Nebraska football vs. Illinois best bets for Week 9

The Nebraska football team has one of its biggest tests on Saturday afternoon against the Illinois Fighting Illini. The Huskers are coming off a close loss to Purdue and still have some hopes that they can win the Big Ten West. Of course, if they want any chance at that, they’re going to need to pull off quite the upset.

The Illini are one of the more moribund programs in the Big Ten. While they’ve had some good seasons here and there over the years, they’ve been few and far between.

However, the arrival of Bret Bielema seems to have changed some things. Right at the top of the list as to what has changed for Illinois is it’s defense. The Illini are currently ranked first in the country in the fewest yards allowed per game, as well as the fewest points allowed per contest.

Bielema’s squad is also second in the country in rushing defense and second in the country in pass defense. All of that is going to make for a very tough test for a Huskers offense that has struggled at times this season.

In fact, it has struggled rather mightily at times in the Big Ten. That includes scoring just 14 points against Rutgers. So just, where is the smart money going to go this Saturday when the two teams face off?

Best Nebraska football bets Week 9

The Nebraska football team is currently a 7.5-point underdog against Illinois and it doesn’t seem like that line is outrageous, even if the Huskers are at home. Both FanDuel and WynnBet both believe the smart money is going towards Illinois winning pretty handily.

That seems a smart bet from where I’m sitting as well. The Illini are only playing better as the season goes on. Even if the spread was 10, I’d be tempted to lay money on Illinois.

As far as the total, both FanDuel and WynnBet have placed the total at 50.5 for Saturday’s game. It seems as though the best bet is going to be to go with the under.

Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change