Nebraska Cornhuskers vs Minnesota Golden Gophers Prediction, 8/31/2023 College Football Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Nebraska Cornhuskers vs Minnesota Golden Gophers

Date: Thursday, August 31, 2023

Location: Huntington Bank Stadium in Minneapolis, MN

TV: FOX

Odds/Point Spread: Golden Gophers (-8)

Total/Over-Under: 43.5

The Minnesota Golden Gophers (9-4 last year) will try to defeat the Nebraska Cornhuskers (4-8 last season) at Huntington Bank Stadium on Thursday, August 31, 2023. Minnesota opens this contest as 8-point favorites. The betting total comes in at 43.5.

The Nebraska Cornhuskers ended the season having a 4-8 mark. The last time they stepped onto the field, the Cornhuskers went up against the Iowa Hawkeyes and notched a win by a score of 24-17. Casey Thompson went 20/30 with 278 yds passing and 3 touchdowns. He had a QB rating of 177.5 and ended the contest with no picks. Rahmir Johnson was the leader on the ground for the Cornhuskers with 12 totes for 52 yards (4.3 yds per attempt). Overall, they tallied 65 plays for 329 yards. The Nebraska Cornhuskers ran the football 35 different times and compiled 51 yds, which had them averaging 1.5 yards per tote. Against the run, the Cornhuskers conceded 124 yards on 33 tries, which calculates to 3.8 yds per run surrendered. Nebraska surrendered 17 pass completions on 39 tries for 150 yds, and a completion rate of 43.6%.

When talking about getting in the endzone, the Nebraska Cornhuskers averaged 22.6 points per contest. Offensively they averaged 123.3 yards rushing, which was 100th in the nation. The Cornhuskers earned 4,130 total yards last season. Nebraska compiled 17 touchdowns via the pass and 17 rushing touchdowns. Nebraska tallied 217 1st downs as a team, and they were called for 65 penalties for 510 yards. They turned the football over 19 different times.

Concerning passing yards, the Cornhuskers conceded 2,704 yards which had them sitting in 46th in the nation. During their 12 games played last season, they yielded 225.3 yards per contest via the pass in addition to surrendering a completion percentage of 59.7%. They granted 414.4 yards/contest which put them 100th in the nation. They gave up 18 touchdowns via the pass as well as 22 running touchdowns. Opposing teams ran for an average of 4.5 yards per rush and 189.1 rushing yards per game last year. During the campaign, they gave up 2,269 running yards through 12 outings. The Cornhuskers were sitting in 77th in D-1 concerning team defense, allowing 27.6 points per contest.

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The Golden Gophers ended the season with a 9-4 mark. When they last stepped on the gridiron, the Golden Gophers got the victory with a final of 28-20 when they faced the Syracuse Orange. Athan Kaliakmanis walked away from the game with 80 yards on 7/9 passing while his QB rate was 152.4. He didn't throw any interceptions and his average yards per attempt was 8.9. Mohamed Ibrahim ran the football 16 times for 71 yds, finishing the game with 4.4 yds per carry for Minnesota. Minnesota rushed the football for 2.3 yds per carry, finishing with a total of 77 yards on 33 carries. The Golden Gophers ended up finishing with 215 yds while they ran 49 plays (4.4 yds per play). The Golden Gophers secondary gave up a completion rate of 62.3%, surrendering 335 yds on 33 for 53 passing. Minnesota gave up 34 attempts on the ground for 147 yds (4.3 yds per rush).

The Minnesota Golden Gophers averaged 389.5 yards per contest, which ranked them 65th in college football. The Minnesota offense compiled 413 yards of penalties on 46 infractions, ranking them 131st in the nation in terms of giving up free yards. For the previous year, the Golden Gophers compiled 2,369 passing yards together with an average of 182.2 passing yards per outing, which was ranked 116th in D-1. In relation to the points being put on the board, the Golden Gophers earned a ranking of 67th in Division 1 with a maintained average of 28.2 PPG.

The Golden Gophers surrendered 13.8 PPG, which put them in 4th in Division 1. Minnesota allowed a total of 1,417 yards rushing (109.0 yards per contest) and 10 touchdowns via the rush last year. Over the course of the season, they allowed 179 total points. They surrendered 8 touchdowns via the pass in addition to 186.1 yards/contest, which had them ranked 15th in the country. The Golden Gophers defense took the field for 772 plays, which had them ranked 11th in D-1.

Who will win tonight's Cornhuskers/Golden Gophers college football game against the spread?

Parlays Pundit's Pick: Take the Golden Gophers -8 and under 43.5 total points

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