Illinois Fighting Illini vs Kansas Jayhawks Prediction, Picks and Game Preview - 09/08/2023

Game Time: 7:30 pm ET, Friday, September 8, 2023

Venue:  David Booth Kansas Memorial Stadium, Lawrence, KS

Where to Watch:  ESPN2

DraftKings:  Point Spread:  Illinois +3, Kansas -3; Over/Under:  56.5 points

Bet365:  Point Spread:  Illinois +3, Kansas -3; Over/Under:  56.5 points

BetMGM:  Point Spread:  Illinois +3.5, Kansas -3.5; Over/Under:  56.5 points

Illinois Fighting Illini:  1-0 (0-0) (3rd place, Big Ten West)

Kansas Jayhawks:  1-0 (0-0) (4th place, Big 12)

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Illinois Fighting Illini:  won their last game at home against the Toledo Rockets 30-28.

Kansas Jayhawks:  won their last game at home against the Missouri State Bears 48-17.

Illinois is entering this game with a 1-0 record overall and they have a 0-0 record in their conference games too.  They are 1-0 in their home games, 0-0 in their road games, and they are also 0-0 in their neutral site games this season, but they will be on the road for this game. They won their last game against Toledo 30-28. Luke Altmyer was the starting QB and he completed 18/26 passes for 211 passing yards, 2 touchdowns, and 1 interception. Luke Altmyer led the team in rushing yards with 69. Pat Bryant led the receivers with 65 receiving yards on 6 receptions and 2 TDs. Dylan Rosiek led the defense in that game with 8 solo tackles and 0 assisted tackles while Tarique Barnes led the defense in sacks with 1. Miles Scott came away with the only interception for them in that game.

 

 

 

Kansas is entering this game with a 1-0 record overall and they have a 0-0 record in their conference games too.  They are 1-0 in their home games, 0-0 in their road games, and they are also 0-0 in their neutral site games this season, but they will be at home for this game. They won their last game against Missouri State 48-17. Jason Bean was the starting QB and he completed 22/28 passes for 276 passing yards, 2 touchdowns, and 0 interceptions. Devin Neal led the team in rushing yards with 94 and 1 TD. Lawrence Arnold and Quentin Skinner each led the receivers with 77 receiving yards on 4 receptions. Rich Miller led the defense in that game with 6 solo tackles and 1 assisted tackle while Jereme Robinson led the defense in sacks with 1. Jacobee Bryant and Kwinton Lassiter each came away with 1 interception for them in that game.

The current betting odds have Kansas listed as a 3 point favorite in this game according to Draftkings Sportsbook. Kansas was a very good team last season, they fizzled out near the end of the year as they lost their starting QB but a lot of their players have returned for this season and they are finally getting their starter back in this game. They got off to a slow start against Missouri State but pulled away in the 2nd half with that strong offense at home while Illinois started off slow and struggled throughout their entire game, only beating Toledo by 2 points at home. That defense wasn't that great either as they gave up 28 points against Toledo at home and now they go on the road against an improved team with a better offense. Kansas is going to send a message in this game with their starting QB back and they are going to try and pull off a blowout win at home here. The best way to place a bet here is on Kansas to cover the spread in this game.

Illinois Kansas Prediction:  Our NCAAF Pick for Friday, September 8, 2023 (7:30 pm ET start time) is Kansas 38 Illinois 28.

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Illinois Fighting Illini: 8-2 ATS in road games. 12-5 ATS off an extremely close home win by 3 points or less. 10-2 UNDER as an underdog. 16-8 UNDER in all games.

Kansas Jayhawks: 3-15 ATS off a home no-cover where the team won as a favorite. 70-109 ATS after playing a game at home. 8-5 UNDER in home games. 

Illinois Fighting Illini:  T. Rooks (DB) Ques Fri - Undisclosed. E. Holmes (LB) Out indefinitely - Knee. M. Hood (LB) out for season - Achilles. J. Anderson (RB) out for season - Knee.

Kansas Jayhawks:  J. Daniels (QB) day-to-day - Back. L. Grimm (WR) day-to-day - Undisclosed. J. Croft (CB) day-to-day - Undisclosed. T. Scott (WR) day-to-day - Undisclosed. B. Conaway (RB) out for season - Undisclosed.

“Gave too many things away, at the half, we had 9 penalties for 90 yards, that’s just not us. They had 5 for 20, I made sure I pointed that out to the officials, want to balance this out a little bit. But obviously we created some of those things ourselves. In the second half, just had one penalty, but it was critical.” - Bret Bielema after his team’s win against Toledo in their last game.

"We are giving him as much work as we can in many different ways. He's been getting work and he's been doing things. It's not like he's never practiced in the last two weeks - (to say that) is not accurate either. We're confident. Unfortunately for him, it is something that he's gone through a little bit before, getting mental reps and doing things (with) where he's at. But I think we are in a really good spot." - Lance Leipold after his team’s win against Missouri State in their last game.

WR Washington, Casey 

WR Bryant, Pat 

WR Williams, Isaiah 

TE Reiman, Tip 

QB Altmyer, Luke 

RB Love III, Reggie 

WR Arnold, Lawrence 

WR Skinner, Quentin 

WR Grimm, Luke 

TE Fairchild, Mason 

QB Daniels, Jalon 

RB Neal, Devin 

Passing: L. Altmyer (211)

Rushing: L. Altmyer (69)

Receiving: P. Bryant (64)

Touchdowns: P. Bryant (2)

Passing: J. Bean (276)

Rushing: D. Neal (94)

Receiving: L. Arnold (77)

Touchdowns: L. Grimm (1)

Coaches:

Illinois Fighting Illini: Bret Bielema (3rd season)

Kansas Jayhawks: Lance Leipold (3rd season)