Neither the UCLA Bruins nor the Illinois Fighting Illini have played a good game in quite some time. Both team’s head coaches have been fired, but both are still going to try to get their 2011 season ended in fine form as they duke it out at AT&T Park. We’re all set to make our Kraft Fight Hunger Bowl predictions!

Kraft Fight Hunger Bowl: UCLA Bruins vs. Illinois Fighting Illini
Kraft Fight Hunger Bowl Location: AT&T Park, San Francisco, CA
Kraft Fight Hunger Bowl Date/Time: Saturday, December 31st, 3:30 p.m. (ET)
Kraft Fight Hunger Bowl Television Coverage: ESPN, ESPN3.com

Click Here For The Rest Of The 2011-12 Bowl Game Schedule And Other Bowl Game Previews

Key #1: Illinois’ offense can’t be a no show again
This really has been the problem with the Illini down the stretch this season. The team didn’t score more than 17 points in a game in the last month and a half of the year, and the end result was six losses and just a 2-4 ATS record. Illinois definitely has some talent to work with, as QB Nathan Scheelhaase has the tools to be one of the best quarterbacks in the Big Ten. The problem this year is that he really just didn’t progress as the year went on. Scheelhaase had basically identical passing numbers to what he had in his freshman campaign, but he rushed for 514 yards and averaged 3.0 yards per carry as opposed to the 868 yards and 4.7 yards per carry that he had as a frosh. He and his offensive mates badly need to play better football in this bowl game, because 17 points won’t cut it against a UCLA defense which has been prone to allowing some big time numbers on the scoreboard.

Kraft Fight Hunger Bowl Odds at Wager Web Sportsbook
UCLA Bruins +2.5
Illinois Fighting Illini -2.5
Over/Under 47
Click Here to Bet The Kraft Fight Hunger Bowl Picks!

Key #2: Kevin Prince has to go the whole way and avoid big hits
QB Richard Brehaut was suspended for the Fight Hunger Bowl, so that really just leaves Prince to take snaps for the Bruins. Unfortunately in his career, Prince has had a bad habit of taking a lot of unnecessary shots that have caused a number of injuries. Brehaut has been there to pick up the slack for the most part, but now he isn’t, and Prince is going to have to be careful as a result. That means that running the ball is going to have to be slowed just a bit, as he toted the rock 110 times on the campaign. Getting the ball into the hands of RBs Johnathan Franklin and Derrick Coleman more frequently would help out dramatically as well. If the offensive line doesn’t give Prince time to get the ball up the field to WR Nelson Rosario though, it could be a long, long day for the UCLA offense.

Key #3: Josh Smith has to break a strong Illinois defense
The Illini ranked No. 7 in the land this year in total defense at 291.8 yards per game, and for the most part, they really did a nice job containing the home run hitters on opposing teams. Illinois allowed fewer TDs of 30+ yards than any other team in the Big Ten this season, and that’s really saying something for a club that only went 6-6 and didn’t win a game in the last month and a half of the campaign. Smith, a senior wide receiver, does a little bit of everything for this team, and the Bruins just love to get the ball in his hands for good reason. He rushed for 26 yards and a TD, caught eight passes for 183 yards and a TD and returned 48 kicks for a whopping total of 1,117 yards and a score as well. If Smith finds a way to break through this tough unit both on defense and special teams, UCLA will have a great chance at sparking the upset. However, if neither he nor any of his teammates can get the job done, the Bruins are going to be in a heck of a lot of trouble.

Click Here to get the best college football picks that you’ll find on the internet, including our Kraft Fight Hunger Bowl picks and the NCAA football picks for the rest of the bowl game odds.

The first annual Pac-12 Championship Game kicks off on Friday night at Autzen Stadium, as the Oregon Ducks vs. UCLA Bruins odds will be contested. The team that makes for great college football picks in this one will end up playing on January 2nd in the Rose Bowl!

Pac-12 Championship Game: UCLA Bruins vs. Oregon Ducks
Pac-12 Championship Game Location: Autzen Stadium, Eugene, OR
Pac-12 Championship Game Date/Time: Friday, December 2nd, 8:00 p.m. (ET)
Pac-12 Championship Game Television Schedule: FOX Sports

Key #1: UCLA has to show some heart
It goes without saying that the Bruins are the decided underdogs in this game, and everyone is just expecting them to lay down and die on Friday night. This is the last time that Head Coach Rick Neuheisel will get to coach the Bruins, and the team might be brutally disappointed, especially knowing that a bowl game would require a petition to the NCAA if this one is lost. Last week, UCLA just looked like it gave up after the first quarter against the USC Trojans, a game that ended 50-0, and if it isn’t going to show any more intensity than that on Friday, the final score could be a heck of a lot worse than that.

Pac-12 Championship Game Odds at Wager Web Sportsbook
UCLA Bruins +31.5
Oregon Ducks -31.5
Over/Under 66.5
Click Here to Bet on Your Pac-12 Championship Game Picks!Key #2: LaMichael James needs to play like a Heisman Trophy contender
There is a real chance for James to be a finalist for the Heisman Trophy this year in spite of the fact that he missed two full games and pieces of others due to injury. He still has 1,427 rushing yards and 15 scores on the campaign, and he has the ability to go for over 200 yards on any team in America. UCLA’s defense ranks No. 81 in the country against the rush, and if that unit doesn’t improve, not only will James get 200+ yards on the ground, but RB Kenjon Barner might be over 100 by the time the day is said and done as well. Head Coach Chip Kelly isn’t shy and has no problem beating a team by 70 points and keeping the starters in for at least the first three quarters regardless of what the scoreboard says. If this really is James’ last home game, expect it to be a special one, as Kelly is going to do everything in his power to make sure that his best player is in New York for the Heisman Trophy presentation.

