Purdue vs. Illinois Week 9 Prediction
Following their upset win over Iowa last Saturday, will the Purdue Boilermakers win their second straight Big Ten matchup when they visit Illinois this weekend? Kickoff is set for 12:00 p.m. ET for this conference clash.
Game Snapshot
139 Purdue Boilermakers (-7) at 140 Illinois Fighting Illini (+7); o/u 58
Memorial Stadium, Champaign, IL
12:00 p.m. ET, Saturday, October 31, 2020
TV: Big Ten Network
Purdue Boilermakers Game Notes
Purdue redshirt junior QB Aidan O’Connell completed 31-of-50 passes for 282 yards, three touchdowns and two interceptions in Saturday’s 24-20 victory over Iowa. O’Connell took all the snaps for Purdue today, a little surprising after we heard we might see two quarterbacks. O’Connell sprung an upset in beating out both Jack Plummer and Austin Burton. The 6-foot-3, 210-pounder was a QB3 for most of last season. With HC Jeff Brohm out with a positive COVID diagnosis, Purdue was led by his younger brother Brian Brohm, Purdue’s co-offensive coordinator/QB coach turned temporary acting head coach. O’Connell wasn’t perfect, but he did enough, particularly in lieu of the fact that Rondale Moore was out, to hold onto the job when Purdue travels to Illinois next week.
Illinois Fighting Illini Game Notes
Illinois redshirt senior QB Brandon Peters completed eight-of-19 passes for 87 yards while rushing seven times for 75 yards in Friday’s 45-7 loss to Wisconsin. Peters (6’5/220) had himself a decent first year at Illinois last season, but things did not get off to a good start in 2020. Not only did Peters fail to complete half his passes, but he was benched in the second half when the game was out of hand. Peters will almost certainly retain the starting job, but it is quite disappointing for the Illinois offense to get slammed so thoroughly in the opener. Illinois face Purdue next week.
Purdue vs. Illinois Betting Prediction
The Boilermakers are 5-2 against the spread in their last seven meetings with the Fighting Illini while the road team has cashed in five of the previous six meetings between these Big Ten foes. Purdue has also covered five straight games dating back to last season, is 4-0 against the number in its last four road games and is 6-2 against the number in its last eight games versus an opponent with a losing record. On the other side, the Illini are just 6-22 at the betting window in their last 28 games after allowing more than 40 points in their previous game and are 2-7 against the number in their last nine home games versus an opponent with a winning road record.
COLLEGE FOOTBALL WEEK 9 BETTING PREDICTION: PURDUE BOILERMAKERS -7