Iowa Hawkeyes (4-0) vs. Maryland Terrapins (4-0)
October 1, 2021 8:00 pm EDT
The Line: Maryland Terrapins +3.5 ; Over/Under: 46.5
(Get latest betting odds)
The Maryland Terrapins meet the Iowa Hawkeyes Friday Night in Big Ten college football action from Byrd Stadium. The Hawkeyes are coming off a matchup versus Colorado State. In that one, Iowa managed a 10-point victory. As for the Terrapins, they played Kent State in their last outing. Maryland cruised to a 21-point win in that game. Check back all season long for free college football picks at Sports Chat Place.
Iowa kicked off their year with a big 34-6 victory over Indiana in the opener. The Hawkeyes were able to keep it going over the next pair, posting a 27-17 win over Iowa State in week two and a 30-7 win our Kent State in the third game.
Iowa played Colorado State this past weekend. In that one, the Hawkeyes had a 14-7 deficit heading into the break, but surged from there on 17 unanswered points in a 24-14 win. QB Spencer Petras went 15-of-23 for 224 yards, two scores and a pick.
Over on the Terrapins’ side, they had a minor scare in their opener versus West Virginia, but still managed to gut out a 30-24 win. Maryland would go on to drill Howard 62-0 in the next game, then fought off a pesky Illinois team with a 20-17 win in week three.
In their last matchup versus Kent State, the Terrapins scored 17 points in the second quarter on the way to a 37-16 win. QB Taulia Tagovailoa had 384 yards with three scores and an interception. Tayon Fleet-Davis led the rushers with seven carries for 60 yards and two TDs.
The Hawkeyes are 4-0 ATS in their last four road games and 6-1-1 ATS in their last eight conference games. Iowa is also 4-1-1 ATS versus a team with a winning record.
Meanwhile, the Terrapins are 4-1 ATS in their last five home games and 3-7 ATS in their last 10 overall. Maryland is 7-20 ATS versus a team with a winning record as well.
PICK: In this Big Ten matchup, I’m going to go with Iowa. The Hawkeyes got off to a bit of a slow start in their matchup last weekend and do have a few things to work on, however. Iowa gave up 78 total plays to Colorado State, with an 11-of-23 mark on third downs. The Hawkeyes offense was a big sluggish at times themselves, but they got the job done on the other side.
As for Maryland, they were solid offensively with 526 total yards last weekend, but also gave up 458 on the other side with 27 first downs and 5.7 yards per play. If Iowa can dictate the tempo in this one early, I think they’ll be fine.