Key #3: UCLA has to hit the big play
We know that the Ducks are going to have a number of plays that travel at least 30 yards on Friday night, especially at home, but UCLA has to take advantage of its chances as well. Oregon doesn’t have the greatest defense in the world, and just as its offense plays with a lot of spunk, its defense does as well. Sometimes, that leaves the Ducks out of position and prone to the big play. Last week, QB Kevin Prince had his chances to hit players like WR Shaq Evans and WR Nelson Rosario down the field, until the last drive of the game, it just didn’t happen. Neuheisel is surely going to use every last trick that he has in his bag to get his team to Pasadena in shocking fashion, but when those tricks come out, the Bruins have to capitalize.

It’s here! Our 2010 college football picks are ready and raring to go here at Bankroll Sports, and to get you ready for the first week of play, we’ve got the list of only the best NCAA football trends that can point you in the right direction towards cashing in on a slew of winners! Get your college football betting season off on the right foot with these hot college football trends!

Thursday, September 2nd: Pittsburgh Panthers @ Utah Utes
Trends of Note
-The Panthers are only 2-6 ATS in their L/8 games played in the month of September
-Utah is a whopping 27-12-1 ATS in its L/40 games played outside of the MWC
-The Utes are 10-4-1 ATS in their L/15 home games

Series History
Utah defeated the Panthers 35-7 in the Fiesta Bowl in 2005, marking the first time that a non-BCS team went to one of college football’s premier bowl games. The Utes destroyed the 14 point spread that day and made an embarrassment out of U-Pitt, the Big East champs for that year.

Friday, September 3rd: Arizona Wildcats @ Toledo Rockets
Trends of Note
-The Wildcats are just 2-7 ATS in their L/9 road games
-Arizona is 0-4 ATS in its L/4 games played outside of the Pac-10
-Toledo is just 1-4 ATS in its L/5 games overall dating back to last year

Series History
These two teams have met twice before, in 2008 and in 1985. Arizona won both games, crushing the Rockets 41-16 in ’08 and easing to a 23-10 decision two and a half decades ago. Young RBs Nick Grigsby and Keola Antolin, both of which are still around for the Cats, combined to rush the ball 29 times for 157 yards and three TDs in the victory two years ago.

Saturday, September 4th: UCLA Bruins @ Kansas State Wildcats
Trends of Note
-The Bruins are a perfect 5-0 ATS in their L/5 non-conference tussles
-UCLA is 34-16-2 ATS in its L/52 games played in September
-K-State is 4-1 ATS in its L/5 home games and 5-1 ATS in its L/6 overall
-The Wildcats are just 5-17 ATS in their L/22 non Big XII games

Series History
Last year, the Bruins used a stifling defense and 119 rushing yards from RB Johnathan Franklin to roll to a 23-9 victory over the Wildcats. That was the only lifetime meeting of these two schools prior to this week’s NCAA football betting bash in Manhattan.

Saturday, September 4th: Connecticut Huskies @ Michigan Wolverines
Trends of Note
-The Huskies are 7-0 ATS in their L/7 road games and are 12-2 ATS in their L/14 overall
-UConn is 34-16-1 ATS in its L/51 non-conference clashes
-Michigan is 4-1 ATS from last September

Series History
First meeting

Saturday, September 4th: LSU Tigers vs. North Carolina Tar Heels
Trends of Note
-The Tigers have covered four straight NCAA football spreads against the ACC and 15-7 ATS in their L/22 non-SEC duels
-LSU is 4-1-1 ATS in its L/6 neutral site games
-North Carolina failed to cover both spreads last season against the other five BCS conferences

Series History
You have to go back to 1985 and 1986 to find the last two times that these teams met. LSU won both games and covered both spreads, winning 30-3 in the Bayou and 23-13 on Tobacco Road.

Saturday, September 4th: Oregon State Beavers @ TCU Horned Frogs
Trends of Note
-Oregon State is 23-9 ATS in its L/32 games overall
-The Beavers are 8-21-1 ATS in their L/30 games played in the first month of the season
-TCU is 6-2 ATS in its L/8 games overall

Series History
First meeting

Sunday, September 5th: SMU Mustangs @ Texas Tech Red Raiders
Trends of Note
-SMU has gone 4-1 ATS in its L/5 road games
-The Mustangs are just 3-13-1 ATS in their L/17 games against the Big 12
-Texas Tech is 3-1-1 ATS in its L/5 games played in the month of September

Series History
The home team is 4-1-1 ATS in the L/6 clashes of these Lone Star State rivals. The Red Raiders are 3-1-1 ATS in their L/5 and 6-2-1 ATS in their L/9 against SMU. Two years ago, the Mustangs were defeated 43-7 by T-Tech, marking the third straight year in which they were beaten by at least 32 points in this series. SMU hasn’t covered a college football betting line in this rivalry since 2004, a 27-13 win for the Red Raiders. The Mustangs haven’t won a game in this series for two decades.

Monday, September 6th: Boise State Broncos vs. Virginia Tech Hokies
Trends of Note
-The Broncos are 7-1 ATS in their L/8 games played outside the WAC
-Boise State is 17-7-1 ATS in its L/25 games overall
-Virginia Tech has covered five straight spreads
-The Hokies are just 4-9 ATS in their L/13 games played in September

Series History
First meeting