The Northern Illinois Huskies and the Central Michigan Chippewas are set to square off in a Mid-American matchup at noon ET on Saturday at Kelly/Shorts Stadium. CMU is 4-3 overall and 3-0 at home, while the Huskies are 5-2 overall and 2-1 on the road. The Chippewas have dominated recent matchups, outscoring Northern Illinois 88-20 over the last two years.
The Chippewas are favored by five points in the latest Central Michigan vs. Northern Illinois odds from Caesars Sportsbook, and the over-under is set at 58. Before entering any Northern Illinois vs. Central Michigan picks, you’ll want to see the college football predictions from the model at SportsLine.
The SportsLine Projection Model simulates every FBS college football game 10,000 times. Over the past five-plus years, the proprietary computer model has generated a stunning profit of almost $3,700 for $100 players on its top-rated college football picks against the spread. It also enters Week 8 of the 2021 season on a 22-9 run on all top-rated college football side picks. Anyone who has followed it has seen huge returns.
Now, the model has set its sights on Central Michigan vs. Northern Illinois. You can head to SportsLine to see its picks. Here are several college football odds for Northern Illinois vs. Central Michigan:
- Central Michigan vs. Northern Illinois spread: Central Michigan -5
- Central Michigan vs. Northern Illinois over-under: 58 points
Featured Game | Central Michigan Chippewas vs. Northern Illinois Huskies
What you need to know about Central Michigan
It may have taken overtime to finish the job, but CMU ultimately got the result it was hoping for on Saturday with a 26-23 win over the Toledo Rockets. The squad ran away with 17 points in the first half and mostly just sat on those in the second to pick up the victory. CMU’s RB Lew Nichols III picked up 134 yards on the ground on 29 carries in addition to snatching one receiving TD.
Nichols is one of the best backs in the country as he leads the MAC with 725 rushing yards and ranks 10th in the NCAA with 894 scrimmage yards. He is the barometer for CMU as he’s averaged 137.8 rushing yards per game in the team’s wins, but just 58 rushing yards in the losses. Nichols has played NIU once before, in 2020, and he had 150 scrimmage yards and scored two touchdowns in a win.
What you need to know about Northern Illinois
Meanwhile, NIU netted a 34-26 victory over the Bowling Green Falcons on Saturday. NIU’s RB Jay Ducker looked sharp as he picked up 210 yards on the ground on 33 carries. The win was the Huskies’ fourth straight and that’s their longest winning streak since winning six in a row in 2018.
NIU is all in on the run game as its 237.9 rushing yards per game ranks 11th in the nation. On the other hand, the passing game isn’t nearly on the same level as the rushing attack with Michigan State transfer Rocky Lombardi under center. Northern Illinois averages just 139 passing yards per game which is the seventh-worst mark in FBS.
How to make Northern Illinois vs. Central Michigan picks
The model is leaning under on the total, and it’s also generated a point-spread pick that is hitting in over 60 percent of simulations. You can only see the pick at SportsLine.
So who wins Northern Illinois vs. Central Michigan? And which side of the spread is hitting over 60 percent of the time? Visit SportsLine right now to see which side of the Central Michigan vs. Northern Illinois spread to back, all from the advanced model on a 22-9 run on its top-rated college football side picks, and find out.
