Citrus Bowl: Iowa vs Kentucky - 1/1/22 College Football Picks and Prediction
Photo by Caitie McMekin/News Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK
Kentucky Wildcats (9-3) vs Iowa Hawkeyes (10-3)
Game Info: Saturday, January 1, 2022 at 1:00 pm (Camping World Stadium)
Betting Odds: Kentucky Wildcats -3 -- Over/Under: 44 Click Here for the Latest Odds
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The Kentucky Wildcats will play the Iowa Hawkeyes in the VRBO Citrus Bowl on Saturday afternoon.
The Kentucky Wildcats are 9-3 this season and have won their last three games in a row. Kentucky finished conference play with a record of 5-3 in the East and finished second in the division. Kentucky has wins against UL Monroe, Missouri, Chattanooga, South Carolina, Florida, LSU, Vanderbilt, New Mexico State, and Louisville. Kentucky has losses against Georgia, Mississippi State, and Tennessee. Kentucky is averaging 32.8 points per game and is giving up 22.1 points per game against, while also averaging 225 passing yards per game and 206.1 rushing yards per game. Will Levis has completed 66.5% of his passes for 2,593 yards, 23 touchdowns, and 12 interceptions for the Wildcats. Chris Rodriguez Jr. has rushed for 1,272 yards and 8 touchdowns, while Wan’Dale Robinson has caught 94 passes for 1,164 yards and 7 scores.
The Iowa Hawkeyes are 10-3 this season and have won four of their last five games. Iowa finished 7-2 in the Big Ten West and finished first in the division. Iowa lost to Michigan in the Big Ten Championship game by a score of 42-3. Iowa has wins against Indiana, Iowa State, Kent State, Colorado State, Maryland, Penn State, Northwestern, Minnesota, Illinois, and Nebraska. Iowa has losses to Purdue, Wisconsin, and Michigan. Iowa is averaging 23.9 points per game and is giving up 19.2 points per game against, while also averaging 177.7 passing yards per game and 119.8 rushing yards per game. Iowa has not announced who the starting quarterback will be, but it will either be Spencer Petras or Alex Padilla. Petras has completed 56.6% of his passes for 1,669 yards, 9 touchdowns, and 6 interceptions, while Padilla has completed 49.1% of his passes for 636 yards, 2 touchdowns, and 2 interceptions this season for the Hawkeyes. Tyler Goodson, Iowa’s leading rusher, has opted out of this game. Gavin Williams has rushed for 207 yards and 6 touchdowns, while Sam LaPorta has caught 46 passes for 548 yards and 2 touchdowns.
Iowa is 4-1 ATS in their last 5 non-conference games and 2-5 ATS in their last 7 games. The over is 4-0 in Iowa’s last 4 games. Kentucky is 10-2 ATS in their last 12 non-conference games and 4-1 ATS in their last 5 Big Ten games. The over is 4-1 in Kentucky’s last 5 games.
Iowa looked lost offensively a few times throughout the season, but played very strong defense to make up for it. Not having Goodson is going to hurt the Hawkeyes and is going to create even more issues on offense. Kentucky has a much better offense than Iowa and is only giving up 22.1 points per game on defense. I do not like this Iowa team as I think they got very lucky in a few of their wins. I like Kentucky to win here and wouldn’t be surprised if the game was decided by double digits.
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David’s Pick Kentucky -3
AUTHOR: David Racey
Mitch's Take...
