Illinois vs Kansas Odds: KU Picks Up Edge

There’s no quarterback controversy in Kansas. Jalon Daniels will be the starting quarterback when he’s ready to go. That should be Friday night when Kansas hosts Illinois. Both teams are coming off non-covering wins. Illinois scored late to beat Toledo 30-28 as 7.5-point favorites. Kansas and backup QB Jason Bean turned it on in the second half to cruise past Missouri State 48-17 in the college football scores. But the Jayhawks were favored by 32.5 points. The Illinois vs Kansas odds see the Jayhawks -3 with a total of 55.

The Illinois vs Kansas odds saw the Jayhawks open as 3.5-point favorites. While the move down to Kansas -3 doesn’t seem like much, it is fairly significant as it involves the key number of 3. The total has climbed a little bit, moving from 53.5 to 55. Much of that likely has to do with both teams going over the total in their openers.

Luke Altmyer Has Solid Debut for Illini

Ole Miss transfer Altmyer was impressive for Illinois, going 18 of 26 for 211 yards and two touchdowns. He was intercepted once. But the most important thing about Altmyer’s day was he led Illinois to a field goal when the game was on the line in the final three minutes. He also led the Illini with 69 yards on the ground.

Reggie Love III had 58 rushing yards and Josh McCray added 30, including the team’s only rushing touchdown of the game. Three different receivers had more than 50 receiving yards, with Pat Bryant having both of the Illini touchdowns.

Defensively, the Illini allowed 416 yards to a decent Toledo offense. The Rockets threw for 230 yards and rushed for 186. Toledo held the ball for 32:57.

Illinois had a 27-19 fourth-quarter lead briefly but allowed Toledo to score on its next two possessions. The 19 fourth-quarter points sent the game over a total of 46.5.

Kansas Overcomes Slow Start

Kansas may have come up just a bit shy in covering the 32.5-point spread, but the game was closer than the 48-17 indicates. The Jayhawks led 17-10 at halftime and 27-10 entering the fourth quarter. Missouri State scored a touchdown to make it a 27-17 contest and Kansas responded with a touchdown of its own. The Bears threw interceptions on its next two possessions, allowing Kansas to score touchdowns on drives of 28 and 23 yards.

Kansas dominated the stats, holding a 521-217 yardage advantage, but couldn’t put Missouri State away until late. Bean was solid for the Jayhawks, going 22 of 28 for 276 yards and two TDs. But Daniels is the man for the Jayhawks. Kansas had four players rush for 40 or more yards and four different players scored rushing touchdowns. Eight different players had receptions.

Defensively, it’s hard to measure how Kansas did considering it was against Missouri State. The Jayhawks did what you want, but the NCAAF schedule is about to get tougher with Illinois.

Kansas 47, Illinois 7 (1968)

The last time the teams met it wasn’t much of a game, as the Jayhawks opened the season with a convincing 47-7 victory. Illinois was dreadful that season, finishing the year with a 1-9 record. Starting quarterback Bob Naponic completed just 39% of his passes and threw two TDS and 14 interceptions.

Kansas was 9-2 and finished No. 7 in the season-ending AP poll. John Riggins was the team’s leading rusher and Bobby Douglass, who played 11 seasons in the NFL, was the team’s quarterback. He finished seventh in the Heisman Trophy voting that season.

What to Expect

Both NCAAF teams like to run to open up the passing game. But Kansas also has some designed running plays for its quarterbacks. The Illini are a little more traditional, although Altmyer ran more than he did at Ole Miss. Daniels is a little more proven, but you can’t fault Altmyer for how he played against Toledo.

Defensively, Kansas is going to have to contend with a much bigger team coming at them in Illinois. But the Illini will have to tighten things up a little bit on the defensive side.

This is a key non-conference game for both teams, who are trying to get to six wins for bowl eligibility. Things will get quite a bit tougher once their respective conference seasons open.

Who to Bet On

The Illinois vs Kansas odds of Jayhawks -3 sounds about right. Both teams won their openers in a non-covering manner, so bettors aren’t going to be particularly enamored with either team at the moment.

The move with the total climbing is likely a bit of a reaction to the opening week scores. Illinois should be a little better defensively than they looked against Toledo. But the Kansas offense will pose a challenge.

The NCAA football picks in this one lean to Illinois +3 and the under 55.

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