Arizona hasn’t covered the spread in either of its two games this year, but that isn’t stopping Vegas from setting heavy odds in favor of the Wildcats ahead of their game against Northern Illinois.
Arizona has opened as 35.5-point favorite over NIU, according to DraftKings. The over/under is 50.5 points.
The Wildcats host a Huskies team coming off a 28-24 loss to FCS opponent Illinois State. In Week 1, NIU was shut out 40-0 against Iowa. Saturday marks the first ever meeting between the two programs.
As five-touchdown (and a half point) favorites, Arizona will need to be firing on all cylinders to cover the spread. In the season-opener against NAU, the Wildcats scored 35 points, which would have been enough to cover the 32.5-point spread, had backup quarterback Sawyer Anderson not thrown a pick six. Arizona has not covered a spread in its last three games, including the Holiday Bowl against SMU last season. The Huskies are 0-2 against the spread this season.
Arizona (1-1) faces NIU (0-2) on Saturday, September 19, at 7:30 PM MST at Casino Del Sol Stadium. The game will be on TNT, TruTV, and HBO Max.