2022 Northern Illinois Huskies Betting Odds, Picks & Predictions

Daniel Dobish Sports Betting Expert

4 minute read

2022 NORTHERN ILLINOIS HUSKIES BETTING ODDS, PREDICTIONS, PREVIEW

The 2021 Northern Illinois Huskies registered a surprising win at Georgia Tech to start the season, and received $1M for its troubles of traveling to Atlanta. Not a bad deal. Things didn't go as well two weeks later in The Big House. While NIU received $1.5M for that game, it went according to plan, and Michigan showed the Huskies how far away they were.

Well, NIU wasn't too far away from contending. It just wasn't ready for the big time. Heading into conference play, the Huskies were 2-2, and they ended up going 4-0 to start. A narrow loss in an epic 52-47 mid-week game in November at Kent State served as a preview for the MAC Championship Game. NIU just seemed to find ways to get it done down the stretch, escaping upset bids from Ball State and Buffalo. On Dec. 4, they throttled Kent State 41-23 for the MAC title game trophy, exactly some revenge. Unfortunately for the Huskies, they came up short in a high-scoring 47-41 loss in the Cure Bowl.

The good news for head coach Thomas Hammock is that QB Rocky Lombardi is back to guide what was a productive offense in 2021. RBs Antario Brown (69-433-4) and Harrison Waylee (101-574-3) will work together to replace the productive RB Jeyvon Ducker, who went over 1,000 yards in the regular season. Ducker left via the transfer portal to try his hand at Memphis. The running backs will have a strong offensive line featuring four returning starters and plenty of depth to guide them.

Lombardi will also be pleased WR Trayvon Rudolph is back in the mix. He rolled up 877 receiving yards and seven touchdowns in the regular season, including a ridiculous 14 grabs and 309 yards with three scores at Kent State in the regular season loss. WR Cole Tucker (35-488-2) also returns.

The defense needs to be better, and it will be. The D is littered with returning players, but they'll be pushed by additions through the portal and in recruiting.

NIU should get off to a very quick start, perhaps even 3-0 with a second straight season topping a Power 5 team as Vanderbilt visits DeKalb in mid-September. The conference slate sets up well for them, and the Huskies miss Kent State in the crossover game this season, as well as Buffalo and Bowling Green. The toughest conference games are all at home. This is a team which should easily eclipse the OVER in wins, and is one of my favorite plays in all of college football, and an even better value if you can still find OVER 6.5 wins.

Best Bet: Northern Illinois OVER 7 (+110)

2022 NORTHERN ILLINOIS HUSKIES SCHEDULE

• Thu., Sept. 1 - vs. EIU
• Sat., Sept. 10 - at Tulsa
• Sat., Sept. 17 - vs. Vanderbilt
• Sat., Sept. 24 - at Kentucky
• Sat., Oct. 1 - at Ball State
• Sat., Oct. 8 - vs. Toledo
• Sat., Oct. 15 - at Eastern Michigan
• Sat., Oct. 22 - at Ohio
• Wed., Nov. 2 - vs. Central Michigan
• Wed., Nov. 9 - at Western Michigan
• Wed., Nov. 16 - vs. Miami-Ohio
• Sat., Nov. 26 - vs. Akron

WIN TOTAL ODDS

• Over 7 (+110)
• Under 7 (-130)

NORTHERN ILLINOIS HUSKIES ODDS TO WIN MAC CHAMPIONSHIP

+400

Northern Illinois picked up the MAC Championship Game win last season, and return mostly the same cast, sans Ducker. If Brown and Waylee can fill the shoes of the departed Ducker, this is going to be a team to contend with again. NIU-Miami looks like a very good possibility in Detroit, and the Huskies are worth rolling the dice on for the chance to quadruple up.

NORTHERN ILLINOIS HUSKIES ODDS TO WIN NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP

+200000

Fun fact. The Huskies added QB Justin Lynch from Temple via the transfer portal. He is the younger brother of former standout QB Jordan Lynch, who led NIU to the Orange Bowl under the tutelage of Dave Doeren back in 2013. That was the high point of Huskies football. It won't get much better, and this team will be out of contention for the national title officially when it loses at Kentucky. Truth be told, though, they never had a shot to begin with, and even the most devoted fan knows this.

NORTHERN ILLINOIS HUSKIES 2022 HEISMAN CONTENDERS & ODDS

The Northern Illinois Huskies do not have any Heisman contenders to begin the 2022 season

2021 NORTHERN ILLINOIS HUSKIES BETTING RESULTS

• SU: 9-5
• ATS: 9-4-1
• O/U: 8-6
• ATS-Home: 4-2-1
• ATS-Road: 5-2
• ATS-Favorite: 2-1
• ATS-Underdog: 7-3-1

MORE CONFERENCE ODDS

Daniel Dobish

Dan is a handicapper and sports betting expert for VegasInsider with years of experience writing for a number of top publications in the industry. More from Daniel Dobish