miles Scott has been a sure tackler in the run game. He has missed just three tackles while making 21 tackles. Scott also has an interception this year with a dropped interception. He has been the top cover man this year He has allowed just 61 yards this year receiving with one touchdown.

Why Maryland Will Cover The Spread

Taulia Tagovaila leads this Maryland offense. He has passed for 1,669 yards this year, and for the most part, has been very good. Still, he is coming off his worst game of the year. Last game he passed for just 196 yards, the lowest of the season. Further, he had just one touchdown and two interceptions this season. He did not have a big-time throw, for the first time this year, but he had two turnover-worthy passes, tied for the most he has had this year. Tagovaila was also sacked twice in the game, which is the most he has been sacked this year.

Still, Tagovaila had done some solid work on the group. While he has just 134 yards on the ground, he does have four touchdowns and does not have a fumble. Roman Hemby has been the main back this year for Maryland. He has 340 yards this year with four touchdowns on the ground. Hemby is rushing for over 4.5 yards per carry this season, with seven rushes for 15 yards this season. Colby McDonald has 216 yards as well, plus Antwain Littleton has 202 yards on the ground. Combined, they have forced 16 missed tackles and scored three times.

Maryland also has a trio of receivers who are great. Jeshaun Jones, Tai Felton, and Kaden Prather have been great this year. They all have over 200 yards this season, with each of them having over two touchdowns. Jones has 388 yards with two touchdowns this year while bringing in 25 of 25 targets this year. Felton has three touchdowns this season, while Prather has four of them, but he does have four drops this season.

On the defensive end, Ruben Hyppolite II has been solid. He has 11 stops for offensive failures this year in the run game with 15 total tackles. His average point of tackles is also 3.2 yards beyond the line of scrimmage. Meanwhile, Kellan Wyatt has eight stops for offensive failures this year with an average point of tackle of .6 yards beyond the line of scrimmage. He has missed two tackles this year though. In coverage this year, Tarheeb Still has three interceptions while they have eight interceptions as a team this year.

Final Illinois-Maryland Prediction & Pick

Maryland played a solid game against Ohio State, but some poor turnovers caused them to not be in a position to get the upset. Part of that is on Tagovaila, but a major part of that is the Ohio State defense. Illinois is going to struggle against a high-quality defense from Maryland. Maryland is good against the run and Illinois is going to have a hard time controlling the ball. Maryland is going to put up plenty of points in this one and easily cover.

 Final Illinois-Maryland Prediction & Pick: Maryland -13.5 (-110)