Illinois Fighting Illini at Virginia Cavaliers: Betting Guide

Last Game

All was right for the Cavaliers who throttled William & Mary last week 43-0. The Cavaliers started the game red hot, moving the ball efficiently down the field. By the end of the first half, Virginia was already up 17-0. They finished the game with 545 total yards and had 22 first downs compared to W&M’s 11. Overall, the Cavaliers were far too overwhelming for William & Mary.

Perhaps even better news for bettors is that the Cavaliers covered a huge 30-point spread. As far as College Football spreads go, thirty points are quite a lot. Virginia covered that spread with thirteen points to spare. Needless to say, the first week ended in a success for the Virginia Cavaliers.

Injury Report

Perhaps the most significant injury to the Cavaliers roster is the loss of TE Jelani Woods. He left the game against William & Mary with an undisclosed injury and is listed as “questionable.” Considering the strength of the offense for Virginia is in the passing game, this could pose a problem.

Betting on the Game

Moneyline

On the surface, it may not seem like these two teams are a good match. Illinois is coming off a loss to a team that’s younger than a decade. The Cavaliers absolutely throttled William & Mary, and most think the same will happen to Illinois. However, when paying attention to the Moneyline, we can see something has changed. When this game first opened, Illinois was +325, and now BetOnline has them at +320.

This tells us that the Fighting Illini have a better chance of winning this game than we originally thought. Of course, they’re still heavy underdogs, but the payoff for a win here is outstanding. We also have to remember that Illinois beat Nebraska in the first game of the season. Perhaps their recent loss was just an anomaly?

Point Spread

The Virginia Cavaliers covered their last game easily and have 10 points to cover here. The line has moved since the start here as well, starting at 12.5 and now just at 10. One thing we definitely need to consider is the strength of competition for the Cavaliers so far. They played William & Mary, and although the spread was high, Virginia covered the thirty plus thirteen more.

Now they’ll face Illinois, a much better team coming off an uncharacteristic loss. Being spotted ten points means you have a touchdown and a field goal separating you and your opponent. Although sportsbooks think Virginia has this in the bag, we see a slightly gray area here.

Over/Under

The over/under on this game is at 55, which is considered fairly average for these teams. In Illinois’s first two games, the total has gone over once. It could’ve been twice, but they missed the over by half of a point. The most concerning part about the over/under here are the Illinois defense. They’ve surrendered 52 total points in two games, and Virginia has a great offense.

In Virginia’s first game, the total went under. Don’t blame Virginia for that, though, as William & Mary didn’t help to increase the score. The 55 point total in this game versus Illinois and Virginia shouldn’t be too out of reach for these teams.

Final Score: Virginia Cavaliers 35, Illinois Fighting Illini 28

Pick: Virginia Cavaliers ML (-400)