College Football Lines – Rutgers May Be in Dire Straits

Those who analyze college football lines are well aware that the Rutgers Scarlet Knight are in dire straits this week after falling most unexpectedly to Tulane last week, which makes Thursday night’s game against the Connecticut Huskies all the more critical.

The contest, which will be televised on ESPN, will start at 7:30 PM ET at Rutgers Stadium (artificial turf) in New Brunswick, NJ.

U-Conn comes into this game off back-to-back games in which it has scored 40 or more points, and the Huskies are listed as a six-point favorite in the college football lines.

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Connecticut Huskies (3-2 SU, 2-2 ATS) at Rutgers Scarlet Knights (2-2 SU, 0-3 ATS)

Live at Rutgers Stadium

East Brunswick, NJ

Friday, October 8 –  7:30 PM ET

TV:  ESPN

College Football Lines:

Connecticut -6

Rutgers +6

Here are some of the trends as they impact the college football lines on this game:

• Connecticut has won seven of its last nine games SU
• Connecticut has lost five of its last seven road games SU
• Rutgers has won 18 of its last 24 games SU
• Rutgers has won 12 of its last 17 home games SU

Key stats for Rutgers — The Knights are ranked seventh in the nation in rushing defense, allowing just 80 yards a game. They’ve permitted 2.7 yards a carry. The other side of the coin is that Rutgers is also 105th in the country in total offense, and has not protected the passer well, allowing 13 sacks. That’s why they haven’t covered a game yet in the college football lines.

Key stats for Connecticut — The Huskies have been able to put together a pretty good rushing attack behind junior back Jordan Todman, who is averaging almost 6.4 yards a carry and is fourth in the nation in yards per game. The Husky defense also ranks ninth in the country in tackles for loss.

Here are some of the head-to-head trends that may influence our football betting prediction on this game:

• Connecticut is 6-1-1 ATS in the last eight meetings
• Rutgers has won four of the last five meetings SU
• Four of the last six meetings have gone OVER the total

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Things have been rough at Rutgers lately. Tom Savage, the quarterback who came so highly recruited, had to leave last week’s game with a hand injury, with freshman Chas Dodd being pressed into service. Dodd did his best, but went just 13 for 29 as Rutgers lost to Tulane as a 17-point favorite in the college football lines. In three games, the Knights have scored just 46 points, and that puts them in sharp contrast to what U-Conn has done.

The Huskies seem to be re-energized since putting QB Cody Endres back into the lineup to replace sputtering Zach Frazer, the Notre Dame transfer who failed to hit 50% of his passes. When you add Todman to that mix, U-Conn suddenly shows some nice balance, and the result has been 45 points against Buffalo and 40 against Vanderbilt, and those were both clear wins in the college football lines.

U-Conn got a strange taste in its mouth from last year’s meeting, coming just days after one of its players was murdered, when Tim Brown took a pass from Savage and went all the way for a touchdown in the waning moments. Savage is questionable for this game.

I suspect coach Greg Schiano probably knows who his starter is going to be, but he isn’t letting on. Rutgers is bothered by other injuries, as running back Joe Martinek has ankle problems and three linebackers are missing. However, none of the defensive losses are critical, and Mohamed Sanu emerged with 121 yards against Tulane.

There’s some desperation here, and I have a feeling Schiano is going to get a balls-out home effort from his team. They may have what it takes to keep this game very tight, so we take the points with Rutgers in the college football lines.

JAY’S PLAY:  RUTGERS +6 **
(Graded on a scale of 1-4 stars)

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