The Wisconsin Badgers and Illinois Fighting Illini clash Saturday in Big Ten week 5 college football action from Camp Randall Stadium. Illinois is coming off a Thursday matchup versus Chattanooga. In that one the Illini took a shutout win. As for Wisconsin, they played Ohio State over the weekend. The Badgers lost in a blowout. Check back all season long for free college football picks at Sports Chat Place.
Illinois got off to a nice start in 2022. The Illini took care of Wyoming in their opener 38-6. Game two was a tough one, however; it ended up a 23-20 loss to Indiana. Illinois managed to get back on track in game three with a 24-3 win over Virginia.
In game four versus Chattanooga, the Illini jumped out to a 24-0 lead by halftime and cruised to the 31-0 victory. Quarterback Tommy Devito put up 329 yards with three touchdowns, and Chase Brown led the rushers on 108 yards and a score from 20 carries.
Over on the Wisconsin side, they kicked off 2022 with a big win as well, taking out Illinois State 38-0. The Badgers would likewise falter in game two with a 17-14 loss to Washington State, but Wisconsin got it back the next week with a 66-7 blowout win over New Mexico State.
In the Ohio State game, the Badgers were down 31-7 by halftime and ended up limping to a 52-21 defeat. QB Graham Mertz put up 94 yards, one TD and one pick. Braelon Allen rushed for 165 yards and a touchdown off 23 carries, and Skyler Bell had four catches for 55 yards.
PICK: I’m staying with the Illini. So far this year, Illinois has been quite impressive with just the one loss to Indiana. In the Chattanooga game, Illinois dominated most facets, posting 502 yards, 21 first downs, 7.1 yards per play and just two penalties. It was an encouraging effort in a nice season thus far.
As for Wisconsin, they probably weren’t going to get close to Ohio State in any capacity during their last outing, and they’ve certainly had their ups and downs already. This should be a fun matchup, and I like Illinois to keep it rolling with a cover.