Indiana Hoosiers vs Maryland Terrapins Point Spread Picks

Combine the Hoosiers (-1789) and the Jayhawks (-2625) and the Warriors (-473) into a 3-team parlay at -305 odds.

It would be easy to conclude that the Indiana offense is a powerhouse. The Hoosiers are 4-0 and already have more wins than all of last season. The offense has scored 205 points in four games on the season for an average of 51.3 PPG. That's the good news. What is missing is the other side of the story. Indiana beat Charlotte who is 1-3 with the only win vs. FCS Gardner Webb by one point. They beat UCLA, who has one win, notched a three point win over Hawaii, who is 1-2 vs. the FBS. They beat a weak FBS team in Western Illinois scoring 77. They also beat Florida International, who just lost to a very weak Monmouth team. Maryland is on a whole different level defensively allowing 16.7 PPG. I don't think the Hoosiers have proven their gaudy offensive numbers vs all. horrible teams. Make the play UNDER the total.

The Indiana Hoosiers are going to have a long season. The one thing they have shown in their first four games is a gritty defense that held Ohio St. to 23 points, and Louisville to 21. Maryland has scored 37.3 PPG, but the Treps have played a ridiculously easy schedule so far and Indiana will be the first real defensive test. Maryland is a pass-first team, but Indiana has been elite against the pass and I don't think Maryland is going to be nearly as effective as they have been vs. four much softer defenses. The Maryland defense has been hard to score on as they are causing the offenses against them to gain 27 yards per point, which is a high number, in the bend-don't-break scheme of the Terps. I like the UNDER in this one.

Maryland endured a heartbreaking 31-29 loss to Purdue on Saturday when a two-point conversion attempt failed in the final seconds. However, Taulia Tagovailoa threw for 315 yards and three touchdowns for a 117.8 QB rating for the Terrapins, who held the Boilermakers to only 13 net rushing yards. Maryland is 4-2 straight up and ATS and its only other loss was 34-27 at Michigan and covering as a 17-point underdog. Coach Mike Locksley appears to have turned around the program and and the Terps had their first winning season since 2014 last year. They beat Indiana 38-35 last season and the Hoosiers have lost three in a row following last week's 31-10 defeat against Michigan although they did cover a 23.5-point spread. The Hoosiers are allowing 30.5 points per game and they are #118 in the country in pass defense. Maryland is #25 with 463.2 total offense yards while averaging 34.0 points. Maryland has covered its last four road contests and Indiana is 3-13 ATS its past 16 games overall and 3-12 ATS after losing by at least 20 points. Take Maryland.

Indiana went 6-1 last year, losing to No. 3 Ohio State, 42-35, while knocking off No. 16 Wisconsin on the road, 14-6, and beating No. 8 Penn State, 36-35. Indiana is 8-2 ATS as a road dog, and college football dogs of 3.5-10 points are 62-26 ATS when averaging 125 or fewer rushing yards. They've had a brutal schedule in 2021, facing five Top 20 teams in seven games. They lost all five, including 20-15 to unbeaten Michigan State, but they won the other two while scoring 94 points. After playing three Top 10 teams in a row, they finally catch a break in the schedule facing a Maryland squad that is on an 0-3 SU/ATS run and is also coming off of a 34-16 loss to Minnesota. Maryland is on a 5-13 spread run against Big 10 opponents and lost to Indiana the last two years, 34-28 and 27-11. Play Indiana.