College Football Picks

Notre Dame heads down to Blacksburg to battle Virginia Tech in a primetime Saturday night game on ABC. This is only the second all time meeting between the teams, with the Hokies having won the only prior matchup 34-31 back in 2016 as a 2 point road dog. The spread is inside a touchdown once again for Saturday’s matchup. Mike Mann looks at the game and predicts if we will see another close game from these two teams.

No one is going to confuse Indiana with being a top team in the Big Ten but coach Tom Allen has done well to make sure the Hoosiers have no glaring weaknesses. Indiana comes into the week ranked in the 60’s in passing, rushing and total yards. Is that kind of output good enough to stay within the 25 point spread versus Ohio State? Ted Walker gives his free pick.

If you look back at the few games where this match-up of Florida-LSU yielded a high scoring final, both teams had big name offensive talent that came through under the lights. This year’s version of the rivalry does not offer those offensive headliners. If a bettor looks at the rosters on paper, they may gravitate to the under but is that where the betting value is? Jay Horne gives his prediction.

After losing a shocker to Maryland to kick off 2018, the Texas Longhorns are looking like the team that was talked about as a contender for the Big 12 title. A win versus 5-0 Oklahoma, whose favored by 7, would put Texas right back in the mix but is that too tall an order? Keith Franks gives his prediction.

Bulldog Nation enjoyed a 38-12 victory over one of their biggest rivals, the Tennessee Volunteers last Saturday. Bookmakers assigned a spread that were weren’t used to seeing in this matchup. Georgia closed as a 30.5 favorite. Bulldog/Volunteer games are often known as hard-fought thrillers settled by one play or possession. Sportsbook’s and bettor respect Georgia and rightfully so. This week they are looking at a 26.5 spread and Keith Franks explains why Georgia is his pick to beat it.

BYU’s time as a Top 25 team was short lived after a terrible loss to no. 11 Washington last Saturday. The Cougars not only lost to a better football team but they gave an awful performance. There is no other way to say it. For whatever reason, this team has been up and down all year. Which BYU team will we see on Friday? Jay Horne makes his prediction and advises on how to bet your bookie.

Jay Horne has been covering Alabama weekly. For this football pick Jay analyzes the October 6th opponent Arkansas and reasons for and against betting Bama -34 at the sportsbooks. “Arkansas’ biggest problems have been on the offensive side of the ball. The Razorbacks rank 109th in total offense averaging 349 yards per game and 103rd in scoring, averaging 23.8 points per game. The quarterback position has been a disaster with Ty Storey and Cole Kelley completing just 50% of their passes and combining to throw 7 touchdown passes with 8 interceptions. “

Thursday’s conference meeting between Tulsa and Houston is slated to be a 17 point mismatch. Betting sites are currently showing lines from 17 to 18. Tulsa has been terrible in all aspects of their offense illustrated by their 105th ranking in total offense and 101st in points. Making matters worse, they don’t have any solutions. QB Luke Skipper has tossed more interceptions than touchdowns. Does the line does take all of this into account? Jay Horne handicaps the game and gives his Thursday college football pick!

Some people will compare Ole Miss’s 62-7 blowout defeat to Alabama as an indicator of how they will move the football against LSU. LSU is very close to Alabama in defensive talent and is even better in the secondary. But, they do not have the better pass rush and that’s what caused Ta’amu to have his worst game of the season against the Crimson Tide. Does that mean a higher scoring game here? Jay Horne makes his prediction.

The Clemson defensive line is one of the best in the country but this is not the best match-up for them. Syracuse quarterback Eric Dungey is a dangerous dual threat. Dungey has been great with 9 touchdowns, only 1 pick and he leads the Orange in rushing. Will his play be able to keep the Orange within 25? Jay Horne has his pick!

Cal is off to a nice 3-0 start. Wins over UNC and certainly Idaho St. don’t get the blood pumping, but a win over a BYU team that beat Wisconsin on the road the following week puts a different light on Cal football. Can they take out an Oregon team that’s favored by a field goal?

Last week the Sooners were taken to overtime by visiting Army, who in an eerily similar fashion to Iowa State in 2017, came into the fixture as a 30-point underdog. Will Oklahoma look to put away this week’s big dog early in the contest? Keith Franks gives his prediction.

When you have an offense that struggles, it’s hard to overcome. When you have an offense that struggles against an elite SEC defense, it takes things from bad to worse, much worse. Not only has Tennessee’s quarterback play been poor but the offensive line might be the biggest liability. This scenario leads Jay Horne to offer two picks for Saturday.

Kansas State looked like a shell of itself when it traveled to No. 12 West Virginia, last Saturday. The Mountaineers would dominate the Wildcats and hand them a 35-6 loss in Morgantown. Which Kansas State team we will see against the Longhorns? Keith Franks gives his prediction.

The Achilles’ heel of this Texas Tech bunch has always been their lack of a defense. The Red Raiders own the 110th ranked passing defense, surrendering 288 yards per game. Keith Franks looks at if this is enough reason to play WVU -3.5 on Saturday.

Two 3-1 teams go at it Saturday, September 29, 2018 when the BYU Cougars visit the Washington Huskies. Unfortunately for BYU that record may be where the similarities in these two teams end. Sportsbooks list BYU as 17 to 18 point underdogs. Loot breaks down the match up to project who covers Saturday night.