Ricky Dimon
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We’re talking about Friday night lights, and in this case it’s not because of high school football. There is action on the college gridiron, too, so there’s no need to wait until Saturday to whet your appetite for pigskin. Friday’s schedule includes this Big Ten battle between the Nebraska Cornhuskers and Illinois Fighting Illini. Both teams are looking to dig their way out of the cellar in the conference’s West Division.
Here is my Same Game Parlay for the festivities, which will be televised starting at 8:00 pm ET on FS1. Make sure you also read our NCAAF predictions for this weekend’s biggest matchups.
Nebraska ML (+136)
Anthony Grant Over 64.5 rushing yards (-114)
Anthony Grant to score 2+ touchdowns (+500)
Same Game Parlay odds: +1103
Part of the value in a Same Game Parlay, of course, is that all of its components can be correlated if you so choose. That is the entire plan here, as Nebraska running back Anthony Grant going crazy would obviously work well with an outright win for the Cornhuskers. Let’s break down each of the 3 legs.
Nebraska Cornhuskers ML over Illinois Fightning Illini (+136)
These are 2 mediocre teams with 2-3 records that are similar in their playing style; there is not a lot that separates them. In fairness to the Fighting Illini, they have played a tough schedule so far. They took a lopsided loss to Purdue last week and also have setbacks at the hands of Penn State and Kansas. The Illini edged out both Florida Atlantic and Toledo at home, but up to this point, they have been overmatched by Power 5 foes.
For the Cornhuskers, the story is similar: they were dismantled by Michigan and Colorado, played an ugly game with Minnesota, but handled their business against lesser opponents (Northern Illinois and Louisiana Tech). Head coach Matt Rhule’s trench-oriented, defensively-focused scheme suits the ‘Huskers well and they are starting to find some identity on offense. I wouldn’t be surprised by an outright upset – albeit not a huge one.
Don’t miss our Nebraska vs Illinois best bet
Anthony Grant Over 64.5 rushing yards (-114)
Nebraska changed quarterbacks in Week 2, from Jeff Sims to Heinrich Haarberg. That switch has stabilized the position for the most part, but Grant has become the rock of the offense. That is also the case because fellow running backs Gabe Ervin Jr. and Rahmir Johnson are out for the season with injuries. The backfield now belongs to Grant, who rushed 22 times for 135 yards and 1 touchdown against Louisiana Tech. He also found the endzone a week earlier during Nebraska’s victory over Northern Illinois. Grant got only 6 carries last weekend against Michigan, but that’s because it was a blowout right from the start and the Cornhuskers basically ran passing plays the entire game. This is a great opportunity for Grant to get back on track, as Illinois is giving up 179.6 rushing yards per game.
Our CFB expert has their NCAAF Week 6 best bets and is on a 9-4 run!
Anthony Grant to score 2+ touchdowns (+500)
I’m forecasting a big game for Grant all around. He has scored touchdowns in 2 of the last 3 contests, and being unable to do so against Michigan is not alarming since the Wolverines basically eliminated the Cornhuskers’ ability to run the football right from the start. Illinois has surrendered 8 touchdowns on the ground already this year. Grant figures to get the ball early and often on Friday, so +500 odds to score twice seem generous.
Check out our Kansas State vs Oklahoma State Same Game Parlay at +954 odds
