Army invades Camp Randall when the 4-1 Black Knights hit Madtown Saturday night to take on the Big Ten’s Badgers. The Black Knights appear well on their way toward another bowl appearance while Wisconsin, with three losses already, has work to do.
The early betting on this game jumped on Bucky, who’s now favored by two full touchdowns. Which way are we going here with our free Week 7 college football pick?
Army-Wisconsin Betting Odds
This week’s college football betting lines opened Wisconsin at -11 with an over/under of around 42.5. Early betting action then steamed the Badgers three points to -14 and dropped that total three and a half points to 39.
Army Betting Preview
The Black Knights are 4-1 on the season after losing at Ball State two weeks ago, 28-16. Army then had last week off.
The Knights gave up a touchdown return on the opening kick-off against the Cardinals, trailed 21-0 in the first quarter but pulled to within 21-14 by halftime. But Army could get no closer from there, its only scoring in the second half, coming on a gift safety with two minutes left, falling outright as a 10-point favorite.
Army out-rushed Ball State 213-36 and dominated time of possession by a 38:22 split but gave up that KO return for a score and lost the turnover battle 2-0, resulting in a -7 points differential.
Knights starting QB Chris Anderson missed the Ball State game two weeks ago with a bad shoulder and is listed as questionable for Saturday night. But Army actually has a couple of guys who can play, so it should be OK at that spot.
The Black Knights opened this season with a 43-10 win over Georgia State, then beat Western Kentucky 38-35, then topped UConn 52-21, then beat Miami-Ohio 23-10. So while Army is 4-1, it hasn’t exactly played a Murderer’s Row of a schedule.
Wisconsin Betting Preview
The Badgers, meanwhile, are 2-3 on the season after blanking Illinois in Champaign last week 24-0. Wisconsin broke the ice with a field goal late in the first quarter, led 10-0 at the half, then drove its first possession of the second half 75 yards to a touchdown and eased home from there for the much-needed victory and the cover as a 12-point favorite.
The Badgers out-gained the Illini 491-93 (!), out-rushed Illinois 391-26, and dominated the time of possession by a 43:17 split.
Two weeks ago, Wisconsin looked bad and lost 38-17 at home to Michigan, and just before that, it looked kinda bad in a 41-13 loss to Notre Dame, although that game was closer than that score indicates.
The Badgers went off this season as the favorite to win the Big Ten West, but that does not look like it’s going to happen. And at 2-3 overall, Wisconsin needs four wins over its last seven games to become bowl-eligible, and that doesn’t look like any sure thing.
This is the first-ever meeting between these two programs. Wisconsin’s last meeting with a service academy team was a 38-0 victory over Air Force back in 1979, while Army’s previous meeting with a Big Ten opponent was a 24-21 double-overtime loss at Michigan just two seasons ago. The Cadets could have won that game outright and easily covered the spread as three-touchdown underdogs.
College Football Betting Trends
- Army is 2-7 SU but 5-4 ATS over the last five seasons against Power 5 foes.
- Wisconsin is 11-0 SU, 7-4 ATS over the last five seasons vs. non-Power 5 opponents.
Totals Report
Overs are 3-2 in Army games this season, which are averaging 55 total points.
The Under is 3-2 in Wisconsin games this season, which are averaging 40 points.
