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2007
College Bowl Predictions2008 Rose Bowl Odds & PredictionsThe biggest spread of any two teams playing in bowl games this year will be found in the 2008 Rose Bowl when Illinois takes on USC. It's strange that the BCS is intent on big name teams drawing big money from advertisers while providing great games for fans puts themselves in a position where one team is supposed to throttle the other, but this is what we have in the bowl game with the deepest tradition. The game will take place on January 1st at 4:30 EST in Pasadena, California, and will be broadcast live by ABC. The Rose Bowl is the oldest college football game, dating back to New Year's Day in 1902 as part of the Tournament of Roses, a game in which Michigan beat Stanford 49-0. The game then took a hiatus until 1916 when Washington State shutout Brown 14-0, but the game has since been played every New Year's Day or later ever since. Southern Cal is making their third straight appearance in the game, and their fourth trip in five years. That just shows how dominant the team has been in Pac 10 play.
At the beginning of the year everyone and their brother was picking USC to win it all, and John David Booty was supposed to be the latest in Trojan Heisman winners. What a disappointing season it has been out West as neither Booty nor the Trojans came close to getting to the top, but this is still the Rose Bowl, a game USC has made 31 previous appearances in and came away with a 22-9 record. USC did finish up at 10-2 straight up (SU) and 6-6 against the spread (ATS), but the end of the year ended well with three covers in their last four games. Booty's revival has been key as he ended up with a 62.7% completion rate for 2,106 yards and 20 touchdowns, all while missing most of four games. The offense does put up points to the pace of 31.3 ppg and averages 418.4 ypg, with the passers contributing 233.4 and the rushing attack adding 185. Defensively is where the Trojans make a lot of noise by allowing only 258.8 ypg and 12.7 ppg over their four game winning streak. You can't run on this defense as opposing rushers learned when gaining just 79.2 ypg, but Illinois does have the 5th best rushing attack in the nation to test their will. Illinois has to feel great about getting to the Rose Bowl after a surprising 9-3 season with a 7-2 record in Big Ten play. they had some big wins over a no. 5 Wisconsin team and a No. 1 ranked Ohio State team in Columbus. They were 6-0 ATS in their last six games against their conference, so that shows they can play with the big boys. Offensively it's all about the run and Rashard Mendenhall. Illinois averaged 266.2 ypg on the ground with Mendenhall and Juice Williams. Williams may be the quarterback but his speed allowed him to gain 774 yards on the ground to go with his 1,498 yards via the air. The Illini put up 28.8 ppg and 423.3 ypg but have a tough time passing the ball, and a one dimensional attack against this good of a defense could spell some trouble. The defense though is good enough to keep Illinois alive as they allowed only 19.5 ppg and 355.4 ypg. Remember if you want to get your new year of football betting off on the right foot, then we recommend you get signed up for Jimmy Boyd's college bowl picks covering this game and more during the postseason. Interesting Trends: Illinois is 7-3 ATS in their last 10 games and 9-2 SU over their last 11. USC is 6-1 SU and 5-2 ATS in their last seven games. Oddsmakers predicted score: Illinois Fighting Illini 18 2008 Rose Bowl Odds: Illinois Fighting Illini
+13.5 Total set at 50 December 27th, 2007 |
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