Iowa vs Maryland Odds, Spread, and Best Bet

• Iowa and Maryland square off in a key Big Ten game at 8pm Friday night on FS1
• Maryland opened as 4.5 point underdog but number has seen sharp action all the way down to 3
• Read below for odds, breakdown and prediction

Two of the bigger surprises of the Big Ten meet on Friday night when undefeated Maryland host undefeated #5 Iowa on FS1 at 8PM.

Iowa has quickly become a serious threat to take its share of spoils in the College Football Playoff. While they haven’t always been dominant, they’ve gotten the job done. The Hawkeyes easily passed it’s two toughest tests to begin the season, Iowa State and Indiana, with a combined 38-point margin of victory.

Maryland are looking to see how far this hot start can take them. This Terrapin team remains a relative unknown, but have defeated West Virginia en-route to a perfect start as well. With Maryland sports betting launching later this year, fans in the DMV will be hoping this is a breakthrough season for Mike Locksley.

Iowa vs Maryland Odds

There are a few trends that skew the way of Iowa in this one:

• Iowa is actually 12-3 ATS in it’s last 15 road games against a defensive team averaging 17.5 or less PPG
• Iowa is 5-0 in the last two seasons ATS against a team allowing 3.5 yards or less per carry.

The point? Not only do they win, but they cover the ugly ones.

Taulia Tagovailoa the Story for Maryland

Doesn’t it seem odd that the younger of former Heisman Trophy runner up could be unheralded? That’s exactly what’s happened to Taulia. The younger brother of Tua, Quarterback Taulia Tagovailoa, has been brilliant. So brilliant that it feels like the most under-talked about story of the young season.

Highest-graded QBs on 20+ yard throws🚀

1. Taulia Tagovailoa, Maryland – 97.5
2. Kedon Slovis, USC – 95.5
3. Brennan Armstrong, Virginia – 95.1 pic.twitter.com/tfVP5Pcuh3

— PFF College (@PFF_College) September 23, 2021

The Maryland offense has hummed and he has driven it. He’s hitting an impressive 76% of his passes. He’s averaged over 300 yards per game with 10 touchdowns and one interception.

Consider this: through four games Taulia has hit on a higher rate of passes and for more yards per game than his older brother.

The one unknown in this season is how Taulia will respond to pressure in the pocket. To his benefit, Taulia can move the pocket and get himself out of tight situations. In the toughest two challenges of the season, West Virginia and Illinois’ front sevens posted pedestrian havoc ratings. If he responds well on Friday and Maryland pulls off the upset, he will no longer be underappreciated.

Iowa Finds Ways to Win

When someone says the above about a team, it almost feels like it’s used unflatteringly. But with the Hawkeyes, it’s true and impressive. Iowa is a very solid team all around. The offense isn’t impressive but they always make the right play at the right time.

The front seven doesn’t post a bunch of sacks but nobody runs the ball well against them. The secondary? It may be the most impressive part of the team.

Iowa is the ONLY team in College Football with two 85+ graded CBs:

🔒 Riley Moss – 90.5

🔒 Matt Hankins – 87.2 pic.twitter.com/fKlqBxLRwC

— PFF College (@PFF_College) September 16, 2021

When Iowa notched it’s impressive back-to-back wins to open the season, it’s secondary was a big reason why. They were lights out. They’ve allowed just 5.2 yards per pass against Power 5 opponents, a mark that is second best in the country. Against Indiana, they allowed just four open-field yards. Its defensive backs posted an impressive 1.51 havoc rating. The next week against Iowa State, the story was much the same.

Iowa’s defense is led by a committee. That fits who they are as a program. But if you had to highlight one player, I’d pick Senior DB Riley Moss. He has two interceptions on the season. He has two touchdowns off those interceptions on the season. He’ll have his hands full on Friday against an impressive receiving duo for Maryland.

Prediction

There are a few things that are safe to say in this game. One is that Iowa doesn’t allow big, explosive plays. They are third in the country for fewest plays allowed under 20 yards or less. Two is that Maryland thrives on the big play. Maryland is sixth in the country in plays over 20 yards or less. I’m gonna say it favors the defense.

I believe that the Iowa defense is a cut above the West Virginia defense. The team Maryland defeated to open the season. Oddly enough, when Maryland has looked it’s most sluggish is when it faced one of the worst defenses in the country in Illinois. This is a tough game to handicap but I feel comfortable siding with the Hawkeyes. I wouldn’t play it above the key number of 3 that it has now fallen to.

• Iowa -3 (-115)