Will Northern Illinois win its bowl game? Who experts are picking to win the Camellia Bowl

Wes Huett, Peoria Journal Star

The Northern Illinois Huskies football team faces the Arkansas State Red Wolves in the Camellia Bowl on Dec. 23, the school's 15th bowl appearance and first in this bowl.

NIU and coach Thomas Hammock won their final two games to secure bowl eligibility. Of the Huskies' six losses, five were by a touchdown or less.

Arkansas State is in its first bowl under third-year coach Butch Jones, who was 5-19 in his first two seasons. The former Tennessee coach and the Red Wolves are one of the Sun Belt Conference's 12 teams to make a bowl game in 2023.

Camellia Bowl: Five things to know before Arkansas State takes on Northern Illinois in the Camellia Bowl

As of Thursday morning, Northern Illinois (6-6) is about a half-point underdog against Arkansas State (6-6) in the 11 a.m. game at the Cramton Bowl in Montgomery, Alabama, in a matchup of Mid-American and Sun Belt conference teams. NIU has lost seven consecutive bowl games — and its last bowl victory came against Arkansas State in 2011. Arkansas State is 4-6 all-time in bowl games and won its last, in 2019.

Here is a look at which team college football experts are picking to win the matchup:

Sporting News

  • What they say: "Butch Jones pushed the Red Wolves to a bowl game despite a team that ranked 107th in scoring defense at 31.2 ppg. Antario Brown averages 6.2 yards per carry for the Huskies, who had five one-score losses this season. Northern Illinois breaks a seven-bowl losing streak."

  • Pick: NIU 30, Arkansas State 21

Clutchpoints.com

  • What they say: "Remember Butch Jones, the former Tennessee Volunteers head coach? Well, he's back in the postseason ... Good news for Jones is that he'll be facing a Northern Illinois team that has historically been atrocious in bowl games (4-10). History often has a way of repeating itself. Jones gets his first bowl game win since 2016."

  • Pick: Arkansas State 20, NIU 13

The Associated Press

  • What they say: "What if we told you there is a team that began the season allowing 73 points and then scored 77 late in the season? That’s Arkansas State."

  • Pick: Arkansas State 28, NIU 23.

2023 Camellia Bowl: Things to know about the game, plus ticket, parking information

Athlon Sports

  • What they say: All three of the website's experts have Arkansas State winning this one.

  • Pick: Arkansas State

USA TODAY

  • What they say: It's a split. Three of the site's experts pick each team.

  • Pick: Both

College Football News

  • What they say: Of the 18 CFN experts picking this game, 10 are picking Arkansas State. Although, Clucko the Chicken, who picks via coin flip, is all about Northern Illinois.

  • Pick: Arkansas State

NumberFire.com

  • What they say: The probability site used by Fanduel calls Northern Illinois a 52.9 percent favorite.

  • Pick: Northern Illinois

Fox Sports

  • What they say: "Butch Jones really turned things around in Jonesboro this season and enters the Camellia Bowl with an impressive amount of momentum against an NIU side which scrapped its way to eligibility."

  • Pick: Arkansas State

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Bleacher Report

  • What they say: "Since I've been terrible at predicting these two programs all season, please don't listen to me. Seriously, it's not great. They are thorns in my analytical hopes and dreams. Naturally, here they are squaring off in a virtual coin flip—which officially landed on NIU. Go Huskies?"

  • Pick: NIU 26, Arkansas State 23

The Athletic

  • What they say: It's a consensus: Six of the seven Athletic writers pick Northern Illinois while one picks Arkansas State

  • Pick: NIU

247 Sports

  • What they say: It's another split. The site's two experts make this one a virtual coin flip.

  • Pick: Both

This article originally appeared on Journal Star: Camellia Bowl prediction, pick: Northern Illinois vs. Arkansas State experts

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