Contents

Best Sports Bets Include Illinois Beating Purdue

· Sep 29 - 4 minutes read

A pair of Big Ten rivals will throw down on Saturday afternoon as Illinois travels to Purdue with an eye on inching over the .500 mark. Although these are not conference powerhouses, some of our strongest plays can be found in unheralded games. Let’s check out the college football lines for Sept. 30 and determine which side is the right side to back in this one.

Illini Edge Owls

It’s been a rough start to the 2023 season for the Illini. Yet, they are still 2-2 straight up, but haven’t been making the grade as they are 0-4 according to the college football spreads.

Best Sports Bets Include Illinois Beating Purdue

Beginning with a 30-28 victory over Toledo, the Illini dropped a 34-23 decision to Kansas and were subsequently dominated 30-13 by Penn State. However, last week they got back on the winning track with a 23-17 win over Florida Atlantic, yet, failed to cover the 16½-point impost.

We should note that the Illini trailed FAU 10-0 early, but the offense awoke from its slumber entering the second quarter when Luke Altmyer struck gold with a 46-yard pass to Griffin Moore to kick things off. Illinois would go on to score 23 straight points before the Owls scored a touchdown in the closing minutes of the game, ending in a six-point victory for Illinois.

Boilermakers Buried by Badgers

Purdue has not looked sharp this season under first-year coach Ryan Walters, who toiled as the defensive coordinator for Illinois, the team he will be facing on Saturday, for the last two years.

The Boilermakers lost a 39-35 shootout to Fresno State in their opener before picking up their only win and cover of the season in a 24-17 win at Virginia Tech. According to the NCAAF odds they were one-point road dogs in that one but subsequently, burned their backers with a 35-20 loss to Syracuse as two-point home hounds. Last week, their ATS failure came via a 38-17 shellacking as six-point home dogs to Wisconsin.

In that conference loss to Wisconsin, the Boilermakers piled up the rushing yards with 194 on the ground led by senior Tyrone Tracy Jr., who had 84 yards on just eight carries and one trip inside the end zone. However, quarterback Hudson Card had two critical interceptions and no touchdowns.

Illinois vs Purdue Best Bet

Here we have two conference rivals that are struggling, but Illinois has shown flashes of a defense that has potential. Their opponent last week, FAU, struggled to run against the Illini while the week before, No. 7 Penn State scored their lowest total of the season with 30 points.

Feels good to be tied for the most tackles in the nation among defensive linemen. #Illini // #HTTO // #famILLy // @Randolph_22 pic.twitter.com/YNlIhwtVNA

— Illinois Football (@IlliniFootball) September 27, 2023

Now that doesn’t sound impressive but the Nittany Lions are capable of putting up 60 or 70 points on a good day. I don’t believe the Boilermakers have the offensive chops to make it happen against the Illini and their defense is nothing short of woeful, ranked 109th in the nation, surrendering 32.2 points per game.

This might not be the most appealing matchup but we are getting excellent value with Illinois which is why this is one of our NCAAF best bets for Sept. 30. Head to the BetUS sportsbook and get down on it right now!

Illinois vs Purdue Pick: Illinois Pick