Western Illinois Leathernecks vs Illinois Fighting Illini Prediction, Odds and Picks for Friday, 08/29/25
Western Illinois vs Illinois Pickswise Expert Predictions
One team I am excited to see in the early weeks is the Illinois Fighting Illini. Bret Bielema’s squad opens the season ranked inside the top 15, and they have a chance to be a sneaky playoff contender this season if things break the right way. They will open the season against the Western Illinois Leathernecks, a team that plays at the FCS level. Western is coming off a 4-8 season, but that is an improvement over where they had been in previous years. We do not know a lot about them this season, as nearly the entire roster churned in the offseason, but they are projected in the middle of the pack in their conference, if that means anything. I think this game comes down to whether Illinois wants to demolish Western or not; they certainly could if they want to. But most of the time when the spread gets this big, the smarter play is to take the underdog.
It does not take much to stay closer than 45 points. A couple of scores will do the trick for the Leathernecks. Of course, the problem is that Illinois has a very veteran defense, especially in the back end, and they should be very good on the defensive side of the ball this season. A shutout here is not out of the question. On offense, Illinois returns a lot of veterans also, including QB Luke Altmyer. They will need to replace two NFL-caliber receivers, but they have a deep receiver room that is ready to step up. I don’t think there is any doubt that Illinois will win this game easily, and I think they could win by 70 if they want to. But I also suspect they will try to win decisively without showing too much of their playbook in the process. Even if this game goes 52-7 or something, it would still pay us. I like the chances of Illinois jumping out to a huge lead early, then taking their foot off the gas in the second half. I will risk the underdog here.
Western Illinois vs Illinois Prediction: Western Illinois +45.5 (-110) available at the time of publishing. Playable at that number.
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Chad Hartsock
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