Teams that have not had a lot of recent success clash on Saturday when the UNLV Rebels of the Mountain West battle the Idaho State Bengals of the Big Sky Conference. This will be the earliest game in UNLV history. The Rebels are just 3-6 all-time in August games, and are looking to earn a season-opening victory for the first time since beating Southern Utah in 2019. It would also be only the third opening-game win in the last 13 years. Since beating Nevada in 2017, Idaho State is 0-7 against FBS schools.
The game from Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas will begin at 3:30 p.m. ET on CBS Sports Network. UNLV averaged 20.8 points per game last season, while Idaho State averaged 15.3. The Rebels are favored by 23 points in the latest Idaho State vs. UNLV odds from Caesars Sportsbook, while the over/under for total points scored is 50. Before making any UNLV vs. Idaho State picks, make sure you check out the college football experts from SportsLine expert Emory Hunt.
Hunt is the founder and CEO of Football Gameplan, which has been supplying analysis of all levels of football since 2007, and a former running back at Louisiana-Lafayette. He knows the game from a player's perspective. In addition, Hunt has gone an amazing 6-1 on his last seven picks involving UNLV, returning $490. Anyone who has followed him is way up.
Now, Hunt has set his sights on UNLV vs. Idaho State and just locked in his picks and CFB predictions. You can head to SportsLine now to see his picks. Now, here are several college football odds and betting lines for Idaho State vs. UNLV:
- UNLV vs. Idaho State spread: UNLV -23
- UNLV vs. Idaho State over/under: 50
- UNLV vs. Idaho State money line: UNLV -3500, Idaho State +1350
- ISU: The total has gone Over in 12 of the Bengals' last 16 games.
- UNLV: The Rebels are 6-3 against the spread in their last nine games.
- UNLV vs. Idaho State picks: See picks at SportsLine
Why UNLV can cover
With last year's starting quarterback Justin Rogers leaving the program, Tennessee transfer Harrison Bailey is expected to take the reins for the Rebels. After seeing a lot of action his freshmen year, Bailey played in just one game a year ago, taking the field against Tennessee Tech and completing 3 of 7 passes for 16 yards. His freshman season in 2020, he saw action in six games, completing 48 of 68 passes (70.6%) for 578 yards and four touchdowns with two interceptions. Bailey completed 14 of 18 passes (77.8%) for 207 yards and two touchdowns in a 42-17 win at Vanderbilt in the regular-season finale.
Defensively, the Rebels will have a healthy super senior in inside linebacker Austin Ajiake, who missed the final four games of last season due to injury. Ajiake was among the team leaders in tackles despite missing significant action. He finished second on the team with 74 tackles, including 43 solo, with one pass breakup. His best game was an 18-tackle performance in a 28-24 loss to Utah State
Why Idaho State can cover
Sophomore Christian Fredericksen moves into a prominent role on offense as one of the top two wide receivers on the depth chart. Fredericksen played in 10 games last year, making nine catches for 120 yards (13.3 average), including a long of 24 yards. His best game was a 34-yard receiving effort at Portland State. In the spring season of 2021, he appeared in six games, making 20 receptions for 243 yards, including a season high of 53 receiving yards against Southern Utah on March 6. He added a TD pass in an April 3 game vs. Idaho.
Sophomore Shane Dailey Jr. will be another weapon at receiver for the Bengals. Dailey finished third on the team in 2021 with 23 receptions for 237 yards (10.3 average), including a long of 24 yards. He appeared in all 11 games, catching six passes for 95 yards at Cal-Poly. He also returned five punts for 43 yards. He played the 2020-21 season at South Dakota State, playing in four games but did not register any statistics.
How to make Idaho State vs. UNLV picks
For Saturday's contest, Hunt is leaning Over on the total, and he's also isolated a critical X-factor he believes makes one side of the spread a must-back. He's sharing what it is, and which side of the spread he's backing, only at SportsLine.
So who wins UNLV vs. Idaho State? And which critical X-factor makes one side of the spread a must-back? Visit SportsLine now to find out which side of the spread you need to jump on Saturday, all from the expert who has crushed his college football picks, and find out.
