Featured Game: Northern Illinois Huskies vs. Maryland Terrapins (-17 / 46.5 under -112)
Time: 7:30 pm ET / 4:30 pm PT
Television: BTN, Fox One
Both squads are 1-0, but they got there in wildly different ways.
Maryland handled Florida Atlantic 39-7 in their lid-lifter. The Terps were led by freshman quarterback Malik Washington, who threw three second-quarter touchdowns to break the game open. The Maryland defense, meanwhile, held capable FAU quarterback Caden Veltkamp (who threw for 3,108 yards and 25 touchdowns for Western Kentucky last year) to 228 yards, one touchdown, and four interceptions.
Northern Illinois, meanwhile, got by in week one, but it wasn’t impressive. The Huskies held off Holy Cross 19-17 in a game that featured two kickoff return touchdowns in the fourth quarter. Northern Illinois was just 5-for-17 on third down, and while the Huskies’ defense didn’t play badly, the offense was flat-out anemic, generating just 109 passing yards and averaging less than four yards per carry.
Maryland is a significant favorite here, and they should be. This doesn’t hit me like a competitive game, and I think the Terps win big. Fear the turtle, and take Maryland giving the points.
Pick: Maryland -17 (Consensus)
