Northern Illinois vs Boston College Football: Betting Odds & Preview

It is finally Game Week 1 on the Heights! And with the return of game week content to BCI, everyone’s favorite gambling preview is back — this year with a brand-new locksmith to make sure you guys are at least making some money while watching the Eagles.

With fall camp just wrapped up and the team preparing for its season-opening matchup against NIU, there is simply a lot we just don’t know about this Eagle squad. Until we see how this revamped O-line looks in both the run and pass game, or how the new secondary transfers look on game day, it makes it very hard to predict BC’s outlook. Therefore, take these gambling predictions with a grain of salt — there are a massive range of outcomes that could happen on Saturday.

With that said, I see two outcomes as the most likely as BC takes on NIU: either a), BC comes out hungry and significantly improved (especially on the offensive line) from last year’s debacle and post a dominant win, or b) Hafley’s praise of his team has truly just been preseason fluff and BC gets humiliated similar to last year’s opener against Rutgers.

Now, this NIU squad also went 3-9 last season, getting blown out by the likes of Akron and Toledo although only losing by 8 to Kentucky. NIU did not collect a win against a P5 opponent, and moreover the team is dealing with turnover in the RB room of a run-dominant offense. While the offense still features several playmakers — QB Rocky Lombardi and WR Trayvon Rudolph especially drew praise from Hafley — BC should in general have a size and athleticism advantage.

At the time of writing, the spread sits at BC -8.5, with moneyline at -340 and the O/U at 50.5. I think BC will cover; I genuinely do believe that the offensive line will prove serviceable enough to allow BC to establish a run game and therefore open up the passing game. Even with BC’s awful line last year, they still managed to come away with wins against teams such as Louisville and NC State. With nowhere for this line to go but up, I think BC will have the offensive advantage. Defensively, BC as a P5 school should have better athletes at almost every position, and in an early-season contest with little available tape that gives BC a big edge. I like BC -8.5 and the Over with a score of something like 31-21, but I would avoid BC’s moneyline. There simply isn’t enough value to risk betting on a team that was one of the worst in the country last year at -340.