Illinois vs Kansas Prediction - College Football Picks 9/8/23

The Illinois Fighting Illini will play the Kansas Jayhawks on Friday night in a non-conference game at David Booth Kansas Memorial Stadium in Lawrence, Kansas. Illinois was barely able to avoid an upset in Week 1, while Kansas pulled away from Missouri State late. 

Illinois Preview

The Illinois Fighting Illini are 1-0 this season after they defeated Toledo by a score of 30-28 in their first game. Illinois trailed this game by a score of 12-7 at the half and they fell down 19-7 early in the third quarter, but they were able to get a huge pick six that changed the momentum. Illinois scored 21 straight points to go up 27-19, but watched as their lead slipped away. The Fighting Illini ended up getting a game winning field goal with five seconds left to avoid the loss. Illinois was out gained by a total of 416-374 and the turnover battle was tied at one. Illinois threw for 206 yards and rushed for 168 yards, while going 3-9 on third down attempts and 2-3 on fourth downs. The Illinois defense really struggled in this game and they were lucky to escape an upset. Luke Altmyer threw for 206 yards, two touchdowns, and one interception, while also adding 69 rushing yards. Reggie Love III rushed for 63 yards, while Pat Bryant caught six passes for 59 yards and two scores. Illinois will need to be a lot better against a Kansas team that has the ability to put up a lot of points.

Kansas Preview

The Kansas Jayhawks are 1-0 this season after they defeated Missouri State by a score of 48-17 in Week 1. Kansas trailed this game 10-7 early in the second quarter, but they scored 20 straight points to lead 27-10 going into the fourth quarter. In the fourth, Missouri State cut the lead to 27-17, before Kansas scored three straight touchdowns to end the game. Kansas out gained Missouri State by a total of 521-217 and forced two turnovers in the win. The Jayhawks threw for 276 yards and rushed for 245, while going 6-11 on third down attempts. The Kansas defense played well, as they should against a team like Missouri State, and they held them to 1-9 on third down conversions. Jason Bean threw for 276 yards and two touchdowns, while rushing for 41 yards. Devin Neal rushed for 94 yards and one score, while Lawrence Arnold caught four passes for 77 yards in the game. The Jayhawks didn’t play great to start the game, but they finished very strong in the fourth quarter.