The opening day of the college football bowl schedule concludes with the Northern Illinois Huskies taking on the Coastal Carolina Chanticleers in the Cure Bowl.
Northern Illinois made history in 2021, becoming the first team in college football history to go from winless one season to conference champion the next.
Coastal Carolina made program history a year ago with its first-ever bowl appearance, falling in overtime to Liberty. Will the Chanticleers find better luck in their second straight Cure Bowl appearance, or will Northern Illinois continue to pull off the improbable?
Read our full college football betting picks and predictions for the Cure Bowl between the Northern Illinois Huskies and the Coastal Carolina Chanticleers on Friday, December 17, to find out.
Northern Illinois vs Coastal Carolina odds
Odds via the Covers Line, an average comprised of odds from multiple sportsbooks.
Coastal Carolina opened -9.5 but was quickly bet up to -10 at most books. The total has jumped from 62.5 up to 64.
Use the live odds widget above to track any future line movements right up until kickoff and be sure to check out the full college football odds before placing your bets.
Northern Illinois vs Coastal Carolina predictions
- Prediction: Coastal Carolina -10 (-110)
- Prediction: Under 64 (-110)
- Best bet: Coastal Carolina -10 (-110)
Predictions made on 12/11/2021 at 1:30 p.m. ET.
Click on each prediction to jump to the full analysis.
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Northern Illinois vs Coastal Carolina game info
• Location: Exploria Stadium, Orlando, FL
• Date: Friday, December 17, 2021
• Time: 6:00 p.m. ET
• TV: ESPN 2
Northern Illinois vs Coastal Carolina betting preview
Weather
Be sure to monitor the gametime conditions with our NCAA football weather info.
Key injuries
Northern Illinois: Tyrice Richie WR (Questionable), Harrison Waylee RB (Out), Devin Lafayette S (Out).
Coastal Carolina: Reese White RB (Out), Xavier Gravette TE (Questionable).
Find our latest NCAA football injury reports.
Betting trend to know
The Huskies are 0-6 against the spread in their last six Bowl games. Find more NCAA betting trends for Northern Illinois vs Coastal Carolina. Find more NCAA betting trends for Northern Illinois vs. Coastal Carolina.
Northern Illinois vs Coastal Carolina picks and predictions
Our predictions are compiled from the analysis of the spread and total and are indications of where we are leaning for this game.
Our best bet is the play that we like the most for this game, which we would actually put some of our bankroll behind.
Spread analysis
Coastal Carolina has quickly become one of the best Group of 5 teams in the country under Jamey Chadwell. The Chanticleers have been on a program-defining run, accumulating a 21-3 record over the last two seasons. While the success story of Northern Illinois improving on a winless season by winning their conference the next is a wonderful story, we still believe the Huskies are in too deep in this matchup.
Coastal’s unique shotgun option offense has flummoxed opposing defenses for two straight years. Dual-threat Grayson McCall has been the perfect answer at quarterback, accumulating 5,862 total yards and 60 touchdowns over the last two seasons. The offense ranks 7th nationally with 492.3 yards per game and should have no trouble moving the ball against a soft Huskies defense that ranks 112th.
This matchup couldn’t be much worse for the Huskies. Their biggest weakness defensively is stopping the run — good luck slowing down a Coastal rushing attack that averaged 230.4 yards per game and 5.7 yards per rush. Northern Illinois does feature a top-5 rushing attack but faces a tough task against a Coastal defense that held five separate opponents under 100 yards on the ground.
This is a step up for the Huskies and a step down for the Chanticleers. Coastal’s three losses in the last two seasons have come against a 10-1 Liberty team a season ago, 10-3 Appalachian State, and to Georgia State in an upset in McCall's absence. This team and program are in uncharted territory, and they’ll be motivated to find a convincing win as they look for yet another program first: a bowl win.
Prediction: Coastal Carolina -10 (-110)
Over/Under analysis
For a team with such a high-powered offense, how did Coastal hit the under in seven of its 12 games? The Chanticleers are very efficient, but they operate at a slow pace with only 64.4 offensive plays per game. While they should move the ball against this weak Northern Illinois defense, this total seems too high when the favorite grinds out games as they do. Coastal and its opponents have combined for over 64 points only once in the last six games.
If Northern Illinois struggles to move the ball on the ground as well as they have against MAC competition, points may be hard to come by as the 105th-ranked passing attack has been ineffective all season long. A matchup with a tough Coastal defense ranking 18th in the country in yards allowed per game leads us to believe Northern Illinois isn’t a threat to light up the scoreboard.
Prediction: Under 64 (-110)
Best bet
This Coastal Carolina team has been on a tear for two straight seasons. They’re the better team and appear to match up well on both sides of the football.
In their second straight appearance in the Cure Bowl, the Chanticleers will be motivated to earn the program’s first-ever bowl victory. We’re riding with the mullets.
Pick: Coastal Carolina -10 (-110)
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