The Northwestern Wildcats, after an Sportsbook week victory at Cal, shoot for a 2-0 start when they host the Syracuse Orange of the ACC Saturday in Evanston (6 pm ET, Big Ten Network).

In the early wagering the 'Cats, who beat the 'Cuse in a thriller last year 42-41, were favored by 11 points over the Orange, who are coming off a tough Week 1 loss to Penn State.



View Syracuse vs Northwestern Odds and Stats.

Betting Line: Bettors looking to back the visiting Orange in this one found them as 12-point underdogs on the Sportsbook college football point spread at Sportsbook. Bookmark the college football odds pages to see where the over under number opens in this game.

Power Rankings / Prediction: The OddsShark Power Rankings have the Wildcats at No. 76 and the Orange at No. 66 heading into this contest. Handicapping models project a 42-22 result in favor of the Wildcats.



How They Match Up:
Offensively, the game matches up Northwestern's No. 24-ranked offense (44 PPG) against a Orange defense that ranks No. 52 at 23 PPG. The Wildcats passing attack has averaged 299 yards per game, more than the Orange give up through the air (296 YPG on average).



Syracuse lost its last outing, a 23-17 result against Penn State on August 31. Syracuse covered in that game as a 8-point underdog, while the 40 combined points took the game UNDER the total. The Orange suffered a Week 1 loss against Penn State in their last game, falling 23-17 at MetLife Stadium.

Northwestern won its last outing, a 44-30 result against California on August 31. Northwestern covered in that game as a 6-point favorite, while the 74 combined points took the game OVER the total. Treyvon Green tore up the turf for 129 rushing yards in the latest Wildcats game, a 44-30 win over the Golden Bears at California Memorial Stadium.


Syracuse Orange Trends:
When playing in September are 6-4
When playing on grass are 5-5
After being outgained are 5-5
When playing outside the conference are 5-5

Northwestern Wildcats Trends:
When playing in September are 9-1
When playing on grass are 8-2
After being outgained are 4-6
When playing outside the conference are 8-2

A few Orange at Wildcats trends to consider:
Syracuse is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Syracuse's last 5 games on the road
The total has gone OVER in 6 of Syracuse's last 8 games
Syracuse is 3-6 SU in its last 9 games on the road
Northwestern is 6-1 SU in its last 7 games at home
Northwestern is 5-1 SU in its last 6 games


Next up:
Syracuse home to Wagner, Saturday, September 14
Northwestern home to Western Michigan, Saturday, September 14