There are good and bad news for the Wisconsin Badgers, and the goodest of the good – NCAA football betting-wise – is probably the fact that they open their season against underdogs the Utah State Aggies.
- Date: Friday, September 1st
- Time: 9:05 PM
- Venue: Camp Randall Stadium, Madison, Wisconsin
- Online sportsbook college football game odds:
Utah State +28½ (-110) +3250
Wisconsin -28½ (-110) -7500
Going to the Wells once more
Like a little boy trapped in a well, the Aggies finished 2016 dead last in the Mountain Division of the Mountain West Conference with a 3-9 record – a career worst for head coach Matt Wells. “It stunk in terms of a won-loss record. That’s embarrassing for me in terms of the record — not the way our kids played, not the way the kids competed,” Wells told the Salt Lake Tribune. “When you have a season like that, it makes you go back and re-evaluate everything in your program.” And presumably your entire lot in life as well. The five-year USU head coach has been making a number of changes, such as upping the tempo during practice and putting his players in more competitive situations. And possibly giving them Alec Baldwin’s ‘always be closing’ speech on a daily basis.
The Aggies lost four games by a touchdown or less last season. “We’ve just got to find out a way to win. We have to close out close games,” senior running back Tonny Lindsey Jr. said. “We have to have that mindset that no one can beat us. When those tough games come, and there’s going to be tough games, you’ve just got to stay focused and limit the mistakes.”
Better to Orr on the side of caution
The bad news for Wisconsin NCAA football betting fans is that linebacker Jack Cichy’s days as a Badger may be over. The senior suffered a season-ending torn ACL in practice and the NCAA may not grant him another year of eligibility. And since hasn’t played a game in almost two seasons, his NFL prospects aren’t all that great either. All things considered, that’s not just bad news; it’s terrible news – mostly for Jack Cichy, that is.
A message from @jackCICHY pic.twitter.com/w3cdyleQ3b
— Wisconsin Football (@BadgerFootball) August 10, 2017
On the other hand, it’s great news for linebacker Chris Orr, who could return to the prominence he lost following a knee injury that sidelined him for 2016. According to Fox Sports, “Orr said that he feels a little faster and quicker this preseason.” Looks like somebody bought a Thesaurus. Orr will most likely take Cichy’s place alongside junior linebacker TJ Edwards – whose accolades include leading UW in tackles in straight seasons (one of only six Wisconsin linebackers to have done so since 1990) and the Cotton Bowl defensive MVP award. “Cich is not going away,” Edwards said, which made Orr nervous until it was explained to him that what Edwards meant was that he would be there for the team to provide moral support. Despite the loss of Cichy, moreover, the Badgers remain the NCAA football betting favourites against Utah State.