The Minnesota Golden Gophers (4-1, 1-1 Big Ten) will face the Illinois Fighting Illini (5-1, 2-1) on Saturday at Memorial Stadium. Kickoff is scheduled for noon ET (Big Ten Network). Below, we analyze Tipico Sportsbook‘s lines around the Minnesota vs. Illinois odds, and make our expert college football picks and predictions.
The Golden Gophers are coming off of a bye week following a disappointing 20-10 setback against Purdue in Week 5, their 1st loss of the season. Minnesota is expected to have RB Mohamed Ibrahim back in the mix on Saturday. He has rushed for 567 yards and 8 TDs in 4 games.
The Fighting Illini have already tied their win total from a season ago as coach Bret Bielema has them playing inspired in his 2nd year with the program. Illinois will also lean on its ground game, led by RB Chase Brown, who has 879 rushing yards and 4 rushing TDs in 6 games.
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Minnesota at Illinois odds
Provided by Tipico Sportsbook; access USA TODAY Sports Scores and Sports Betting Odds hub for a full list. Lines last updated Thursday at 10:23 a.m. ET.
- Moneyline (ML): Minnesota -270 (bet $270 to win $100) | Illinois +210 (bet $100 to win $210)
- Against the spread (ATS): Minnesota -6.5 (-108) | Illinois +6.5 (-112)
- Over/Under (O/U): 39.5 (O: -108 | U: -112)
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Minnesota at Illinois picks and predictions
Prediction
Minnesota 20, Illinois 17
Moneyline
This should be a competitive game between 2 Big Ten programs, but Minnesota should be able to pull off the win on the road. That being said, just AVOID the moneyline in this game as the Golden Gophers don’t have odds that are worth taking straight up.
Against the spread
Both of these teams are a combined 8-3 ATS, so it’s tough to side 1 way or the other. ILLINOIS +6.5 (-112) is where I’m leaning in this game with the Fighting Illini having the running game and the defense to keep it close.
Illinois is 4-0 ATS in its last 4 games following an ATS loss and is 7-1-1 ATS in its last 9 games against a team with a winning record.
Over/Under
UNDER 39.5 (-112) looks to be the move despite it being a low total. Minnesota and Illinois have formidable rushing attacks and defenses that should keep the scoring pretty low in a pivotal Big Ten showdown.
The Golden Gophers have hit the Under in 4 of their last 5 games against a team with a winning record and the Fighting Illini have hit the Under in each of their last 5 games following an ATS loss. Also, the Under is 4-1 in the last 5 meetings between Minnesota and Illinois.
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