This is a 10* on Illinois

Illinois is in a bowl for the first time under Lovie Smith, snapping what was a five-year drought. They last won a bowl game back in 2011. So what this team may lack in talent, it makes up for in motivation. During the regular season, the Illini went 6-1 ATS when they were underdogs and they won three of those games outright, all at +9.5 or higher. On the other side, there were only three times in the regular season where California was listed higher than -2 when facing a FBS team. They went 0-3 ATS in them and lost outright twice. So we're not sure why the Bears are laying so many here. Injuries were a big story for both teams this year and continue to be heading into the bowl game. Cal will be without three starters, the most important being safety Ashtyn Davis, who also doubled as a kick returned. For Illinois, both WR Josh Imatorbhebhe and LB Jake Hansen are gametime decisions. However, the Illini got great news with QB Peters being cleared to play. Disregard the way each team's regular season ended. This is a far more even matchup than the oddsmakers are letting on. Play on ILLINOIS

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