Week 11 Illinois vs. Ohio St. Betting Preview

Illinois has already shown it can play with the big boys of the Big Ten

Nov 9th, 2007

By Jason Brough
Bodog Nation Contributing Writers

One game at a time. Sure, it's a cliché, but Ohio State coach Jim Tressel is no novelist so he can feel free to use it when he prepares his team for action this weekend. With the No. 1 Buckeyes (8-0) set to travel to No. 12 Michigan (8-2) next week in quite possibly the college football game of the year, unranked Illinois (7-3) poses a real danger on Saturday in Columbus.

The Illini are hoping to make their first bowl appearance since 2001 and have already beaten some very good teams. On Sept. 29, they knocked off Penn State, 27-20. The next week, it was Wisconsin, 31-26. Their three losses – to No. 6 Missouri, Iowa and Michigan – came by a combined 20 points. On Oct. 20, they were tied 17-17 with the Wolverines going into the fourth quarter of a game they eventually lost 27-17.

Ohio State already got a scare last week at home to Wisconsin, falling behind 17-10 midway through the third quarter. However, 28 unanswered points followed, pacing the Buckeyes to a 38-17 victory.

"We knew it would be a battle and it was just that," said Tressel. "Anything that came our way in terms of adversity our guys handled. We are awfully proud of the way we got after it. I don't know if it was our greatest performance, but we ended up winning and we have a chance to fight another round."

For Tressel and company, there's also the memory of last year when the 2-7 Illini gave the undefeated Buckeyes all they could handle in Champaign. Ohio State won, but just barely, 17-10.

"The amount of respect we have for that team is just about as high as anybody else," Ohio State receiver Brian Hartline said. "Being able to watch them do what they've done this year so far, we have a lot of respect for them. It'll be a different game this year."

Oddsmakers aren't quite so willing to respect the Illini, making them 15.5-point underdogs for the Big Ten matchup at Ohio Stadium.

The Illini are led offensively by junior running back Rashard Mendenhall, who's already racked up 1,314 yards and 14 TDs on the ground. That's tied for fourth-best in the nation when it comes to rushing yards gained. Last week in Minnesota, Mendenhall carried the ball 17 times for 201 yards and two scores as Illinois romped over the Gophers 44-17. He needs just 17 yards to break the school's single-season rushing record set by Antoineo Harris in 2002.

Of course, it won't be so easy against Ohio State, which ranks third in run defense and allows just 65 yards per game. Only Washington QB Jake Locker has managed to break the 100-yard barrier this season against the Buckeyes.

No. 10 Georgia (7-2) and No. 18 Auburn (7-3) meet for the 111th time:

Between the hedges they go to renew the Deep South's Oldest Rivalry, which started all the way back in 1892.

The Tigers lead the all-time series 53-49-8 but it's the Bulldogs that have been most impressive of late. Two weeks ago, they knocked off Florida, 42-30, in Jacksonville. Georgia is favored by two points over Auburn.

• Player to Watch: Georgia redshirt freshman Knowshon Moreno. The 20-year-old running back has piled up 1,003 yards on the season, including 541 yards and six TDs in his last three games.
  
  
• Quotable: "It's great to be in this position this time of the year," Bulldogs coach Mark Richt said. "When we play Saturday... in essence we're still playing for the opportunity to win the Eastern Division."

No. 4 Kansas (9-0) takes on Oklahoma State (5-4) in bid to remain undefeated:

The Jayhawks are mere six-point favorites as they travel to Boone Pickens Stadium to take on the Cowboys, a team that's coming off a tough 38-35 loss to Texas in which it led 35-14 after three quarters and lost on a 40-yard field goal as time expired.

Kansas put up an amazing 76 points in its humiliation of Nebraska last week. It was the fifth time this season the Jayhawks had scored more than 50 points in a game. Only No. 16 Hawaii (51.9) is averaging more points per game than Kansas (46.2).

• Player to Watch: Kansas quarterback Todd Reesing. The sophomore threw six TD passes last week against the Cornhuskers. That gives him 23 on the season with just four interceptions.
  
  
• Quotable: "As painful as it is, we still have to correct everything that happened in the game to make us better for the next week and then get back on track," Cowboys coach Mike Gundy said after the loss to Texas. "The one thing that will work to our advantage this week is it's not every day you get to play a team that's fifth in the BCS or whatever they are."

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