Sam Avellone
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Tuesday’s New Year’s Eve college football slate is loaded with action all day long. Starting at noon ET with a playoff rematch between Alabama and Michigan and ending with the first game of the second round in this season’s College Football Playoff, CFB fans will have plenty to do before they ring in the new year. In this article, I am going to focus on one of the non-playoff games – the Citrus Bowl between the South Carolina Gamecocks (9-3) and the Illinois Fighting Illini (9-3). There are a couple of props I like in this matchup, and I’ve parlayed them together for an increased payout. Let’s get to our South Carolina vs Illinois Same Game Parlay picks, and don’t forget to check Pickswise daily for college football picks in all of the bowl and playoff games this postseason, with our experts currently 23-9 in the postseason!
LaNorris Sellers (SC) over 49.5 rushing yards (-114)
Joshua Simon (SC) anytime touchdown scorer (+145)
South Carolina vs Illinois Same Game Parlay odds: +311
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LaNorris Sellers (SC) over 49.5 rushing yards (-114)
The Illinois defense has been vulnerable against quarterbacks that can run in recent weeks, and LaNorris Sellers is arguably the best mobile quarterback this team has seen at any point this season. For reference, the Illini have given up a combined 146 rushing yards to opposing starting quarterbacks in their last 3 games, including 84 yards and 2 touchdowns to Rutgers’ Athan Kaliakmanis on 13 carries. Sellers stands at 6’3” and 242 lbs and runs with purpose, making him very difficult to bring down. This is evident in the stats, as he averages 4.23 yards after contact per attempt – which puts him 5th nationally among non-RB runners per PFF. His 44 missed tackles forced are also top 10 nationally, which, mixed with above-average speed for his size, is a deadly combination for opposing rush defenses.
Sellers has carried the ball at least 13 times in 8 straight games and has surpassed this number in 3 of his last 5 games – including a 166-yard performance in the season finale against Clemson. Without starting running back Raheim Sanders in the backfield, Sellers could see a slight uptick in carries, which should help offset any negative yards gained through sacks. However, the Illini aren’t exactly elite at creating negative plays — they were 130th in front-7 havoc generated outside of garbage time in the last 5 weeks of the season, as well as 123rd in tackles for loss over the course of the year.
Read our full South Carolina vs Illinois prediction for the Citrus Bowl
Joshua Simon (SC) anytime touchdown (+145)
Sellers is not only a runner, he is a competent passer who loves throwing to his 6th-year senior tight end Joshua Simon – who is 1 of 4 tight ends in FBS that leads his team in receptions, receiving yards and receiving touchdowns. Simon has been very involved in the South Carolina offense all season long, but even more so in its last 7 games. He notched at least 4 receptions in 5 of those 7 games, in addition to 5 touchdowns. Without Sanders, his red-zone usage should see an uptick against an Illinois defense that was 91st in red-zone scoring rate allowed this season and 105th in opposing points per scoring opportunity since Week 9.
Now read our Penn State vs Boise State Same Game Parlay picks for their huge College Football Playoff matchup in the Fiesta Bowl
