Poinsettia Bowl Boise State vs. Northern Illinois Picks & Predictions
By Anthony Rome
Can Northern Illinois keep pace with Boise State when the two teams clash in today's Poinsettia Bowl at 4:30PM ET?
According to oddsmakers from online sports book Mybookie.ag, the Huskies are currently 8-point underdogs versus the Broncos after the number opened at 8.5, then rose to 9.5 this morning, and then fell back under the opening number. The line movement is rather interesting when you consider that 52% of public bettors are backing Boise State. The movement is an indication of sharp money being placed on NIU.
The last time we saw the Huskies they were being blown out by Bowling Green 34-14 as a 14-point underdog in the MAC Championship Game. But Northern was forced to start its third-string quarterback in that game due to injuries, and the results were, expectedly, not good for the Huskies.
But NIU will get a boost today when it starts Ryan Graham under center. After starter Drew Hare suffered a season-ending Achilles tendon injury in Week 9, Graham stepped in and helped the Huskies upset then-No. 20 Toledo. Graham isn't going to light the world on fire today, but he should be able to move the ball more efficiently than third-stringer Tommy Fielder in the MAC title game.
After Akron and Toledo won outright on Tuesday, look for another MAC program to cover at the betting window today.
POINSETTIA BOWL FREE PICK: NORTHERN ILLINOIS +8