Toledo Rockets vs Illinois Fighting Illini Prediction, Picks and Game Preview - 09/02/2023

Game Time: 7:30 pm ET, Saturday, September 2, 2023

Venue:  University of Illinois Memorial Stadium, Champaign, IL

Where to Watch:  Big Ten Network

DraftKings:  Point Spread:  Toledo +9.5, Illinois -9.5; Over/Under:  46 points

Bet365:  Point Spread:  Toledo +9.5, Illinois -9.5; Over/Under:  46 points

BetMGM:  Point Spread:  Toledo +9.5, Illinois -9.5; Over/Under:  46.5 points

Toledo Rockets:  0-0 (MAC West)

Illinois Fighting Illini:  0-0 (Big Ten West)

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Toledo Rockets:  N/A

Illinois Fighting Illini:  N/A

Toledo finished last season with a 9-5 record overall and they had a 5-3 record in their conference games too. They were 5-1 in their home games, 2-4 in their road games, and they were also 2-0 in their neutral site games last season, but they will be on the road for this season opener. Last season, their offense was averaging 31.3 points scored per game while their defense was allowing an average of 25.1 points per game. Their offense also averaged 402.6 yards per game while their defense was allowing an average of 326.2 yards per game. DeQuan Finn led the team in passing yards with 2269, Jacquez Stuart led the team in rushing yards with 770, and Jerjuan Newton led the team in receiving yards with 830.

 

 

 

Illinois finished last season with an 8-5 record overall and they had a 5-4 record in their conference games too. They were 5-2 in their home games, 3-2 in their road games, and they were also 0-1 in their neutral site games last season, but they will be at home for this season opener. Last season, their offense was averaging 24.2 points scored per game while their defense was allowing an average of 12.8 points per game. Their offense also averaged 378 yards per game while their defense was allowing an average of 273.5 yards per game. Tommy Devito led the team in passing yards with 2650, Chase Brown led the team in rushing yards with 1643, and Isaiah Williams led the team in receiving yards with 715.

The current betting odds have Illinois listed as a 9.5 point favorite in this game according to Draftkings Sportsbook. Illinois was 8-5 last season with their 5-4 conference record as they struggled more with Big Ten opponents but they still had one of the best defenses in the country that was barely giving up 12 points per game. Their defense is going to be just as good this season and it will be a big part of why they improve and take a step forward this year. They will have winning their division in the Big Ten on their minds all season and they were a really good home team last year going 5-2 there. Meanwhile, Toledo was also really good last season with their 9-5 record overall but they did struggle in their own conference which they usually are one of the better teams in and they are going to continue to take a step back this season too. Toledo also struggled a lot in their road games last season going 2-4 in those and Illinois has a really good defense that will make Toledo's offense struggle to move the ball. Illinois has also improved on offense so they will move the ball a lot better in their games this year, especially in their home games. The best way to place a bet here is on Illinois to cover the spread in this game. 

Toledo Illinois Prediction:  Our NCAAF Pick for Saturday, September 2, 2023 (7:30 pm ET start time) is Illinois 24 Toledo 10.

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Toledo Rockets: 3-6 ATS in a road game where the total is between 42.5 and 49. 3-7 ATS in non-conference games. 

Illinois Fighting Illini: 6-3 ATS when the total is between 42.5 and 49. 16-7 UNDER in all games. 8-4 UNDER in home games. 9-3 UNDER in the first half of the season.

Toledo Rockets:  None.

Illinois Fighting Illini:  M. Hood (LB) out for season - Achilles. J. Anderson (RB) out for season - Knee.

"When you play that position, you want to have the intangible things. Obviously, the physical stuff jumps off the tape. But how you navigate the team, intermix with your teammates, how you interact around the locker room, that's what we felt like in that position that is a critical thing to come into that spot. He has been a great addition to us so far." - Jason Candle on Jake DeHaan coming into this new college football season. 

“That’s one that’s easy to see and something I’ve been really guarded against. I think as a head coach you’ve got to be aware of where you’re at. I kind of had a steady crescendo. I know a lot of our guys were up for national awards, and we’ve received votes to be ranked. I know we didn’t get ranked, but we beat teams that were ranked. I kind of make note of all of that. Toledo, we refer to them as the MAC champs. There’s no denying what they’ve done and what they’ve been able to do in college football has been pretty impressive. I’m balancing that all the time. The part that we as coaches have to be aware of now is just the immediate access our players have to letting people tell them how good they are.” - Bret Bielema on the expectations of his team coming into this new season.

WR Zsiros, Thomas 

WR Newton, Jerjuan 

WR Maddox, Devin 

TE Torres, Anthony 

QB Finn, Dequan 

RB Stuart, Jacquez 

WR Washington, Casey 

WR Bryant, Pat 

WR Williams, Isaiah 

TE Reiman, Tip 

QB Altmyer, Luke 

RB Love III, Reggie 

Passing: N/A

Rushing: N/A

Receiving: N/A

Touchdowns: N/A

Passing: N/A

Rushing: N/A

Receiving: N/A

Touchdowns: N/A

Coaches:

Toledo Rockets: Jason Candle (9th season)

Illinois Fighting Illini: Bret Bielema (3rd season)