College Football Picks Against the Spread: Nebraska and 5 Big Ten Teams to Take

Thad NovakOct 7, 2011

In a week still loaded with 20-point spreads, the Big Ten games are (mostly) pretty close calls. Here are the picks for all five conference games being played this Saturday.

Nebraska (-9.5) vs. Ohio State

This game would be a very different story if it were being played in the horseshoe, but as it is the undermanned Buckeyes will be on the road. Taylor Martinez and company should cover even a substantial spread without much trouble against an offense that scored just seven points last week vs. Michigan State.

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Michigan (+3.5) at Northwestern

Even as well as the Wildcats played last week against Illinois, they’re no guarantee to win this game, let alone cover the spread. Dan Persa will start, but after he couldn’t finish four quarters against the Illini, he may not be ready to outduel Denard Robinson yet.

Northwestern will be down a man in the backfield anyway, thanks to RB Mike Trumpy’s season-ending knee injury. That will make it tough for them to keep the ball out of Robinson’s hands.

Illinois (-16) at Indiana

Betting against a hot QB is rarely an advisable move, and Nathan Scheelhaase is coming off a generally outstanding performance in a thrilling win over Northwestern. Indiana just played its best defensive game of the season (a 16-10 loss to Penn State), but they’ll struggle to contain the more dangerous Illini attack.

Penn State (-2.5) vs. Iowa

Penn State has been exceedingly erratic this season, but the bet here is that the good version will show up for a winnable home game against the Hawkeyes. The Iowa D struggled against Pitt’s Ray Graham in a come-from-behind win, so look for Silas Redd to have a big game here.

Purdue (-10) vs. Minnesota

No, Purdue isn’t going to ring up 58 points on the Gophers like Michigan did a week ago, but they won’t need to. Do-everything Minnesota QB Marqueis Gray is still listed as doubtful with a toe injury; without him the Gophers offense won’t be going anywhere, especially not with Purdue at home.