BetIt said:
He locks in on that TE because he is one of the very best TE's in the nation and the fact Iowa is very inexperienced with wideout receivers. It has also been a long standing tradition at Iowa in how their offense utilizes the TE position and is evidenced by the great players they have had at that position over the past few years(Jonathon Hayes, Marv Cook, Dallas Clark, and now Chandler).
As far as ILLINOIS getting +21.5.........it is definetly a classic sandwich game for the Hawkeyes as you mentioned and that cannot be overlooked and is precisely why I chose the Illini in my PRE-season ATS predictions for every Iowa game this season.....( http://forum.therx.com/showthread.php?t=400765 )
Having said that, the Illini took it on the chin at home to Syracuse this past weekend and thus far this season appear to not be a very good team whatsoever.
The line I made on this late Sunday night was basically right around this number and basically have no feel either way at this current price level but would have a very, very small lean towards the Fighting Illini side at +21.5 or greater.
Iowa, if they remain healthy, should get better and better as the season progresses as their very young and talened wide receivers get more and more experience.
No way personally I will be playing either side in this game unless there is a dramatic price change in either direction.
-FH-
Two things that will work in favor of teams getting a large amount of points against the Hawkeyes.....
1. The new clock rules that will allow for less overall plays in the game which will favor the underdog.
2. Secondly, and more importantly, the Iowa defense headed by DC Parker will continue to employ their "bend but don't break" strategy which enables other teams to control the ball offensively which results in more time off the clock. The Hawkeye defense is very "vanilla" and very seldom do they take chances with blitzes/stunts. Having said that, this Iowa defense is already very good and should also only get better as the season progresses.
1. The new clock rules that will allow for less overall plays in the game which will favor the underdog.
2. Secondly, and more importantly, the Iowa defense headed by DC Parker will continue to employ their "bend but don't break" strategy which enables other teams to control the ball offensively which results in more time off the clock. The Hawkeye defense is very "vanilla" and very seldom do they take chances with blitzes/stunts. Having said that, this Iowa defense is already very good and should also only get better as the season progresses.
Too many points. Iowa wins by 13-17. With Juice Williams playing pretty well for the entire second half, and Brasic absolutely sucking, I'll be shocked if this isn't the week that Juice starts, and continues the rest of the year as the starter. I wouldn't say that the Illini are a live dog, but I'm comfortable betting them at 21.5. I figured the line would be around 17, and I feel good about this bet, especially with the hook.
BetIt said:
It has come down slightly in the past few hours.........some places sporting 20.5 currently.
Would be inclined to take the +21.5 right now if I liked the Illini.
20.5-21.5 seems to be a fairly solid line to me personally.
Chances are the Fighting Illini will start a new QB this week as poster Illini stated, and who he says is a much better choice..........which should aid in the prevention of the line going any higher than -21.5
As stated, this is a complete stay away game for me personally.
Cannot see IOWA not winning this game by at least 14 points, as Tate was a little rusty in the 1st half after completely missing the Syracuse game but played well overall.
Keep in mind posters, IOWA STATE is a fairly decent team and one that is underrated.........especially offensively. The Cyclones have very good players at the skill positions in RB HICKS, QB MEYER, and their two WR's..............and fully expect the Cyclones to be somewhat of a sleeper in the BIG TWELVE.
In fact, would be much more inclined to take IOWA STATE +24 this week vs.Texas than I would be taking the Illini +21 vs. IOWA.
Cannot see IOWA not winning this game by at least 14 points, as Tate was a little rusty in the 1st half after completely missing the Syracuse game but played well overall.
Keep in mind posters, IOWA STATE is a fairly decent team and one that is underrated.........especially offensively. The Cyclones have very good players at the skill positions in RB HICKS, QB MEYER, and their two WR's..............and fully expect the Cyclones to be somewhat of a sleeper in the BIG TWELVE.
In fact, would be much more inclined to take IOWA STATE +24 this week vs.Texas than I would be taking the Illini +21 vs. IOWA.
Poker King Jim said:
Let me tell ya, have put tons of thought into this without looking at any lines that may have been posted anywhere in the past 48 hours and have watched the majority of all IOWA and OHIO STATE games this year.
Having said that, If I had to make my OPENING number RIGHT NOW it would be.............
OHIO STATE -5
Now remember, this is my OPENING NUMBER has a bookie.......................and will see whAT kind of action this garnishes me and will move the line from there.............but this is my personal OPENER.
